Add to your team order
Light-Up LED Pom Poms
Metallic streamers with LEDs built into the pom, a rechargeable pack, and one remote that changes the whole team’s color at once.
$145 USD per pair
Purple out game ideas for cheer and dance teams: Purple Up for military kids in April, pancreatic cancer awareness in November, or a purple-and-gold school night. Light-up purple pom poms switch to purple by remote and back to school colors after. Team pricing is $120 a pair on 10 or more pairs.
Planning a purple out around the dates your school already marks
Purple has more causes attached to it than most colors, which makes a purple out easy to schedule and easy to muddle. Pick one cause per night. The three most common for school teams are Purple Up for military children in April, pancreatic cancer awareness in November and Alzheimer’s awareness in June, plus the purple-and-gold or purple-and-white school night that needs no cause at all.
One set carries every one of them: light-up poms that run school colors all season and switch to purple by remote. See color out game ideas for the year of color nights and light-up pom poms for every kind of team for other squads.
How do you run a Purple Up night for military kids?
April is the Month of the Military Child. North Carolina’s Department of Military and Veterans Affairs notes that it is sponsored by the Department of Defense Military Community and Family Policy and was established in 1986 by Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger (source: N.C. Department of Military and Veterans Affairs: Purple Up Day). “Purple Up! For Military Kids” is a day to wear purple and thank military children; purple shows that every branch is supported, the services’ blue, green and red combined into one color. School districts choose their own date, often with the installation’s school liaison office.
For the squad: line the entrance in purple for military families, invite military kids onto the field or court at halftime, and switch every pom to purple as they are welcomed. Ask your counselor or school liaison which families want to take part. For the fall salute to veterans with the same set, see military appreciation night ideas.
A purple out calendar
| Night | Month | Season it lands in | The squad’s moment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purple Up for military kids | April, date set locally | Spring sports, spring showcase | Purple as military kids are welcomed at halftime |
| All-cancers night (lavender) | February | Basketball | Lavender-purple during a moment of recognition |
| Pancreatic cancer awareness | November | Basketball tip-off, football playoffs | Purple for the opening lineup |
| Alzheimer’s and brain awareness | June | Dance recitals, summer leagues | Purple for the finale |
| School-color night | Any home game | All year | Purple and your second color as split pairs |
The National Foundation for Cancer Research lists purple for pancreatic cancer (November) and lavender for all cancers (February) (source: National Foundation for Cancer Research). The Alzheimer’s Association calls purple the color of the Alzheimer’s movement and asks supporters to go purple throughout June (source: Alzheimer’s Association: Alzheimer’s & Brain Awareness Month).
Purple pom poms for purple-and-gold and purple-and-white schools
If purple is a school color, order Purple streamers, one of ten metallic colors in the team order. Of the 54 teams that applied to us this fall, 5 asked for purple, usually next to gold or white. Split each pair, purple on the raised pom and gold or white on the low one, and the squad carries both colors all season.
In an arena that already washes the court in purple light, white poms stand out against it, as in the photo; switch to purple for the moments you want the whole room to match. Our purple pom poms guide covers purple-and-gold sets in detail.
What does purple look like at night?
LED purple sits between blue and pink, and phone cameras can push it toward blue-violet. Test it at a night practice from the top row of the stands and on a phone, because those are the two places it will be seen. The diodes are built into the pom itself, not one light in the handle, so the whole pom holds the color rather than a bright spot at the grip.
Charge the night before: 3 to 4 hours per charge covers a game. The remote’s W, MODE and AUTO buttons and the color settings are all in our setup videos.
How do you run a November purple out at basketball tip-off?
November opens basketball season, and the purple ribbon’s month is November too. A season-opener purple out gives the night two reasons to fill the stands: lights down for lineups, squad on purple, one line from the announcer, then back to school colors for the tip. Pair it with a blue out or an orange out later in the year so each cause gets its own night.
For every cancer ribbon night, see cancer awareness night ideas, and for the October version, pink out game ideas.
Ordering one set for Purple Up, November and every game between
One pair per athlete at $120 a pair on 10 or more pairs. An 11-member squad is $1,320; 19 is $2,280; a dance studio pom team of 32 is $3,840. Studios that end the year in June can use the same purple setting for an Alzheimer’s awareness finale.
Student councils planning the theme should bring student section themes to the meeting so the dress code and the pom cues match. Apply on our team pricing page.
Apply with your school, your squad size, your colors and the date of your purple out. We make the poms ourselves and will tell you plainly what fits your date. Team pricing is $120 a pair on 10 or more pairs.
Frequently asked questions
What is Purple Up?
A day during April, the Month of the Military Child, to wear purple and thank military children. School districts choose their own date.
Can we get purple pom poms in our team colors, like purple and gold?
Yes. Order Purple or Gold streamers, or split each pair with one pom purple and one gold. The light switches by remote.
What is your team pricing?
$120 a pair on 10 or more pairs. Nineteen athletes is $2,280.
Which cancer does purple stand for?
The purple ribbon stands for pancreatic cancer, with awareness month in November; lavender stands for all cancers, in February.
How do the poms change color?
The diodes are built into each pom, a USB-C battery pack runs 3 to 4 hours per charge, and one remote switches every pom that is on.
Can we get them in time for our Purple Up date?
Send us the date when you apply and we will tell you plainly what fits.
See also: light-up pom poms for every team and the cheer pom pom color guide.
Sources: N.C. Department of Military and Veterans Affairs: Purple Up Day, National Foundation for Cancer Research, Alzheimer’s Association: Alzheimer’s & Brain Awareness Month.
Purple Up! For Military Kids, the Month of the Military Child, the Alzheimer’s Association and the National Foundation for Cancer Research are named here as facts only. None is affiliated with or endorses Neon Cowboys.
Questions: info@neoncowboys.com.
