Pompoms rustle and silver shoes flash as “Japan Pom Pom-ers” move to a lively cheer-dancing beat. They’re no ordinary squad, though. They are aged at least 60 and their leader is 89.

Lawrence Herkimer, the founder of modern cheerleading and inventor of the pom-pom who first started offering summertime camps for the sport in 1948, died at age 89 in Dallas.