Buffalo Jill of The Week Murissa

After spending the last few weeks with members of the Jills Ambassador Squad, this week's Jill of The Week absolutely lives to dance. Murissa is the only rookie from the 2008 season still on the squad and this photographer hopes she sticks around for several years to come. Besides the fact she's gorgeous and has a smile any dentist would dream of, she's also the squad's biggest poser. That's not to say she's fake, as the word usually means though. She's far from it. What it does mean is that she absolutely loves the camera and will even pose on her own for a photo, something most of the Jills aren't comfortable doing except for their profile and calendar shots. She even posed for the camera as soon as she walked into the Conference Center for the Jills Open Workshop this year once she saw the camera! There's a lot more to Rissa than how she's a photographer's dream. Her most impressive quality is what a big heart she has...as big as her smile. Besides how interacts in the community and with the fans, she jumped at the chance to visit the troops this season not once, but twice with a trip to Iraq at the end of November and another to Saudi Arabia at the end of January. And to the surprise of no one that knows her, the soldiers fell in love with her almost immediately. She also is the type who puts herself out for her friends and came through in a big way to ensure the squad got some excellent coverage in Toronto this year.

Each season, rookie Jills get named a veteran buddy to help them along and show them the ropes of what's expected of them as a Buffalo Jill. I'm not sure what criteria is used on who gets whom but when Murissa was a rookie, her vet buddy was then-Ambassador Squad captain Kelly H. Steph couldn't have made a better pairing because Kelly was known for her outgoing personality and in many ways, Murissa has been the same way she was. Murissa's secondary photo comes from the opening game against the Miami Dolphins. The photo was taken early in the 3rd quarter when Eileen's line was in front of my section and features Nicole, Katie, Reena, and Murissa performing a cheer.

For tryouts this year, Murissa teamed up with fellow 2008 rookie Jackie for 1st cuts and, like many vets have done over the last few years, they even had matching outfits with their tryout numbers on the backs of their tops. Take a look at their tryout video together.

You can read more about Murissa at http://buffalojills.net/article.asp?id=1961256

The Buffalo Jills at the Bills' home finale

2010 hasn't been a good season for the Buffalo Bills but Sunday's game in Orchard Park was likely their worst game of the year at the hands of the New England Patriots and a few questionable officiating calls which helped them fall by a score of 34-3 in a game that didn't look as close as that score indicated.

The Buffalo Jills' season, despite losing some squadmates due to other commitments and the late release of the calendar, have had a good amount to be proud of this season. They've had some incredible rookies join the squad this year and some vets really step up their contributions as well this year. They put together the largest halftime performance outside of the Super Bowl with the help of a number of Jills alumni and the Bandettes and sent 8 girls to perform in Iraq with another trip to Saudi Arabia planned for late January. And that late calendar release...hasn't prevented this year's cover girl from matching the sales total set by last year's cover girl.

Sunday, the day after Christmas, the Jills donned their Santa outfits through the 1st quarter when they mercifully switched to warmer outfits on a day whose temps felt much colder than the thermometers read thanks to the winds.

Keisha and Alyssa in the Fieldhouse

Jills Ambassador captain Keisha and last year's Ambassador rookie of the year Alyssa handled appearances in the Fieldhouse before heading out to the sidelines and stands with Billy Buffalo.

Laura, Meghan, Sara, Lindsay, and Amanda F with the director's husband and his buddy at the 97Rock Tailgate Party

Ruby, Jessica, Taryn, Courteney, and Gina braving the severe cold at the Shredd and Ragan Tailgate Party

Morgan, Murissa, Kristen, Brianne, Reena, Lindsay, and Courteney in Lot C
At 11:30, a number of Jills dancers joined the group in Lot C and mingled with the fans and posed for pictures before heading back into the stadium to warm up a little and get ready to perform.

Pro Bowler Katie blows kisses to the fans as she's introduced in pregame

Get all the pics at http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a375/buffalojills2005/2010/Pats/

Coming up next, the Jills may be done cheering for the season but they're by no means done for the year. Their biggest appearance will be January 29th at the Rapids Theater in Niagara Falls, NY for their annual Comedy Show which features hypnotist Jerry Valley who appeared at the Erie County Fair this year in addition to some local comedians as well. Tickets will be available at the door as well as through the Buffalo Jills in advance for a $20 cost with an open bar and snack food available at the 18+ show.

