NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas – A New Braunfels High School student is proving with love, determination and passion you can accomplish a lot.
“I like the hard work you get to put into it. How dedicated you have to be. You get to build a bond with a lot of the girls you work with,” Sierra Delgado, a student at New Braunfels High School said.
Delgado is a senior and captain of the cheer team.
“I’ve cheered since I was four. So, at a young age, I’ve always done it. I’ve always loved it,” Delgado said.
Her love for cheerleading motivated her to keep going after her life drastically changed freshman year.
“It started with pain shooting up my neck and down my arm. And at first, since I have always done competitive cheerleading, we thought it was a pinch nerve or some type of muscle spasm,” Delgado said.
After several tests, she was diagnosed with cancer.
“I was diagnosed with Acute T-Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia, so I can no longer cheer anymore or really do anything physical,” Delgado said.
Delgado says she did online learning, but was determined to get back to the cheer mat.
“Throughout my whole journey, I just learned that pain is temporary. Physical, mental, any type of pain is temporary. It might last longer than you wanted to, but it does go away, and you will start feeling better and you will get back to what your normal is,” Delgado said.
She returned to school junior year and became varsity cheer captain.
“She earned it. Two years in a row. She worked really, really hard for it. She is an amazing leader, not even just a cheerleader, she has amazing leadership skills. She’s great with her peers and she was meant to do great things,” Candace Dozier, head cheer coach at New Braunfels High School said.
With the love and support from her family, friends and cheer team, Sierra accomplished her goals and completed her cancer treatments.
“It’s been about a year that I’m cancer free,” Delgado said.
Delgado is excited for the future and says there’s nothing like cheerleading.
“It’s like an adrenaline rush, really exciting. You get really excited to perform. Doing something that you love is just an overwhelming feeling of happiness,” Delgado said.
She hopes to stay connected to cheer after graduation and she wants to study business in college.