Jacksonville, Fla. teen named Distinguished Young Woman of Florida

Statewide scholarship program awarded more than $16,000 in cash scholarships to participants

Mobile, Ala. (January 24, 2012) - On January 21, Rachel Appelo of Jacksonville, Fla. was named the Distinguished Young Woman of Florida and awarded more than $6,000 in cash scholarships during a statewide scholarship program for high school girls held at The Garden Theatre in Winter Garden, Fla.

Appelo was one of 18 high school senior girls from Florida who competed to represent the state as the Distinguished Young Woman of Florida for 2012. Other award recipients included: Zoe Filutowski of Longwood (1st Runner-up) and Erin White of Port Saint Joe (2nd Runner-up). Participants were evaluated in the categories of Scholastics (20%), Interview (25%), Fitness (15%), Self-Expression (15%) and Talent (25%).

Throughout the next year, Appelo will represent Florida at various public events and serve as a role model to young people by spreading the program’s national outreach message of “Be Your Best Self.” The outreach program is designed to encourage self-esteem and excellence in all young people through its five principles: Be Healthy, Be Involved, Be Studious, Be Ambitious, and Be Responsible.

Appelo is the daughter of Lisa Appelo and the late Daniel Appelo and is a home school student. Appelo’s achievements include: Latin Honors Society Member; Bronze Award for National Latin Exam; Mu Eta Sigma National Math Honor Society; 1st Expository Speaker NCFCA SC Qualifier 2009; 2nd Expository Speaker NCFCA FL Qualifier 2009; 4th Expository Speaker NCFCA Region 8 2009; 1st, Female Ages 16 – 19, Run4TheirLives 5k, 2010; 4-H Competition, Sewing, Blue Ribbon 2009. In addition, Appelo’s activities include: Tutor; Private voice lessons; Participant and Mentor in NCFCA speech and debate; Participation in PureFashion training and modeling; Active in the youth program at FBC Jacksonville; Skating Carhop at Sonic Drive-in; Gate River Run participant; Involvement in Church Choir; Involvement in inter-mural co-ed flag football UNF; Youth Mixed Ensemble at FBC.

The 55th National Finals will take place on June 28, 29, and 30, 2012, in Mobile, Alabama. Appelo will travel to Mobile, Alabama along with 49 other state representatives to participate in personal development activities and community service projects before competing for the opportunity to become the Distinguished Young Woman of America for 2012 and for a share of more than $130,000 in cash scholarships. Tennessee’s Katye Brock, who is attending the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, won the 2011 overall award.

For more information on Distinguished Young Women of Florida, please contact Allison Lee at 407-482-5467 Florida@DistinguishedYW.org.

About Distinguished Young Women
Founded in 1958 in Mobile, Alabama, Distinguished Young Women is the largest and oldest national scholarship program for high school girls. During its 54 years of operation, the program has provided life-changing experiences for more than 700,000 young women. Last year Distinguished Young Women provided more than $108 million in cash and college scholarship opportunities to program participants at the local, state and national levels. Previously known as America’s Junior Miss, the program announced its new name in June 2010.

The mission of Distinguished Young Women is to positively impact the lives of young women by providing a transformative experience that promotes and rewards scholarship, leadership and talent. National sponsors include the City of Mobile, Mobile County, Eastern Shore Toyota, Encore Rehabilitation, Mobile Gas: A Sempra Company, Alabama Power Foundation, Regions Bank and Master Boat Builders.

For more information about Distinguished Young Women, contact Stephanie Bradford, National Headquarters Communications Director (251-622-5335, Stephanie@DistinguishedYW.org) or visit www.DistinguishedYW.org.

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