Discovering Delaware’s top 20 under 20-year-olds did not happen overnight. It started out with hundreds of emails and phone calls, reaching out to different school districts and organizations asking for nominations. This became a list of over 100 kids, which had to be painstakingly narrowed down to 20.
This year’s top 20 under 20 is nothing short of inspiring—for me, at least. Each and every one of the finalists inspires me in different ways. There’s Emily Moody, who took her passion from baking and built a business that for two years has satisfied Georgetown’s sweet tooth. And she’s only 13. Then there is Jenaya Vann from Bear who’s only 11, but plays music like she’s been practicing for decades.
These kids are like mini-adults. Nine-year-old Chase Christiansen of Dover, for example, takes his job as lieutenant on the South Dover Elementary safety patrol team very seriously even when he’s off the clock. At the photo shoot Chase held down the fort despite the antics of Milton’s Fin Jones and his duck caller. Some of them even came with their business cards.
They may be young but these guys mean business, and as a self-proclaimed cheerleader for all 20, I can’t wait to see where they will go in the future. For now though, we can enjoy that they are still young and that this project happened to be a lot of fun in the process.
Click through a slideshow of photos not featured in the magazine here.
