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!