More pics from the Bills-Browns game

NFL.com has some photos up from the Bills' Week 14 game against the Browns at http://www.nfl.com/photos/09000d5d81cc0d2c#id:09000d5d81cda48e

Thanks to Ultimate Cheerleaders.com for the heads up

Some upcoming events to watch out for

This weekend will be the final game performance for the 2010-11 Buffalo Jills when the Bills play host to the Patriots* at Ralph Wilson Stadium. The game is sold out but there may be tickets available to see the Bills break their losing streak to the hated Pats* but more importantly, it may be the last chance to see some of the Jills perform. Even if you can't get into the game, make sure to come by the Fieldhouse to meet the two Jills that will be handling gameday promotions during the game as well as Lot 2 for the 97Rock Tailgate party. But even bigger than that is the Shredd and Ragan Tailgate party in Lot C. There will be members of the Ambassador Squad at both of these tailgate parties and with the calendar about to change over to 2011, it's not too late to pick up a Buffalo Jills Calendar featuring all 42 girls who were on the squad for the start of the season. The Jills will have those for sale at both the Citadel Tailgate events and be sure to be in Lot C at 11:30 when members of the Buffalo Jills dancers perform right in front of the Shredd and Ragan Tailgate Party.

The Bills may be out of the playoffs but the Jills still want to watch some playoff football in Albany. As many should know, Keisha has been making weekly picks of the NFL games on Q103 in Albany each week via phone and after holding a lead most of the season, fell behind her opponent, afternoon guy Mrozek by a game with 2 weeks left in the season. The loser has to eat a dozen atomic hot wings the weekend of January 15th and 16th and Keisha will be there in Albany hoping to make sure Mrozek eats them all...because she does plan to win this thing. Either way, her squadmate and current Jill of The Week Ruby will be there with her making appearances in the Capital region all weekend. See all the details at http://q103albany.com/buffalo-jill-cheerleaders-visit/ and be sure to tune in just before 4:30 today and next Friday to hear Keisha make her winning picks.

While the Jills may be just about done with games for the year, the Bandettes are just about to start. On January 22nd, the Buffalo Bandits host the Toronto Rock at 7:30 at HSBC Arena and it's the first game appearance for the 2011 Buffalo Bandettes including 5 rookies who've never performed on such a big stage before...well, before last month in Toronto with the Buffalo Jills as part of the largest non-Super Bowl halftime performance at an NFL game.

Finally, last but certainly not least, is the Buffalo Jills Comedy Show. This year there have been a few changes. In addition to some local comedy flavor, the Jills are bringing in renowned hypnotist Jerry Valley to entertain the crowd at The Rapids Theater in Niagara Falls, NY. The show starts at 7pm on January 29th with a $20 ticket and a cash bar along with snack food available for purchase as well. It should make for an interesting and entertaining evening.

One member of the Buffalo Jills has a prior commitment already that weekend as 6th year vet Katie will be representing the Jills in the Pro Bowl the next day and will be participating in various events in Hawaii all week prior to that. The game itself will be televised on FOX at 7pm ET on January 30th.

Buffalo Jill of The Week Ruby

This week, we take a look at a 2nd year vet from the Jills Ambassador squad in the lovely Ruby. She's one of the most community-minded of all the Jills, which is no small feat. Besides the community events she helps out with as a member of the Jills, she graduated from Erie County Firefighter Boot Camp several years ago as the youngest female to do so. In addition, when she finishes her Degree in Criminology, she's hoping to be working with the FBI or another Federal Government agency. If, for some reason, she changes her mind on that, she's a certified diamondtologist as well and besides having a good-paying job in a jewelry store, she could start her own jewelry business like former Jill Amanda P did this year. Like Amanda, Ruby has custom-designed plenty of her own jewelry and with her certification, she could really do well at it if she chose to. Either way, Ruby has a bright future ahead of her, like her present life which currently involves visits with the troops and hugs from little girls wanting their pictures taken with her. Ruby's secondary photo is from before the game against the Jets in early October. For that game, the Jills were dressed all in pink for Breast Cancer Awareness and shown here from the 97Rock Tailgate party are Michelle, Vincenza, Ruby, and Sara.
You can read more about Ruby at http://buffalojills.net/article.asp?id=1961263

Some video from Iraq with the Jills!

From the US Defense Department comes a video with some stories from Iraq...including some highlights of the Jills' visit there recently. Check it out at http://www.dvidshub.net/video/103080/danger-edition-dec-15

The Jills at the Browns-Bills game

A rainy and cold day was the setting as the Buffalo Bills hosted their Lake Erie rivals, the Cleveland Browns and, unlike the previous 3 meetings, they came out victorious thanks to big play in all three phases of the game. Sadly, most fans in Western NY missed the win as the game was blacked out in the area. The rain and projected sleet that never came even kept many fans from going to the game who purchased tickets and they missed out on something even television viewers wouldn't be able to see much of...the Buffalo Jills.

