Chris Teesdale played football until the ninth grade in Amarillo, when he was told by doctors that it was wreaking havoc on his knees. He wanted to find a way to stay involved with athletics; a buddy, who was a cheerleader, suggested he join him on the squad.
“I said, ‘Oh, I’m not cut out for that,’” Teesdale recalls. “But eventually, he convinced me to try out, and I cheered my last two years of high school.”
Teesdale went on to cheer for three of his four years at Texas Tech University, including a highlight of cheering at the 1973 Gator Bowl. The sport exceeded his expectations. “It was fun and entertaining, leading the cheers,” he says. “I didn’t realize it at the time, but it’s also very cool to be able to do things that influence a large crowd.”
A trip to a cheerleading camp at SMU during his senior year of high school changed his life. It was there where he met Lawrence Herkimer, a legend who is known as the grandfather of modern cheerleading. Herkimer noticed Teesdale’s skills and offered him a summer job at the National Cheerleaders Association, which was hosting camps throughout the country.
“It was a huge compliment,” Teesdale says. “I was on the NCA staff all through college. I got to travel from coast to coast; we also put on three clinics in Germany.”
Through his work with Dallas-based NCA, he came to love the city and decided to launch his career here. Today, he’s executive vice president at Colliers and one of the region’s top industrial brokers. “What kicked open doors for me was cheerleading,” Teesdale says. “It gave me confidence when I was starting my real estate career.”
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