First Ladies officers win 'Best in Class'

First Ladies officers are Rachel Lunsford, Rachel Marble, Dru Dawkins, Whitney Greeney and (front) Laura Viergever.

The Whitehouse First Ladies officers competed in a Regional Dance Competition on Feb, 10 and won the "Best in Class," the top award for the large team division as well as many other awards.

Officers for 2006-2007 include Captain Dru Dawkins, First Lieutenant Whitney Greeney and Rachel Lunsford, Rachel Marble and Laura Viergever. They are under the direction of Shelly Johnston.

In addition to the "Best in Class," the First Ladies were placed in the "Winner's Circle" which was reserved for the top five teams out of the entire competition. They also received "Choreography Awards" for all three routines, "Outstanding Technique" and "Super Sweepstakes" for scoring a 90 or above in each routine from every judge.

They competed against many Dallas/Fort Worth area high schools as well as several schools from as far away as Houston. Many of these schools were large 5A-ranked schools.

The officers performed three routines as a group which included a salsa jazz showing their energy and precision, a challenging modern with several lifts and leaps, and finally a beautiful lyrical number that highlighted their grace.

The officers also performed solos with the choreography, music and costume of their choice. Each officer did an outstanding job and received a medal for placing in Division One, the highest division available.

Capt. Dru Dawkins was selected to perform again in a section of the competition highlighting the six best soloists. She earned "1st Runner-Up" in the solo category.

The officers have been working long hours during the past several months to perfect each routine and their dedication paid off as evidenced by the many awards they received.