Ruby and Laura
Prior to the game, veteran ambassadors Ruby and Laura greeted fans and posed for pictures inside the Fieldhouse before handling gameday promotions.

Amanda F, Courteney, Lindsay, Sara, and Meghan
At 103.3 The Edge's Shredd and Ragan Tailgate in Lot C, several more Jills ambassadors held court signing and selling their smoking hot calendars before yielding the spotlight to several rookie members of the Jills dancers.

Amanda V, Morgan, Nicole, Emily, Danielle, Reena, Jaclyn, and Lindsey
All season long, the Jills have put on a small dance performance in Lot C for the fans there and they've used mostly the same dancers all season long. This week, they changed things up in a few ways, first by using a new song, Kevin Rudolf's "You Make The Rain Fall" on this rainy day. In addition, each of the dancers for this performance are dance rookies in 2010...the only ones missing from it were Natalie, who's been dancing at it regularly, and Kristen and Jill, who just returned from Iraq.

Murissa, Danielle, Brianne, and Loren
For the game, the Jills donned ponchos and helped keep the crowd into it enough to help the Bills come out with the 13-6 win. See all the pics at http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a375/buffalojills2005/2010/Browns/

Coming up next for the Jills, they'll be donning their Santa outfits that we got a sneak preview of last week at the Bills' home finale against the hated New England Patriots* Be sure to get your Jills calendars for late Christmas gifts at the 97Rock and Shredd and Ragan Tailgate parties as well as see some of the Jills dancers in Lot C at 11:30 before the game.
Stay tuned for further Jills appearances including a Comedy show that's in the planning stages as well as other appearances before Jills tryouts start up in March to select the 2011-2012 squad.

A Christmas gift of generosity, kindness, and hospitality! » Fisher Creative Image Blog

This is a special blog post from Fisher Creative Image Photography about a visit to Thursday night's Jills practice by a big Jills fan



A Christmas gift of generosity, kindness, and hospitality! » Fisher Creative Image Blog

BIG THANKS to Stephanie, Nichole and Buffalo Jills!

Mary is an older woman with Down Syndrome and as well as many other debilitating diseases. She is small in stature but mighty in fortitude and wanting to live a full life. In a recent conversation with her, I learned that she had several dreams she wanted to complete in her life. She resides in an ARC home that has a terrific staff. One of Mary’s life-long dreams was to go on a roller coaster, which made me curious if she could meet the height requirement. The staff took Mary to Darien Lake and she rode all the different roller coasters there. She grinned ear to ear as she told me of how the staff didn’t fare too well, but she could have ridden all day! She became quite animated as she boasted on her accomplishment.

Another dream Mary shared was that she wanted to play pool. Toward the close of summer, a staff member took Mary to a place where she played pool. “I won all three games, I did! exclaimed Mary. Being legally blind, this was quite a wonderful time for her to be able to complete this dream.

Read more and see more pics and a video at http://www.fishercreativeimage.com/blog/?p=466

Jills tour troops in Basra

More from Kelly's blog on the Jills' trip to Iraq last week

We were warned that Basra is one the most active bases, located in the southern end of Iraq. I think each of us had our own reservations about what to expect when we got in.

When we boarded the C130 for our flight into Basra, the crew asked teammate Lisa and I to sit in front with them in the cockpit!

We were each given a headset to listen and talk throughout the duration of our flight. We had a blast asking them questions about where they were stationed, their idea of a perfect date and why there were only seven parachutes and 25 passengers on the plane…That is when they agreed to save us first if we ever went down!

Read the full entry at http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-1/Jills-tour-troops-in-Basra/b5ac7b07-72e5-43d3-8783-27fee6e35a11

Buffalo Jill of The Week Jill

This week, our feature from the Buffalo Jills is rookie dancer Jill. And before anyone asks, yes, she's already hearing the "Jill the Jill" comments. Found on Christina's line next to Christina and Lisa, Jill is a gymnastics dynamo whose talents have been on display in a large number of routines and performances all season. While the Jills boast other excellent gymnasts in Stefanie and Michelle, the only one in recent memory that was at the same level was Kaitlin M, who cheered from 2005-07. But Jill has a lot more to be proud of than her gymnastic abilities. She's traveled to several countries around the world in her young life and is just returning from a few more. Jill was the lone rookie in the Jills' recent trip to Iraq to visit the troops, a tour that ended with a standing ovation given at the last tour stop. She's hoping in the future to become a math teacher (yep, a math nerd and they didn't look this good when I was in school, either) and continue with the Buffalo Jills. Jill's secondary photo is from the Friday night draft party that the Bills held inside the Fieldhouse for rounds 2 and 3 and features a trio of stunning Jills rookies posing for the camera, namely Jill, Gina, and Meghan.
As luck would have it, Jill's first tryout dance came alongside an eventual linemate in fellow rookie Amanda V. Check out their tryout video right here.

