BLACKFOOT — Jesse Walker knew her daughter worked hard to prepare for the Blackfoot Distinguished Young Woman competition held at the Blackfoot Performing Arts Center on April 24, and expected she would do well.

But Halle Walker exceeded even her mother’s expectations.

“We came in with the goal of her doing her best,” Jesse said. “I knew she would do well in at least some of the categories.”

In fact, Halle did well across the board, taking first in the fitness category and placing in the other four categories on her way to being named Blackfoot Distinguished Young Woman.

“I feel good. I am super excited,” Halle said. “I was really happy with how I did, and it was a great honor to compete with all those girls and make all those memories with them.”

All the girls in the competition are juniors in high school, and Halle attends Blackfoot High School. The competition pays scholarship money to the top five positions overall and in each category. In all, Halle won $5,200 in scholarship money during the competition.

She plans to attend Utah State University, where she wants to study speech and language pathology.

“They are able to help people talk better,” she said. “In simpler terms, it’s a speech therapist.”

Halle grew up watching Distinguished Young Woman competitions and always knew she wanted to give it a shot when she became a junior in high school.

“It just seemed like it was a super fun program,” she said. “Everyone I talked to that has done it said they had an amazing experience and wouldn’t trade it for the world.”

On the other side of that experience, Halle said she feels the same way.

“I loved having a good time with my friends,” she said. “I just loved dressing up, being able to get fancy and looking pretty and showing off what I had been working on.”

Working toward the event began in mid-January when Halle said the girls who were competing were coached about the interview process so they would have plenty of time to prepare for it. Practicing routines for the actual event began in early March and started at 6 a.m.

“I loved waking up early and hanging out with all my friends in the morning,” Halle said. “You are a completely different person when you are tired, so it was fun to see everyone so early.”

When asked what memories she will treasure most from the competition, she didn’t hesitate to mention her enjoyment at watching a couple of the other contestants, the first alternate, Lilian Hill, and the second alternate, Camryn Kniffin.

Halle said she was inspired by watching Hill’s calmness during the interview part of the competition.

“She helped me learn a lot of things to do during my interview and the self-expression,” she said. “She was so good at sticking with what she knew and was very concise in answering her questions.”

She was taken with Kniffin’s performance during the program.

“She was very impressive,” Halle said. “She won self-expression and talent. Her talent was so pretty. She did a lyrical dance.”

Up next for Halle is a service project she must complete and getting ready for the Idaho Distinguished Young Woman competition in October.

“I am really excited,” she said. “I will get to meet all the girls from around Idaho. Hopefully, I will make a lot of new friends.”