CORPUS CHRISTI, TX \u2014 Buc Days is returning to the Coastal Bend next week, bringing parades and festivities, but for one former scholarship recipient, the event represents a life-changing opportunity.<\/p>\n
Bella Rizo, a first-generation college graduate, received a $4,000 Buc Days scholarship as a high school student. Texas A&M-Kingsville matched the award, allowing her to study marketing.<\/p>\n
Former Buc Days scholarship recipient returns to the Coastal Bend nonprofit to work as an events intern<\/p>\n
“In any way they can help out my parents and take that burden off of them in me going to school,” Rizo said.<\/p>\n
Now, Rizo is back in the same office she visited as a hopeful student, working as an events intern for the nonprofit organization behind Corpus Christi’s biggest celebration.<\/p>\n
“They invested into me and now I’m coming back to help serve the community again,” Rizo said.<\/p>\n
“I think walking in here for my interview as intern, I was like oh I’ve been in here countless times when I was a scholar in high school,” Rizo said.<\/p>\n
As an intern, Rizo gets a behind-the-scenes look at the preparation required for the annual tradition.<\/p>\n
“It’s a whole year of planning, people just think it’s one month of events,” Rizo said.<\/p>\n
Beyond the parades and festivities, Rizo sees the deeper mission of the organization and is proud to be part of a tradition that changes lives.<\/p>\n
“That’s the goal of Buc Days is really to bring the community together and kids together,” Rizo said.<\/p>\n
“I just think it’s so beautiful that no matter how big of a difference we are from each other, that we could all come together at this time of the year,” Rizo said.<\/p>\n
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.<\/p>\n
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