You can read more about Jill at http://buffalojills.net/article.asp?id=1961188

Jills touring Iraq in Blackhawks and C-130's

Hello Everyone Back in the U.S.!

We were up bright and early this morning at 6:00 a.m. After a long day of touring and traveling, we got in at around 10:00 p.m. last night - after not having slept for nearly 48 hours.

Safely, we made it into Iraq yesterday but getting there was quite a fete. I was completely prepared to take the C-130 into Baghdad and tour from there but, much to our surprise, we were taxied via Blackhawks for the last half of our trip. It is a safer means of transportation here largely because of the risk of roadside bombings.

More at http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-1/Jills-touring-Iraq-in-Blackhawks-and-C-130s/e7719c0c-dd03-4314-92d5-be7a76135947

Note:This blog entry was written by Kelly a week ago...she and her 7 squadmates have been home since yesterday getting to sleep in their own beds.

Katie to the Pro Bowl!!

It's Pro Bowl selection time in the NFL and while we'll still be waiting a bit longer to find out what Bills players may be heading to Hawaii on January 30 for the Annual AFC-NFC All-Star game, the wait is over as far as the Jills go. Representing the Jills after a vote from her squadmates will be 6th year vet Katie K. In addition to being the only remaining member of the 2005 rookie class the last two years until Brianne returned, Katie spent 2008 and 2009 as a co-captain on the dance squad. Even without the co-captain title this season (no dance co-captains were selected), she's still filled a leadership role with her strong examples set for her squadmates as well as helping Jills management with various duties including help run things in Iraq in a recently-completed tour of military bases visiting the troops. She's also a veteran of 3 different major troop visits with a trip to Iraq in 2007, the Balkans over Thanksgiving in 2008, and the just-finished tour of Iraq.

Congratulations to Katie on a well-deserved honor!

Jills on their way to Baghdad

The Jills returned home from their tour of Iraq today but BuffaloBills.com has an entry from Kelly about their trip

Kuwait is nothing like I expected and has, thus far, been an unforgettable experience. Upon landing here, we were greeted with warmth and appreciation from the troops. One soldier, in particular, even slipped Lisa a hand written note thanking us for our support as he got off the plane. She passed it around for us to read and it brought each of us to tears. I hope to share it with everyone when we get home!

read more at http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-1/Jills-on-their-way-to-Baghdad/f83ac949-5680-435d-a792-de0e8afa0b28

Jills first day in Kuwait a hit

Kelly on the flight over:
We all were split up last minute and had to sit by ourselves in a row of people we didn't know. This worried me only because (oddly enough) I have a terrible fear of flying!

I thought I could get through the short flight to New York City, on my own, but quickly started to panic after take-off when we hit a bout of turbulence. The only thing that ever seems to settle my nerves is talking to the person next to me to distract me from the flight. I held out for maybe five minutes before turning to the woman seated next to the window. I tapped her shoulder and asked if she wouldn't mind talking to me for a little while so I could get through the flight.

http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-1/Jills-first-day-in-Kuwait-a-hit/1b835c37-4b64-4e29-a759-12b419fff26c

Jills visit troops in Kuwait

Eight Buffalo Jills Cheerleaders are currently in Kuwait visiting the United States troops for the ninth time since the Iraq war began. Another group of Jills will be visiting the troops in Saudi Arabia at the end of January.

The Jills traveling to Kuwait are Katie, Lisa, Kelly, Loren, Murissa, Gabrielle, Kristen and Jill and the young ladies are there to help build morale for the American troops.

The response from the troops is always overwhelming and life changing for the cheerleaders. We, of course, just want to say “Thank you” to them for all they do for our country, but they continually say “thank you” to the cheerleaders for their time and effort in coming to see them.

