We are so excited to be sending our very first youth delegation this March to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. Our youth delegation team and their committed leaders have been working very hard for several months to prepare for this exciting opportunity. During CSW we will be sharing updates on their experience and information about the presentation they are sharing. In preparation for their trip we wanted to introduce our youth delegation to our Big Ocean Membership.
Taryn Royall is a freshman at Brigham Young University, pursuing a degree in Public Relations with a minor in International Policy and Diplomacy. Taryn is heavily involved with the Brigham Young University Student Association. Taryn is also the event planner for Women’s Services and Resources, where she has played an active role in supporting women and learning about the issues that they face around the world. From working with WSR, she has become extremely passionate about sexual assault, domestic violence, eating disorders, and much more. Taryn has a strong belief in the power of motherhood. She enjoys traveling and has been to 14 countries. Taryn enjoys any outdoor activity, but also appreciates anytime spent inside with family, friends, or a good book. She also has a strong passion for food and enjoys trying new recipes.
As a freshman at Brigham Young University, Madeleine Arnold is a pre-dental student studying physiology and developmental biology. She has always had a love for music, particularly piano teaching and performance, and has won numerous awards, including first place in a national piano competition in 2015. Representing a program that promotes scholarship and leadership for young women, Madeleine was named the Distinguished Young Woman of Utah and the first runner-up to the DYW of America in 2016. She visited a refugee camp in Greece last summer with her family after helping to organize a relief campaign to gather toys and supplies for children and families in crisis.
Marisa Hoover is a freshman at Brigham Young University where she is studying public relations. She served as the senior class president in her Idaho high school where she was also a member of Varsity Chorale performing in Carnegie Hall in January 2016. Marisa is an accomplished pianist, ballerina, and student who was chosen to represent the state of Idaho as its Distinguished Young Woman of 2016. She was elected State Superintendent of Public Instruction at Idaho Girl’s State, June 2015. She served as a member of the Mayor’s Community College Advisory Committee tasked with rallying support for a community college in her hometown. She is passionate about education, particularly the opportunities for education of women and girls.
As a high school senior, Samantha Clinger is passionate about learning and working hard. These desires led her to audition and be part of a prestigious school choir performing in Carnegie Hall later this month. She enjoys accompanying for the choirs at school and is also the president of the Days for Girls humanitarian club she started as a junior. She encourages girls to utilize their sewing abilities to create reusable feminine hygiene kits for girls in need around the world. Through this experience, she has come to understand the value of education in the lives of girls and women and the difference women can make when supporting one another.
Hailey Bennett is a business owner, singer, actor, student council member, and high school junior. She is a founding member of her school’s Hope Squad (suicide prevention). Her favorite parts on-stage include Belle in “Beauty and the Beast,” Ursula in “The Little Mermaid,” and Mayzie in “The Boyfriend.” Her days are full of homework for her honors and AP classes, sibling duties to her two brothers and two sisters, and managing the thriving live princess and costume business she began running at age 15.
Having lived around the country and traveled internationally, Candace Brown feels like a global citizen and is eager to serve her worldwide community. Closer to home, she mentors her peers through her high school’s anti-bullying initiative. Each week she volunteers at a nearby elementary school, and each month she serves her city with the local Food and Care Coalition. She relaxes by expanding her harp repertoire and by reading every page she can find.
Hannah Butcher began playing the harp at age 9 and currently teaches 11 students in her harp and piano studio. From Carnegie Hall to the halls of hospitals and assisted living centers, Hannah loves to uplift others through music.This focus inspired her to form the Perry High School Music Therapy Club, which promotes Perry High musicians to collaborate and share their talents with the community. The club has grown to be one of the most popular clubs on campus. Hannah has also been touched by the many stories of suffering refugee children and families. She became an assisted site coordinator for Lifting Hands International and helped collect, sort and package 2,500 items for shipment to a refugee camp. Hannah has been involved with the Model UN in high school and is looking forward to promoting education and opportunity for women and girls around the world.
Ever since Breia Tullis was young, she has been looking for ways she can serve and make others smile. She has been on many service projects, and in different leadership positions, that have helped her succeed. She loves being outside in the mountains with her family and being surrounded by those she loves. She feels honored to be a part of Big Ocean Women, and has loved being able to learn and grow from the amazing examples of these mentors. She hopes she will be able to touch the lives of others all around her for the better through this experience, but also in her everyday life, in her home and community.
