Photo by Pvt. Samantha D. Hall/11th PAD Amy Madill and Kellie Covington are served chow like the troops, during their visit to LSA Dragon April 28. Madill and Covington are two of three Miami Dolphin cheerleaders who came with the Hijinks and High Kicks Armed Forces Entertainment tour. The women spent several days in Haiti, performing shows several times a day for troops.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — The posters advertising them around camp read punch lines and pom-poms, but these women are more than just pretty faces with witty senses of humor. Comedians Carole Montgomery and Leighann Lord, and Miami Dolphins cheerleaders Kellie Covington, Fabiola Romero and Amy Madill, make up the Hijinks and High Kicks Armed Forces Entertainment tour that visited Port-au-Prince from April 27 through April 29.

“We did three shows for the troops (here in Haiti) to show our appreciation,” Covington said.
The women’s visit to Haiti focused on performing for the troops and boosting morale, but that didn’t mean they didn’t get to do a little sight-seeing themselves.

“We had a helicopter ride,” Lord said. “We were able to get an aerial view of Port-au-Prince and see some of the damage and some of the beauty (of Haiti). Everything in the news has been about what’s happening and of course about the earthquake and all the organizations trying to help, but we forget some of the beauty of this country. We were able to see some of that from the helicopter.”

The women all agreed that the helicopter ride was eye opening and enjoyable, even if the pilots had some fun while they flew.

The pilots were messing with the cheerleaders, swerving back and forth, Montgomery said. Although the cheerleaders at times got nervous, the two comedians just put their hands in the air and enjoyed the ride.

Following the Blackhawk tour, the group drove to LSA Dragon and saw more of Port-au-Prince from the ground.

“On the drive to (LSA Dragon), we drove through the streets and got to really see what’s going on,” Romero said. “The buildings are demolished; there are people on the streets. There are tents that have people living in them.”

Montgomery said that people don’t really see the true depth of the destruction until they are here and see it firsthand.

“You see the stuff on the nightly news about the devastation but you don’t realize it until you really see it and people have no idea what it is really like down here,” Montgomery said. “We, as Americans, take for granted that we have food every day and running water and toilets.”

During their visit, the women held a schedule similar to the troops. They ate meals, ready-to-eat, dealt with the heat and humidity and found themselves wishing for the little comforts in life.
“The heated meals that come in a box, they’ve got to do something about them,” Montgomery said. “Get a Lean Cuisine, Healthy Choice, something. I think that was a low point for me.”

Specialist Darwin Quinteros, wheeled vehicle mechanic, Headquarters Support Company, Special Troops Battalion, U.S. Army South, along with several other Soldiers, sat with Madill and talked about how she got into cheerleading, college and the show.

“It was a good moral booster,” Quinteros said. “The girls were pretty and we don’t see that a lot being deployed. I liked their performance.”

The show kicked off with Montgomery talking to the troops, as well as making them laugh.
“I talk about real things,” Montgomery said. “I talk about my life, my marriage, my son, just everyday things. I’m the woman that says the things everyone wants to say, but don’t want to say because they’re embarrassed.”

Lord followed Montgomery’s act and then the cheerleaders performed several small dances. To get the crowds involvement, Madill, Romero and Covington quizzed troops on Miami Dolphins trivia and handed out their team’s swimsuit calendars.

The group was only able to stay three days in Haiti, with their brief stop at LSA Dragon on their second night, but that didn’t stop them from wishing they could stay longer.

“I would stay here longer if I could,” Montgomery said. “If there were more people to entertain, I would stay.”

Montgomery said these tours mean a lot to her because her father is a Korean War veteran and it means so much to see the Soldiers. She said her father gets a kick out of her tours because he still remembers Bob Hope visiting him on his deployments.

By the end of the day, the women were packed up and ready head back to their sleeping quarters for the night, but they took some time to sign autographs and talk to the troops one last time.
“We feel honored that we can come out here and help you guys (relax),” Montgomery said. “Laughter really is the best medicine.”