Chi-Town Cats Cheerleaders able to perform in Bud Billiken Parade again thanks to donations

Cheerleading team performs live at ABC7 studios ahead of annual parade

ByABC7 Chicago Digital Team, Cheryl Burton, and Ravi Baichwal WLS logo
Saturday, August 10, 2024
Cheerleaders able to perform at Bud Billiken again thanks to donations
The Chi-Town Cats Cheerleaders are able to perform in the Chicago Bud Billiken Parade again thanks to community donations after an insurance issue.

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The Chi-Town Cats cheerleading team has been performing at the Bud Billiken Parade for the last 25 years. This year, that streak was almost broken when the team's insurance carrier decided not to cover them for the event.

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However, thanks to donations the team received after people saw their story from ABC7's Jasmine Minor, the Chi-Town Cats will be back at the parade this weekend!

READ MORE | Longtime Bud Billiken Parade performers, Chi-Town Cats Cheerleaders, may not be allowed this year

ABC7 was thrilled to have the team in our studios Friday night, including head coach Paulette Franklin and assistant coaches Nicole Smith-Franklin and Marcus Payne.

The team performed the routine that has made them famous in a minute, and the coaches talked about how the Chi-Town Cats serve the community.

See the full interview and performance in the video player above.

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