Fountain Hills High School student Winnie Chen has been named the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Scottsdale McKee Branch Youth of the Year.

A senior Falcon, Chen is a member of the high school cheer squad, as well as the Girl Scouts. Chen is also in Keystone, which is the club’s community service organization, as well as the fashion club.

Being a senior, Chen is able to take an abbreviated schedule of classes, leaving her time to hit the gym and work at Tonto Verde. She also chips in at the family restaurant, Chen’s Garden, during especially busy times like the local art festivals.

Chen said she started attending the local Boys & Girls Club during the eighth grade.

“The Boys & Girls Club has a lot of opportunities, as well as scholarship opportunities, that I want to be a part of,” Chen said. “Youth of the Year is an example of that.”

Chen said she especially enjoys her time with the Keystone Club.

“It’s all about helping out in the community, which is fun,” she added. “That’s why I’ve been in Girl Scouts for 10 years, too. We adopted all of the streets around the Boys & Girls Club, too, Troop 2184.”

A unique individual, Chen said she likes that the Boys & Girls Club gives youngsters a place where they can pursue their own interests.

“It’s a place where teens and kinds can be themselves,” she said. “When you’re at school, it’s kind of hard to really, truly be yourself. Everyone judges everyone, especially in a small town like this.

“Here, no one judges you. You’re free to be who you want to be and not just the front you put up.”

Chen said she was interested in pursuing Youth of the Year not just because of scholarship potential, but because of the fringe benefits that come along with the selection process.

“It’s giving me a chance to work on public speaking and essay writing, which is a big part of it,” she said. “Even if I didn’t win, the experience will help me prepare for college and beyond.”

Having earned the local honor, Chen will go up against other branch winners for the “City” portion of the competition. That winner will be named in March, with additional tiers following if she continues deeper into the Youth of the Year campaign.

“I had to write three essays already,” Chen explained. “One was on club experience, one is focused on my vision for American youth and the last is my personal brand, or what I stand for as a person.”

Chen also had to prepare a speech and gather a trio of letters of recommendation. One letter had to be for her leadership qualities, one for academics and one for a healthy lifestyle.

Moving ahead, she’ll be fine-tuning her candidate package for the upcoming portions of the competition.

No matter what happens next, Chen said she is happy for her local recognition and the experiences she’s already had.

After graduation, she has her eyes set on Arizona State University, or perhaps Scottsdale Community College of Mesa Community College, to study fashion. Chen said teacher Adrienne Larson got her into fashion, and it’s stuck with her since.

As for her Youth of the Year honor, Chen said she’s excited for the platform it has given her.

“It means I can share my message for the youth and teens of America to be themselves,” she said. “And maybe that message will encourage them to come to the club, where they can potentially become Youth of the Year one day, and then share their message, too.”