Danielle Gomez is a senior at KHS and the Class of 2025 Class President. Not only is she involved in her school, she is also active in her community and had the opportunity to participant in the Distinguished Young Woman (DYW) program. She was named this year’s Cass County Distinguished Young Woman. Gomez was the second runner-up and talent category winner at the DYW state finals.
When she was first looking into the program, Gomez had a choice to participate in Howard County, but ended up choosing Cass County.
“Distinguished Young Woman was a program I heard about through my friends at Kokomo High School. Girls who had competed in previous years encouraged me to participate,” she said. “I had the option to compete for either Howard County or Cass County since I attend Kokomo High School but live in Logansport. I chose to compete in the Cass County program to make more connections with the community I live in.”
The program took a lot of time and dedication and Gomez even had to find time to practice on her own.
“To prepare for the county program, I practiced with my group every two weeks. We ran through fitness, self expression, talent and worked on our Be Your Best Self essays,” Gomez said. “After winning the local program, I prepared for state by doing mock interviews, rehearsing the fitness routine and answering impromptu stage question.”
Not only did she get to participate in the program, but she also got to branch out and meet new people, creating new friendships and relationships.
“I love meeting new people and sharing my life experiences with them. I was able to connect with so many like minded young women during state week. These friendships will last a lifetime and I am blessed to have had the opportunity to learn from others. Also, I love to challenge myself. This program really pushed me out of my comfort zone and it was something I really needed for personal growth,” she said.
Winning came as a surprise to her but she was very thankful for the award.
“I was honestly very surprised and grateful. I made exceptional new friends and earned money to go towards my college education. It felt like my hard work had paid off,” Gomez said.
Gomez also felt as though her experiences are going to help open various doors in her future career.
“DYW has made me a more confident individual. I am more comfortable with public speaking and interviews which I once found overwhelming. I am excited to use the skills I have learned from DYW in my professional life and undergraduate career,” she said.
Gomez looks forward to her future at Indiana University and using the experiences she had with the DYW Program.
“After graduation, I will be attending the Kelley School of Business as a Direct Admit student. I will be majoring in Business Management and minoring in Biology in hopes of furthering my education and obtaining my Doctor of Dental Surgery Degree from Indiana University School of Dentistry,” Gomez said. “Throughout my undergraduate years, I will be dancing on the Indiana University Redsteppers dance team. My end goal is to become a Pediatric Orthodontist and enhance children’s health and confidence.”
