The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. For proof, look no further than the 88 teens to be presented at Le Bal de Ballet 2006.
The 47 debutantes and 41 Young Men of Distinction were announced at a Sunday afternoon reception held at Denver Country Club and include Rachel Romer, granddaughter of former Gov. Roy Romer; Aundrea Piper, whose late grandmother, Kathy Piper Johnson, edited the Denver Social Register & Record; Will Pickard, whose great-grandfather was architect Temple Hoyne Buell; Elliott Naves, son of 7News anchor Bertha Lynn and Judge Larry Naves; and Evan Vessels, whose family is prominent in the oil-and-gas industry.
The high school seniors, though, didn’t use their names alone to win a coveted bid to take part in this signature event of the Denver Ballet Guild.
Rachel Romer, for example, spent her junior year in Washington, D.C., working as a congressional page; Aundrea Piper, whose travels have taken her to China, Iceland and Greenland, has taken part in the National Youth Forum on Medicine and plans to be premed at the University of Colorado following her graduation from Ponderosa High.
Will Pickard is the recipient of a Medal of Achievement in math and science from Colorado School of Mines and plays varsity football for Kent Denver School. Elliott Naves is on the honor roll and soccer team at Mullen High, volunteers in the Denver District Court, and was presented at the Jack and Jill Club Beautillion.
Evan Vessels plans to enjoy a “gap year” abroad following his graduation from Denver Academy, where he made honor roll every semester. He spent two summers at Catalina Island Sea Camp where he earned advanced scuba certification, underwater navigation and how to assist distressed divers.
Debutante Danielle Gonzales is one of the nation’s top 10 high school swimmers, holding six state championships in breast stroke. She’s also a champion golfer and member of the St. Mary’s Academy Spanish Honor Society. Madeline Caudle’s volunteer work has taken her to Greece, where she helped build a village playground; Chelsea Moore was blessed during a private audience with the late Pope John Paul II, and Caroline Duke follows her sister’s footsteps as a member of Kent Denver’s state champion lacrosse and field hockey teams.
Their formal introduction is June 17 at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, after which they’ll join family and friends for dinner and dancing at the Adam’s Mark Hotel.
Also being honored are debutantes Elizabeth Arkell, Katherine Barton, Kelly Carlson, Caroline Curtiss, Julie Curtiss-Lusher, Claire Finch, Kathryn Giancola, Allison Grenney, Deslie Hamersky, Alex Harding, Hannah Heavrin, Elizabeth Walker, Kaytlyn Jornayvaz, Danielle Kachulis, Emily Kelsall, Lauren Kenney, Leslie Koehn, Lindsey Kucera, Chelsea Lehman, Amber Lister, Emily Luethke and Jacqueline Mains.
Also, Kaitlyn May, Kathleen McReynolds, Alli Meers, Lauren Miller, Melanie Moore, Sarah Morse, Jennifer Muniz, Malia Myers, Molly Parker, Ahley Peterson, Patty Pogge, Margaux Price, Sara Scheible, Kedzie Schotters, Courney Smith, Ally Smola, Julie Swinehart, Lizzie Terry and Sarah Wyman.
Also named Young Men of Distinction were Elliott Alston, Jack Armstrong, Peter Baumann, Ren Blair, Jack Bradley, Joey Curtiss-Lusher, Patrick Dolan, Martin Erzinger, Kevin Gebhardt, Trevor Glassman, Josh Greenwood, Ty Hanley, William Holmes, Zach Hussain, Trygve Jensen, Cameron Kerr, Philip Kritzer, Andrew Leede, Evan Lengerich, Tyler Link, Michael McDonald, Justin Miller, Matt Moskal, Jamie Payne and Mike Pogge.
And Chase Puckett, Michael Roddy, Teddy Scott, Walker Shaw, Eric Sipf , T.J. Slattery, Cameron Spickert, Jimmy Spierings, Stefan Stathopulos, Sam Stookesberry, Joey Swanson, Zach Tedeschi and David Wurtzbacher.
Society editor Joanne Davidson can be reached at 303-809-1314 or jmdpost@aol.com.
