Hello, everyone!

My name is Holly Dossou!

After months of hard work and competition, I was given the honor of and an opportunity to represent my high school and Colorado at two incredible competitions: the DECA International Career Development Conference (ICDC), one of the world's largest business conferences, and the National Speech & Debate Association's National Tournament (NSDA) - the country's largest academic national tournament.

I placed in the top 3 in Colorado for Business Services Operations and in the top 2 in Northern Colorado for Original Oratory, which earned me the chance to compete on some of the biggest stages for high school students in business and speech.

As you can imagine, this opportunity means so much to me - not only as a student, but also as an individual eager to grow, learn, and represent a community that has been pivotal to my development as a competitor and person.

Speech and debate have strengthened my confidence and voice, and DECA has allowed me to explore business, leadership, and problem-solving in real-life situations.

These programs have shaped my high school journey in ways that will carry far beyond graduation.

However, travel, lodging, and competition costs are significant, so I set out to self-fundraise this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. In total, I am working to raise 3,000 dollars for both competitions to cover travel, lodging, registration, and meal costs. I created this GoFundMe to help cover the expenses. If you can donate, even a small amount truly makes a difference. And if donating isn't possible, simply sharing would mean more than you know, especially to those who support students like me.

Thank you all for the encouragement, kindness, and belief you've shown me; it means more than words can express - truly.

With extreme gratitude,

Holly