Oak Mountain senior places in Distinguished Young Women program

After placing first in this year’s Distinguished Young Women of Shelby County program, Oak Mountain High School senior Brooklyn Holt moved on to the state competition, where she took home $10,200 and the title of first runner-up. 

“It’s definitely an honor just to be able to say that I was first runner-up representing the class of 2015,” Holt said. “There were phenomenal girls I participated with.”

The competition was held in Montgomery on Jan. 23 and 24. The participants competed in several categories: scholastics, talent, fitness, self-expression and an interview. They all took the week off from school and stayed with host families in order to rehearse for the week leading up to the competition. 

Holt said that her favorite part of the process was staying with her host family because she feels like she has a second family now. She’s already planned to stay with them again in Auburn while visiting “brothers and sisters” from the program. 

“The experience was, by far, one of the best weeks of my life,” Holt said. “Just meeting all these phenomenal young women, and honestly, getting away from reality for a week. We took off a week of school, and we just got to relax. The final performance was amazing.”

At Oak Mountain High School, Holt is the captain of the majorettes, the president of the National Junior Honor Society chapter, an OMHS Master Ambassador, and a member of the school show choir and the Future Business Leaders of America. She is also a part of the Church of the Highlands Haven Leadership Team and the Auburn Honor Band. In addition to these activities, Holt founded “Raise Your Voice for Children” and has received several music and service awards.

During the competition in Montgomery, she received awards in the scholastics, self-expression and interview categories in addition to her first runner-up title. 

She plans to attend Auburn University in the fall, majoring in media studies with a sports broadcasting emphasis, and she auditioned for the Auburn University majorettes in March. Holt said she is looking forward to the new experience of college.