Tena Preuss
Owner and Head Cheer Coach- Lady Black - Head Dance Coach- Spirit Express
Tena has been involved in the sport of cheerleading and dance for most of her life. A high school varsity cheerleader for 4 years and as a NCA Instructor and Director in her early years, she started coaching at the very young age of 18. She is a graduate of Mesa College with a degree in Business Administration. Tena has traveled across the country training and gaining her expertise in this sport, having earned credentials with several national organizations. She is the Lead Dance Advisor and Technical judge for the Colorado High School Activities Association. She is the President of the Mesa County Junior Cheer Association and the owner of The YardCard Artist, a yard card rental business here in Grand Junction. She is also the Spirit Director for School District 51and is a national dance judge. She has won countless national choreography awards in cheer and dance and her teams have won over 300 national championship titles and several bids and appearances representing the US and the state of Colorado at the USASF Dance Worlds Championships. She has been involved in and/or has choreographed for productions such as the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Olympic Torch Relay, the Jr College World Series, Country Jam Music Festival, Disneyland and Disney World, the United Nations, and several festivals and halftimes across the country. She is a nationally certified Level 5 coach in stunting, tumbling, tosses with the United States All Star Federation. She is also certified coach with the NFHS, CSCA,CHSCA and AACCA. She loves spending time with her husband of 41 years Frank, her son Scott and her grandson Trae.
Heidi Colton
Head Coach Junior Dance
Heidi Grew up in Grand Junction and is a graduate of Colorado Mesa University where she earned her Bachelors in Science Degree. She then went back to school to become an educator.  She currently teaches mathematics at Grand Mesa Middle School. Heidi fell in love with cheer and dance at the age of 4 where she began her journey with the Express All Star program.  She continued with the program for 14 years winning countless national championships in cheer and dance, stunt group and as an individual. She also graced the stage with the Spirit Express representing the US at the Dance World Championships.  She continued her passion for cheer in college as a member of the CMU Cheer Team. She is currently a Head Instructor for NCA (National Cheerleaders Association) and teaches camps all over the country and abroad including Japan and at the Disney World Resort. 
  

Bonnie Davis

Dance Technique Director and Ballet instructor

Bonnie started dancing at the age of 3 and has been captivated ever since. She is trained in classical ballet, pointe, jazz, modern, contemporary, pom/drill, dance pedagogy, kinesiology and choreography.  Bonnie holds numerous national dance titles and has been an All American Dancer 3 times. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Theater Arts & Dance.  Bonnie with the help of 2 fellow dancers at Mesa State College were the first to introduce and implement a "Senior Dance Capstone" for graduating senior dance students at MSC.  Bonnie is CSCA & AACCA certified. Bonnie coached the Junior Express All Star Team for 4 years, during which time they won numerous national titles under her direction.  She works with all levels of dancers in the Express All Star dance program, focusing on improving and perfecting their            technique, flexibility and strength. She enjoys sharing her love of dance with young dancers and spending time with her husband Sean and her two children Ethan and Eva.

 

 Raven Finegan

 Head Coach TNT and Sparks Cheer Teams

Raven tried out for her very first cheer team at the age of 7 and feel completely in love with the sport. She went on to cheer for 4 years at Bayfield High School where she was the Captain her junior and senior year. Raven was a 4 time All American Cheerleader with NCA and UCA. Raven then continued cheering at Colorado Mesa University where she was a flier for the Large Coed Team. She has coached varsity and middle school cheerleaders in the valley for the past 3 years and is excited to be a member of the Express All Star Staff. Raven loves spending time with her partner in crime, her daughter Lucy.

Amanda Martinez

Eagles Rec Team Director

Amanda has been involved in cheerleading since the age of 12 , she cheered in middle school and then became a member of the Express All Star program where she was a member for 7 years. Amanda has trained under some of the best coaches in the country and as a member of the first all star cheer team with Express, she has won countless championship titles in cheer and in stunting. As an exceptional tumbler, Amanda injured her knee as a senior and stepped into coaching. She is not only the Director for our Recreation Program, but also coaches for the MCJCA Orchard Mesa Middle School Packers. Amanda is also a restaurant manager at the Olive Garden and is bilingual. She loves spending time with her loving husband Rojo and her adorable son Christian.

Tani Stanko

Youth Dance Coach

Tani found her passion for dance in the Express All Star Program in middle school and continued through to her senior year on Spirit Express winning countless national titles. She was also a member of the GJHS Poms Team as their Captain her senior year. Tani was an NDA All American and danced at the Hula Bowl in Maui, Hawaii. She started coaching with the GJ All Stars, until Tena Preuss started her semi-pro dance team Venom, and was excited to be back home dancing with her coach. Tani has several years of experience coaching the younger athletes in all star dance. Tani was also a competitiive body builder and fell in love with health and wellness. That is when she discovered barre. Barre combined her deepest love for dance with a new found love for fitness, which encouraged her to start Raise the Barre. She is extremely proud of her husband Nick who is a captain with the GJFD and her son Kayson.