New Distinguished Young Woman to be named April 10

The Distinguished Young Woman of Shafter program, previously known as the Shafter Junior Miss program, will be held on Saturday, April 10.

Due to pandemic restrictions, the event will be shown online for viewers.

Tickets to the livestream will be sold on the event's website, Toni Frantz, of the Distinguished Young Woman of Shafter Committee, said.

Ticket holders will receive an email on April 10 with a link to the show. The program will begin at 7 p.m.

Frantz said that the committee wants to thank the community for their continued support for this program, making it one of the oldest and most supported program in the state.

The nation-wide program had made over $360 million in college scholarships available to girls across the country in 2020. Distinguished Young Woman is open to all junior girls and rewards excellence in scholastic achievements, talent, physical fitness, and self expression. After weeks of rehearsals, the girls showcase this talent in a program that will test their endurance, talent, poise, and interviewing skills.

This year, the participants will be vying for $4,000 in scholarships. There are scholarships going to the participants chosen as Distinguished Young Woman, First Alternate, Second Alternate, Physical Fitness winner, Talent winner, Scholastic award winner, Self Expression winner, and the Spirit Award winner.

One of the participants is Brooke Cummings, who will be performing a song titled "The Show." Cummings is planning on attending Biola University and wants to pursue a career in social work.

Another participant is Jamilynn Eighmy who will be attending Cal Poly after graduating, wanting to go into marine biology. Eighmy will be playing the piano for the talent portion of the program.

Alyssa Espericueta is another participant. She wants to become a dentist and is planning on attending CSUB after graduation. Espericueta will be performing an American Sign Language number for her talent.

The next participant is Malia Maldonado, who will be going to CSUB to study physical education, planning on becoming a PE teacher. She will be singing "Put Your Records On," by Corinne Bailey Rae.

Audrey McPhetridge will attend Columbia State Community College after graduating. She wants to own a hair salon. She will be doing a magic and dance act for the talent portion of the program.

Nicole Morris is considering theater, psychology, or interior design as possible careers and is planning on attending Abilene Christian University after graduation. Morris will be performing a monologue entitled "The Mask of Night is on My Face" in the talent portion.

Natalie Olvera is planning on attending either CSUB or the University of Michigan after graduation. She will be going into orthodontics. She will be decorating cookies to the tune of Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 4.

Another participant is Violet Ortiz, who wants to be a surgeon and is planning on going to the University of California at Irvine. She will be performing a monologue entitled, "Homeless Goldilocks," by Anastasia G.

Mackenzie Toews wants to attend CSU Monterey Bay to study to become a veterinarian. She will be performing a number on the drums.

Misty Zamudio wants to go to college somewhere in Los Angeles and wants to become a professional photographer and video editor. She will be performing a hip hop dance routine for her talent.

If you are interested in purchasing tickets to Livestream the event, go to distinguished-young-women-of-shafter.square.site/.