DOLORES – Over the past four years, any Montezuma County resident attending a local high school sporting event or theater production had a pretty good chance of catching Julianne Vega in action.
The Bears senior has made her mark in just about every way possible – and is savoring each opportunity for every step of the way.
Vega recently closed the chapter on some of her final high school activities, performing as the title character in “Alice in Wonderland” for the Dolores Theater Troupe, while also striking her final putts for the DHS golf team. Her list of credits is a mind-boggling combination of music, theater, sports, and academia, making a bystander wonder if Vega found the secret formula to finding a 25th hour in the day.
But for the four-year DHS class president and member of the National Honor Society, pushing any of her activities off to the side is off the table.
“I remind myself why I’m doing each of these things, evaluating what each contributes to my life,” said Vega, “I don’t do them ‘just to do them,’ I have a passion for all of them.”
Vega’s multipotentiality takes center stage – literally – for the Dolores Theater Troupe, for which Vega has performed a dozen shows over her high school career. Her favorite part involved her role as Hermia in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” from her junior year – a production that she loved for its brilliant script, set, choreography and an opportunity for her “to have fun running around the stage.”
Golf has been a different kind of challenge for Vega, but just like in her performing arts pursuits, refining her craft takes time.
“I’m trying to make improvements anywhere I can and also celebrate the little things,” said Vega. “Golf has the way to bring out the best and worst in yourself. It's unlike any of the other things that I’ve done at DHS. I’ve learned how to be proud of myself, and that’s one of the most important things I can do for myself.”
Included in those mini-victories is an appreciation for her beautiful surroundings, even on days when her swing may not be cooperating,
In the meantime, she’s found another layer of connection to many of her teammates, many of whom also happen to share some of her other extracurricular interests. When Dolores girls golf split off from M-CHS and started its own program two years ago, Vega jumped at the chance to play for the Bears, in part to deepen those connections with her peers.
She still spent plenty of time in orange and black, too, playing trumpet for the M-CHS Marching Panthers, along with their Jazz and Symphonic Bands. She’s also joined the pit orchestra for theater productions at M-CHS and The Lamp Post in Cortez.
Much like her golf exploits, Vega’s Knowledge Bowl experience allowed her an opportunity to travel all over the region, and to spend time with her friends – sharing laughs on the bus rides and in the middle of competition, regardless of the end results of the meets themselves.
“Through all of these opportunities, the best thing I can take from them is the relationships beyond high school,” reflected Vega. “The people, my teammates, teachers, and coaches, make this journey what its been.”
Vega is set to head to Boulder this upcoming fall, where she hopes to instill her own love for learning with future generations with plans to study elementary education at the University of Colorado.
“I’m going to be able to look back and say ‘Wow,’ I’ve learned so much from all of these experiences,”’ said Vega. “It’s taught me the joy of trying new things.”