More at http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-1/Jills-visit-troops-in-Kuwait/6b703c23-312a-4eb1-a450-802b51421e11

The Bandettes at the Bandits Open Practice

While the Bills and the Sabres get a lot of national attention because of the status of the NFL and NHL, lacrosse is a sport that's growing in popularity and Western NY is a hotbed of lacrosse interest. Part of that is because of the number of Indian reservations in the region as lacrosse is a sport invented by Native Americans. Another reason is the fact that Buffalo, which hasn't won a championship in football since the mid 60s and has never won one in hockey, has 4 championships to its credit in the box lacrosse league of the NLL. While the NLL doesn't have true cheerleaders like in football or basketball, it does have dance squads and the Buffalo Bandettes are the premier squad in the league. Bills fans even got a glimpse of what to expect from the 2011 Bandettes when they were part of the largest halftime show in the NFL outside of the Super Bowl in joining the Jills and several Jills alumni in Toronto last month. After the Toronto game, the Bandettes went right to work on getting ready for the season and in the last month, perfected a pair of performances they put on for Bandits fans attending the Bandits Open Practice. But in addition to performing, they took some time to meet with the fans and take some photos and letting us meet rookies Krista, Jessica M, Danielle, Noelle, and Chrissy.

One of the highlights this year was an impromptu wrestling session. In lacrosse as in hockey, there are fights and you can't exactly practice for those by throwing punches at teammates. Instead, the players formed a circle and one player would challenge another. Well, towards the end of the session, Bandettes director Jaclyn sent Lauren B and Jessica M out to the circle. They went out in the middle and Lauren challenged Brandon Francis, the Bandits' enforcer and one of the best fighters in the NLL. He was intimidated by Lauren and Jessica however and Lauren felt like Rocky Balboa coming back over to the squad afterwards.

Lauren B, Jessica M, Danielle, and Justina

Chrissy, Jessica M, Jessica H, Kirsten, Lauren S, and Chelsea
Check out all the pics at http://s17.photobucket.com/albums/b87/bandettes/2011/Open%20Practice/

Coming up next for the Bandettes, they have a dance clinic for girls ages 16 and up going on Dec 12th at the arena.

Learn a routine choreographed by Bandette Alumni Danielle, that will be performed during the 2011 Bandits season!!!!
-This clinic is for girls ages 16 and up.
-Price: $20.00
-Wear comfortable dance clothes and dance shoes/sneakers.
-Any questions contact us at beabandette@yahoo.com.
-Security will be checking in all dancers and the arena will be closed to the public so unfortunately guests will not be able to attend this event.

Their first game action will be on January 22nd when the Bandits host the Toronto Rock

Pics from the Jills' 4th Annual Fundraiser

Reena and Jaclyn with the pizza
Each year, the Jills hold a Fundraiser in downtown Buffalo to help offset their costs like uniforms and calendar shoots. Once again, SoHo on Chippewa was the setting as the Jills brought in friends, family, and fans for a pizza and beer blast that also included wine-tasting with wines provided by Passport Wine and Spirits. This year's event was more of a festive feel with the holiday season and many of the Jills were dressed in their Christmas outfits that they'll be wearing at the Bills home finale.

Brianne, Nicole, and Alyssa

Sara, Michelle, and Gina
Check out all the pics at http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a375/buffalojills2005/2010/Fundraiser/

Coming up next for the Jills, they're back at the Ralph on December 12 to cheer on the Bills against their Lake Erie rivals, the Cleveland Browns. Be sure to stop by Lot C at around 11:30 to see some of the Jills dancers perform before the game. Also, with Christmas coming up people are still trying to come up with gifts and if you stop by the 97Rock Tailgate as well as the Shredd and Ragan Tailgate in Lot C, you can get the guys on your list the perfect gift...a 2010-2011 Buffalo Jills Calendar. The best thing is...you can even get it autographed for him!

Buffalo Jill of The Week Natalie

This week, we take a look at the first Jills rookie to make a name for herself in Natalie. Prior to tryouts, she was commissioned by the Bills to write about her experiences going through the tryout process. When you consider how many girls were auditioning to be rookies this year and only 16 made the final cut, the Bills made a pretty good gamble on choosing Natalie. Ever since making the squad she's really thrown herself into it with her dancing and appearances. And when she's not in class working towards her degree, she probably spends as much time with her squadmates as she does with anyone else. Part of that is because she's actually from the Binghamton area here going to college for her degree in Speech and Hearing Science. But perhaps the biggest reason is because the Jills squad is pretty close-knit and while a large portion of the squad was in Jamaica for the calendar shoot (Natalie's shot was taken here in Western NY), she took some of that time to get to know other squadmates who stayed behind. She even joined several of her squadmates on the runway in Ryan Miller's Catwalk for Charity a few weeks ago. The 80s-themed event had Natalie and Alyssa dressed up as a pair of Robert Palmer's girls. Personally, I like Natalie and Alyssa's smiling versions better than the original expressionless girls...but that's me. Natalie's secondary photo is from the opener against Miami. Before each home game, several Jills dancers perform in Lot C at 11:30. Shown posing for the camera are Natalie and Loren, who’ve been best of friends since bonding in May when most of the rest of the squad was in Jamaica for the calendar shoot.

