DE PERE – The smile on the faces of the West De Pere dance team tell part of the story. The standing ovation from the West De Pere student section furthered that story.

It was the visible smile from mom, Janet, and Luella Gallegos through her surgical mask and the wave to the rest of the West De Pere crowd at halftime of the February 5 varsity girls basketball game that hammers it home.

Making a surprise visit to see her dance team members everyone in attendance, this 18-year-old fighting for her life doesn’t know the meaning of the word surrender.

“Cancer picked the wrong girl,” West De Pere dance coach Jennifer Zurawski said. “She is the most positive and optimistic person I know. She has the whole city of De Pere pulling for her.”

Gallegos has been battling Stage 4 Neuroblastoma, an illness that affects new and developing nerve cells that rarely strikes kids over the age of 10, according to the American Cancer Society Web site.

Gallegos had concluded her hospital stay for her second stem cell transplant Thursday at Children’s Hospital in Milwaukee when, after a brief stop home, got a chance to dance with the team before the varsity game, ironically enough, on Parent’s Night.

“The key is staying positive,” said Gallegos, who has undergone six rounds of chemo therapy. “The key is to stay upbeat and take each day as it comes.

“It was great to dance with them again. It’s been so tough not being able to do it.”

The night turned emotional when the dance team performed before Gallegos, who is one of four girls that have been on the team since freshman year, for the first time in months.

“It shocked us all to see her,” dance team senior co-captain Valerie VanDenHeuvel said. “It made us all really nervous. It made it even tougher for us all to dance because most of us were crying.”

Amidst Gallegos’ struggle, she has brought awareness and maturity to the dance team, helping the squad avoid the stereotypical pon pom squad melodramas.

“It has really opened our eyes to the real world and what is out there,” dance team senior co-captain Carly Crevier said. “If she can get through what she has, we can get through our rough times. She has really pushed us in practice and in life.”

While Gallegos has pushed the team, they have been there for her too. After receiving treatment, she has to be in a “seclusion” stage until her immune system rebounds. The girls on the team have made sure to keep in touch with her via phone calls, text messages and her Web site.

“They’ve been awesome in keeping in touch with me,” Gallegos said. “The girls have been such a great support system.”

Zurawski spearheaded a “Love for Luella” benefit last summer to help raise funds for the medical bills and help Luella’s mom, Janet, in staying by her daughter’s side every night she is in the hospital.

Zurawski also got word out to dance teams across the state that sent their well wishes to Luella.

“Her mom is a single mom of four kids who has not left her side,” Zurawski said. “Our goal was to raise one penny more than we had before the benefit and we did that, but it wasn’t about the money it was about raising awareness.”

Dance teams across the state are now aware of Gallegos and her battle. At the Feb. 7 Wisconsin Association of Cheer Pom Coaches state championships, the team dedicated, as it has all season, its kick routine to Gallegos and the organizers even announced it before the team took to the floor to perform the routine.

The Phantom dance team came through with its eighth state title with that routine and took second place with its pom routine.

“It was a very emotional performance for the girls and they did such a great job,” Zurawski said. “The other teams were giving us standing ovations because they knew about Luella’s story. It wasn’t about the place we got; it was about so much more.”

While it was the last competitive dance for the seniors on the team, including Gallegos, there is still the end of year “senior dance” coming up that Gallegos, West De Pere’s 2008 Homecoming queen, is confident she can take part in.

There she will get one last chance to perform with the girls that have helped her in her fight.

“You can’t take life for granted,” Gallegos said. “I’ve learned to live each day to the fullest and stay positive. You can’t dwell on things and learn to love everything around you.”

Gallegos isn’t out of the woods yet as she will begin a four-week, five-days a week, radiation treatment in two weeks and rest assured, Luella will be ready.

Donate to the “Love for Luella Gallegos” Fund by sending your generous monetary donations to: Chase Bank, 2635 Libal Street, Green Bay, WI 54301 in care of: The 'Love for Luella' Fund.

You can watch the Phantoms’ dance that won the state title and was dedicated to Luella here. 

Keep up on Luella’s journal and see what she’s up to on her Web site.