My name is Tequia and this my second year as a Washington Redskins Cheerleader. I am a 2006 alumnus of my hometown Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, where I studied Political Science-International Affairs and was very active in my university and community. I am a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and am recently engaged to my High School “Sweetheart.”
I couldn’t wait to get to Washington, D.C., and I’m living a dream at 24! I’ve been working on Capitol Hill for two years and am anxiously awaiting the inauguration of my home-state Senator as the first black President of the United States.
I expect to begin law school some time in the near future and I hope to work on a joint Masters degree program in Global Studies. At this time in my life, my goals are best nurtured by a prayer for the "serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference."
The words "in my spare time" have always been a joke to me. I tend to keep myself very busy and I often feel guilty when I have nothing to do. Since there is no "true" free time for me, I don’t watch much television and really don’t get out much, but when I do, I enjoy nice restaurants and a night of dancing or bowling.
If you do find me watching television, it’s definitely "Law & Order" or "House." Some of my favorite movies are "What Dreams May Come," "Butterfly Effect," "Vanilla Sky," or anything by Spike Lee, especially "Bamboozled" and "School Daze."
Since I grew up in a small town, I am used to getting the latest music and fashion late. So, I guess it’s kind of fitting that my favorite kinds of music is anything before 1980! Music has been a big part of my life since I picked up my trumpet at the age of nine. I love Motown, Big Band, and Jazz. Some of my fascinations are of course the Greats Miles and Dizzy, and I can’t live without Billie, Ella, and "Satchmo!"
I enjoy music from Ray Charles and later notables, Roberta Flack and Marvin Gaye, all the way to recent folks like Christina Aguilera, Musiq Soulchild, Tamia, Alicia Keys, and India Arie. My all-time favorite songs are "Summertime" (Gershwin), "Georgia on my Mind" (Gorrell), and "A Change is Gonna Come" (Cooke).
Of course, along with a love for music, comes a love for dance. I started moving to drum beats in African Dance at seven yrs old. Throughout my education, I was on dance teams--both performance oriented and competitive--from my freshman year of high school to my sophomore year of college. I began competitive cheerleading in the seventh grade and concluded my senior year of high school.
Being a Redskins Cheerleader has provided me with experiences I will never forget! The calendar trip to Aruba, like Cancun last year, was absolutely amazing! More significantly to me however, was the opportunity to visit over 23 military bases in Iraq last November during Thanksgiving. Being able to witness the warzone and to personally thank our US soldiers for their selflessness and courage to defend our country, was an honor that has more than changed my life!!
I’m really looking forward to the season with all the fans! I was so excited to see the Redskin spirit on Draft Day and Beach Blitz that I can’t wait to pump it up throughout the season. We have quite a bit of newness to the team that I’m looking forward to, and I think we’ll have an awesome year!