We've already gone into her personality a little bit as far as why she's on the squad...and her beauty is obvious. Here's a video from 1st cuts showing Natalie's dancing ability to add the icing on the cake.

You can read more about Natalie at http://buffalojills.net/article.asp?id=1961258 and make sure to check out the blog of her tryout experiences at http://buffalojills.net/article.asp?id=1761784

Photos from Iraq courtesy the US Army

As we already told you, 8 of the 2010 Buffalo Jills are currently visiting the troops in Iraq. The girls are enjoying their experiences so far, including flying in a Blackhawk helicopter and performing for the troops. But more than that, the members of the US Military are enjoying having them there. Staff Sergeant Ricardo Branch of the United States Army took a bunch of photos of their visit to Forward Operating Base Warhorse in Iraq and was gracious enough to send them to us and the Jills.

Putting on a show

signing autographs for the troops

The girls with Staff Sergeant Branch

Enjoy all the photos at http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a375/buffalojills2005/2010/Iraq/ and thanks again to Staff Sergeant Ricardo Branch of the United States Army for sharing. Stay safe and return home soon!

HELP: Christmas is for Kids 2010

For the 17th consecutive year, 97 Rock and our listeners are throwing a party for a few hundred Western New York kids who might not have a Christmas otherwise.

Our Christmas is for Kids party allows these kids from local social services programs to spend a couple hours enjoying pizza and ice cream, games and a visit from Santa.

Each child leaves with a toy, and that's where we could use your help. Please make a donation of cash or a new toy and we'll make sure it ends up in the hands of a needy child. This year's party is on December 14th at The Hub, 4999 McKinley Parkway in Hamburg.

Join Jickster and The Buffalo Jills at these Tim Horton's locations

to drop off your donations!

November 30th- 2248 Niagara Road in Wheatfield

December 1st- 1610 Walden Avenue in Cheektowaga

December 2nd- 5035 Southwestern Boulevard in Hamburg

December 3rd- 5316 Transit Road in Depew

December 6th- 2413 Clinton Street in West Seneca

December 7th- 1950 Sweet Home Road in Amherst

December 8th- 6687 Tranist Road in Williamsville

December 9th- 5599 Camp Road in Hamburg

December 10th- 3275 Orchard Park Road in Orchard Park

Get all the details at http://www.97rock.com/Article.asp?id=2037401&spid=21992

Ashlee singing with her old band

Most long-time followers of the Jills are well-aware of 2005 Ambassador Squad member Ashlee A, who auditioned for American Idol several years ago and, since her days on the Jills, has been singing as well as working with her fiancé at his Pride Martial Arts Academy in Amherst. Ashlee spent a couple of years as the female lead singer for Buffalo's Studio 54 Dance Band before moving on to work with the About Face Band which performs mostly at weddings as opposed to the club circuit around Western NY. Even after Ashlee's departure, she maintains her friendships with Studio 54 so when the current female lead, Ashley Kate, had a wedding to attend the same evening as a gig, Ashlee was ready, willing, and able to fill in at the World's Smallest Disco as it was billed. With the World's Largest Disco happening downtown at the same time featuring members of the Bandettes, it was probably a fitting name. Check out the pics from Mooney's in Kenmore at http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a375/buffalojills2005/2010/Ashlee%20Studio%2054/

and let's not forget the video. Since Ashlee left the band 3 1/2 years ago, "Wild Night" by John Mellencamp hasn't been a staple of the group. Ashlee and guitarist Joey D decided to treat the crowd to a special treat, though.

Learn more about Studio 54 at http://www.studio54band.com/ , About Face at http://www.aboutfaceband.com/ and Pride Martial Arts at http://www.buffalokickbox.com/

The Jills at the Bills-Steelers game

Jessica and Courteney next to the Jills display in the Fieldhouse
Thanksgiving weekend in Buffalo saw a sold-out crowd at the Ralph for a matchup between the Buffalo Bills and the Pittsburgh Steelers. While the crowd wasn't your typical Buffalo crowd with a large contingent of Steelers faithful who were able to help spur their team on to victory in overtime, there was one thing the Bills had going for them in this matchup against what was regarded as a far superior team. The Buffalo Jills welcomed back 4 of their girls to full active duty. Jaclyn and Danielle haven't been on the sidelines for the last month and a half outside of Danielle's appearance in the halftime show in Toronto. Jaclyn's return was a special one as she's been recovering from a broken wrist suffered in practice and, considering she went to college in Pittsburgh, had a lot of extra friends there to watch her return. Lindsey, on the other hand, hasn't missed any time on the sidelines, but a hamstring pull has kept her out of the bigger performances until now. Morgan and Reena have also missed a significant amount of time in pregame performances as well. For this fan, seeing the return of these five wonderful rookies to full active duty made up for the loss of the game in a small way.

