Stories: Three Cheers for Megan

Megan Bomgaars, 14, waves to friends and supporters at the State Cheerleading finals at the Denver Coliseum in Denver, Colorado. Megan, who has Down Syndrome, tried out and made it onto the Evergreen High School cheerleading squad. The girls on the squad have rallied around Megan and made sure that she is part of the team.
   
Fellow cheerleaders Melanie Lawrence, left, and Delaney Hunt, right, throw Megan Bomgaars, 14, in the air before they cheer at a basketball game in Evergreen, Colorado.
   
Megan Bomgaars, 14, smiles as she walks arm-in-arm through school with her aide Donna Fitzgerald, right, at Evergreen High School in Evergreen, Colorado. Donna helps Megan to integrate into her classes and with her homework.
     
  
The entire cheerleading squad comes together after running laps at the end of practice. The girls have adopted Megan as one of their own and are very protective of her.
   
One of her fellow cheerleaders runs after Megan after she had gone off on her own during practice at Evergreen High School. Sometimes Megan struggles with fitting in with the rest of the team.
   
Megan Bomgaars, 14, talks with her mother Kris Bomgaars at the State Cheerleading finals at the Coliseum in Denver, Colorado.
     
  
Fellow cheerleader Shanna Ancona helps Megan through the door at before a game at Evergreen High School in Evergreen, Colorado. Megan is on the cheerleading squad despite the fact she has Down syndrome.
   
With butterflies in her stomach, Megan Bomgaars, 14, waits to compete with her fellow cheerleaders at the State Cheerleading finals at the Coliseum in Denver, Colorado.
  
Megan and her fellow cheerleaders practice their routine one last time before competing in the State Cheerleading Championships.
     
  
Megan Bomgaars, 14, does her routine with her fellow cheerleaders at the State Cheerleading Championships at the Denver Coliseum in Denver, Colorado.
   
Megan Bomgaars, 14, gets a triumphant hug from her grandmother Barb McKeown after competing in the State Cheerleading Championships.