WHS senior finds her niche in business club

Haley Delagnes was looking for her niche when she entered high school, so she started joining clubs and volunteering her time.

“I was bummed I wasn’t good at a certain sport,” she said. “I wanted to find what I like — what interests me.”

She spent four years with the business club DECA, three in the science and healthcare club HOSA, as a member of National Honor Society, and on the student council. She volunteered at a children’s summer camp and with animals.

“I’ve met so many different friends,” she said. “I’ve gotten to meet so many different people I wouldn’t have been able to otherwise. I want to be able to say ‘hi’ to everyone.”

Delagnes graduates this week from Whitefish High School. She is the daughter of Jon and Kim Delagnes.

She plans to attend Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles and major in entrepreneurship.

Her post-graduation plans stem from of her experience competing in DECA, which focuses on business and challenges students in a variety of competitive events through role playing, presentations and written research. She earned a spot at the international competition all four years of high school.

“I like the creativity of the role playing,” she said. “There are a lot of people who are really good, so the goal is to make yourself stand out.”

Delagnes, along with partner Myndi Holbrook, created an awareness campaign designed around ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s Disease, as part of HOSA. They placed third at the state competition.

Delagnes has volunteered with the Humane Society of Northwest Montana since she was 16 years old. She has an Australian shepherd named Cody, whom she loves to walk and take paddle boarding.

“Cody is the love of my life,” she said. “I wanted to get a puppy, but my mom suggested I volunteer with the Humane Society so I could play with puppies.”

She also spends time as a nanny for a 10-year-old girl with autism. She started out as a volunteer helping the girl, who is her neighbor, to attend a summer day camp.

“I always wanted a little sister,” Delagnes said. “She is the most special little girl.”