DiGiacomo inspires on and off field

It has been a busy few weeks for Johnston’s Rayna DiGiacomo.
The JHS sophomore is getting prepared to compete in her third Miss Rhode Island’s Teen competition as Johnston’s representative. The Miss Rhode Island’s Teen organization rewards winners with a college scholarship and even pays for college in full should the winner enroll in a selected list of schools provided by the company. The winner also gets to go to Ms. America and receive additional sponsorships on their journey.
DiGiacomo’s cause that she is supporting as part of the competition is organ donation and she recently spoke at events put on by Donate Life America and New England Donor Services. Along with her community work, she has also been in the thick of gathering sponsors and working on her talent for the competition on May 12th.
“It’s very demanding. You need to have everything in for a specific deadline and if you do sports or work outside of school, you have to do it on top of that. It’s very busy getting everything in. I am much more comfortable now (after multiple years), my platform has improved. I have done more events and my public speaking has improved over the past two years,” DiGiacomo said of the preparation process, which has been every bit rewarding as it has been challenging. “It’s very inspiring. This program helps you with your speech, your confidence, your growth. It prepares you for a whole bunch of things that you wouldn’t think you needed to prepare for.”
Not only has she been getting ready for the Ms. Rhode Island Teen event, but she has also been working as the quarterback of the newly formed JHS girls flag football team. The squad began its preseason on April 11 and will be seeing its first game action in a tournament on May 11th.
DiGiacomo has had a blast being part of the new tradition at the school, and is proud to help make a statement along with her teammates.
“Our team is wonderful. We learned 11 plays from April 11th to now, when we’re running scrimmages we get to run the plays. Many people say it’s a man’s sport, but with our team and the tournaments coming up, we have risen so many different ways,” DiGiacomo said. “We became more confident, we have a sisterhood with each other and we enjoy practice so much. We proved that a sport can be made for girls and guys.”
Although most underclassmen would be overwhelmed with such a hectic schedule, DiGiacomo has embraced it and made the most of the lessons she has learned along the way.
“Being so busy has pushed me in so many ways, but it has been so many good ways that have helped me learn how to manage my time. It has helped with my confidence, my time management skills, and being open to things. It has been a great experience,” DiGiacomo said.