Jill and Danielle performing in the 1st quarter

Kelly, Jaclyn, Lindsey, and Omarlla cheering in the 3rd quarter

See all the pics at http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a375/buffalojills2005/2010/Steelers/

Coming up next, the Jills will have 8 of their dancers in Iraq for the next week and a half as Katie, Lisa, Murissa, Kelly, Loren, Kristen, Gabrielle, and Jill visit and entertain the troops where everyone there will fall in love with these young ladies the way we have here in Western NY. And just like us, they'll be amazed with Jill's gymnastic abilities.
This Saturday, while their squadmates are in Iraq, the rest of the Jills will be holding their 4th Annual Fundraiser at SoHo from 7-9:30pm. The $20 ticket gets you all-you-can-eat on pizza, beer, and wine-tasting and also includes plenty of raffles to get in on and entertainment by the Buffalo Jills.
The Jills next take the field on December 12th as the Bills host their rivals from across Lake Erie, the Cleveland Browns. Make sure to stop by Lot C at 11:30 to see the Jills dancers perform.

Monday Morning Cheerleader: Omarlla of the Bills

A veteran sideline beauty swallows another Buffalo loss to a playoff favorite just long enough to tell us who's going to the Super Bowl

If scientists ever want to study how much heartbreak one team's fans can stomach, they can start in Buffalo. Forget the Super Bowl struggles of the Nineties and the current Bills playoff drought — Case Study No. 1 starts with the 2010 season: five losses by five points or less, including three in overtime, capped by Sunday 19-16 stinger to the Steelers, in which the red-white-and-blue rallied mightily before what would have been nothing short of an epic upset slipped, quite literally, through its fingers.

But Buffalo's long-suffering throngs keep coming back. And their resilience is exemplified by Buffalo Jills line captain Omarlla, who's donned the hot pants for nothing short of a decade. What's even more amazing about this elementary-school curriculum coordinator? Like Michael Jordan before her, she was cut from her high-school team. "I haven't talked to those cheerleading coaches, but I get so tempted to send them autographed cards and calendars," she says. "Eleven years of jump-splitting, and I just continue to work out, stay flexible, and keep going." Looking for hope? Here's some.

Read more: http://www.esquire.com/the-side/cheerleaders/bills-cheerleader-112910#ixzz16fkZjTev

Buffalo Jill of The Week Keisha

The phrase "tall, dark, and beautiful" is only the tip of the iceberg when describing our Jill of The Week. Keisha is in her 4th season with the Jills and in her 1st full season as a captain of the Jills Ambassador Squad after serving as acting captain most of last season. Her being a captain is no big surprise...she regularly goes above and beyond for her squadmates and goes above and beyond with being friendly as well. As a Jills Ambassador, she's required to be a people person and able to carry on a conversation. Truth be told, out of all the Jills I've known over the years, she's better at that than anyone. Always great with carrying on as well as starting conversations, she's excellent at making people feel at ease. This season, she's even putting her football knowledge to the test every Friday. Q103 in Albany, a big Bills and Jills supporting radio station, has her on every Friday afternoon just before 4:30 to make picks in 3 games for the weekend. She's competing with their afternoon host and the loser at the end of the season has to eat a dozen atomic hot wings. Check out how well she's doing at http://www.wqbk.com/BuffaloBills/KeishasPicks/tabid/13977/Default.aspx where you'll also find a link where you can listen live to her segment.

Keisha's secondary photo comes from an appearance at Dunkirk's final Music on the Pier event of the summer. Stefanie and Keisha were on hand helping out the folks from Chadwick Bay Beverages, one of the Jills' sponsors this season.

You can read more about Keisha at http://buffalojills.net/article.asp?id=1961195

Dates to circle

There's a whole lot of stuff going on the next few weeks to make it to.

