Gallery • 4 Photos

Ava Bert

Hayley Horan performs half-time at a football game

The award-winning Tomball Cougar Charms drill team has curated a team of excellently talented young dancers. Many of these team members have been trained in professional dancing for years in order to perform and compete as successfully as they do. This talent is seen through senior members Ornella Corradini and Hayley Horan, both of whom started on the team together in their freshmen year.

“When I first joined the Charms team I was overwhelmed with a sense of joy,” Hayley said. “I counted down the days until our first team practice.”

Upon entering this school year, Ornella and Hayley claimed their spot as the two senior members of the team. Being a member has proven to have its challenges, but all worth it.

“The most challenging aspect of being a Charm is trusting the overall process,” Hayley said. “Our practices may be early and physically demanding, but we remember that it will all be worth it in the end.”

Ornella also explains the challenge of sacrificing time for school, sleep, and weekends in order to be a committed team member. Despite these sacrifices, however, she has continued to build her skills over these past four years.

“I do Charms to dance,” Ornella said. “The most rewarding thing is when I hit a skill that I’ve been working on…It’s the challenge of what I can do that makes it rewarding.”

Hayley has recently claimed her spot for the upcoming school year as a Stephen F. Austin student, as well as a member of their dance team.

“While this chapter may be closing, I can’t wait to continue my passion for dance on the SFA dance team,” Hayley said. “I plan on using my experiences to help me grow as an individual on the SFA team.”

Ornella describes her time in Charms as an experience of growth and learning as she reflects on these previous years and looks toward the future.

“I feel like I served my time on the team and I’m ready to leave it behind,” Ornella said. “I will use this responsibility, attitude, and commitment I learned from these four years…this has been a very memorable part of my life that I will never forget.”