First up is something that's going on right now...DJ Jickster is in the middle of his Rock Out Hunger campaign and has been living in a truck in the parking lot of Quaker Steak and Lube on Transit since Wednesday accepting food and money donations for the Food Bank of Western NY and he won't be doing it on his own as he's been getting visits by other local celebrities, Jim Kelly, and members of the Buffalo Jills. See the info at http://www.97rock.com/Article.asp?id=2017868&spid=21992

Next up is a pair of things to do Saturday night. The Buffalo Convention Center plays host to the annual World's Largest Disco, a big benefit for Camp Good Days and Special Times. Besides the 70s dance music and appearances by celebrities from the 70s, this event also features an appearance and dance performance by members of the Buffalo Bandettes!

If you wanna dance that night but can't find tickets to the Disco (the event is sold out but there are always scalpers), you can head to Mooney's on Military Road in Kenmore to see Studio 54 band play with a special guest singer...former lead singer Ashlee A from the 2005 Buffalo Jills. Show starts at 10pm.

Next Sunday, the Bills are at home at Ralph Wilson Stadium and that means you can see the Jills in action. Before the game, meet some of the ambassadors in the Fieldhouse and at the 97Rock and Shredd and Ragan Tailgate parties. But the best time to hit up the Shredd and Ragan tailgate party in Lot C is 11:30 as besides the Jills ambassadors who will be there selling and signing calendars, many of the Jills dancers will be there following their field practice to perform for the fans.

Saturday the 4th, the only place to start off your evening will be at SoHo on Chippewa as the Jills will be holding their 4th Annual Fundraiser to help offset the costs of their next calendar shoot. The event goes from 7-9:30 and features pizza, beer, and wine-tasting for a cost of $20. Also included are plenty of raffle prizes to be won and entertainment by the Buffalo Jills. When you consider that other events this year didn't take place due to timing constraints and what not, this is your best chance to meet most of the 2010 Buffalo Jills squad outside of gamedays. There will be a few girls unable to attend however, as 8 Buffalo Jills dancers will be in Iraq lending their support to the troops and what better way to thank these girls for their dedication than by supporting the squad as a whole?

In Toronto, we saw the 2011 Buffalo Bandettes perform alongside the Jills, Jills alumni, and Fusion dancers in the biggest NFL halftime show outside of the playoffs but we've yet to see them perform as a unit. December 5th is when that wait ends as the Bandits host their annual Open Practice at HSBC Arena. The event goes from 10-2pm and besides seeing the 2011 Buffalo Bandits practice, the new Buffalo Bandettes squad will be performing and signing autographs as well.

On December 12th, obviously the Bills are hosting the Browns, but if you're looking for something for your daughters to do before the game, the Bandettes are hosting a dance clinic at HSBC Arena from 10-noon for girls ages 16 and up. Bandettes alumnus Danielle will be choreographing the routine which you'll see performed by the Bandettes at a 2011 game...cost is $20. The clinic is closed to the public and if you have any questions, email beabandette@yahoo.com

Buffalo Jill of The Week Brianne

This week's Jill of The Week may not have been with us the past couple of years, but she's no stranger to us by any means. Brianne is back on the squad she spent 3 seasons on after taking a couple years off. This All-American girl can be found on Omarlla's line dancing between Kelly and Loren, the same line she spent her previous years on. An avid golfer who could give Natalie Gulbis a run for her money both in the skills department and in the looks department, her dedication is well-known in many areas. For one, the hour-and-a-half trip to Buffalo from home for practices is no easy feat, especially once the weather and road conditions start to worsen and her two bachelor's degrees took a lot of long hours and hard work. She says her worst fear is failure yet she came back to try out for the Jills even though she said she wasn't that confident about her chances. Apparently those of us who knew her and were excited to see her come back had enough confidence to make up for that. Her secondary photo comes from the Bills season opener and shows Omarlla, Brianne, and Kelly cheering in the endzone with Lindsey behind her poms.

After having cheered with the Jills and worked with Kelli's dance styles for 3 seasons, it was obvious that Brianne wasn't going to miss a beat in tryouts this year as seen here.


You can read more about Brianne at http://buffalojills.net/article.asp?id=1961040

More Jills pics from recent weeks

The Buffalo Jills' Official site has some field-level photos taken up in Toronto up now. Check them out at http://buffalojills.net/Article.asp?id=2021957

From Sunday's win against Detroit, CNN/SI has photos of Jen, Christina, Val, Kristen, and Lisa at http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/multimedia/photo_gallery/1011/nfl-cheerleaders-week-10/content.39.html Thanks to http://ultimatecheerleaders.com/ for the heads-up.

Finally, Buffalo.com had a photographer at last night's Open Practice as well and you can find those pics at http://www.mybuffalo.com/_The-Buffalo-Jills-host-an-open-practice/set/78079/85283.html