The countdown is on.

In just two days, Lincoln County’s reigning Distinguished Young Woman Madison Carnes will relinquish her title, handing it over to another deserving young woman.

The curtain goes up on the 2018 Distinguish Young Woman (DYW) Scholarship Program Saturday, Sept. 16, as nine Lincoln County senior girls take the stage of the Stuart Underwood Auditorium to compete for over $20,000 in cash scholarships.

The 2018 DYW program, which begins at 6:30 p.m., is the culmination of five weeks of intense practices, mock interviews, talent reviews and dress rehearsals. The winner of the 2018 Lincoln County Distinguished Young Woman program will receive a $4,200 cash scholarship. The program’s first runner-up will receive a $3,200 cash scholarship, second runner-up will receive a $2,200 cash scholarship, and third runner-up will receive a $1,200 cash scholarship.

High academic performance will be well rewarded in the DYW program since scholastic achievement is what the program is all about. A $1,000 cash scholarship will be presented to the overall scholastic achievement winner. A scholarship of $500 will be given to the runner-up and the third- and fourth-place candidates will each receive $450.

To earn the cash and college-offered scholarships available, the DYW candidates first have to be evaluated on the qualities and characteristics that make up the total young woman, with an emphasis on fitness (15%), talent (20%), self expression (15%) and interview (25%) as well as academics (25%).—-

Four winners will be chosen in each of the preliminary categories. The interview winners will each receive a $450 cash scholarship while talent winners each receive $375 scholarships. A cash scholarship of $300 will be presented to the overall winners in both the fitness and self-expression categories.

All scholarship amounts could increase with additional donations.

A $600 Jennifer Baker Memorial “Be Your Best Self” Award and a $600 Spirit Award will also be presented.

The  candidates  for  the  2018 Lincoln County Distinguished Young Woman are:

• Hailey Brogle.

• Madelyn Day.

• Cassidy Goetz.

• Alexandria House.

• Hayley Jones.

• Emma Kaiser.

• Kira Lewis.

• Ally McQueen.

• Katelyn McWhorter.

DYW tickets are $10. Advance tickes may be reserved by calling 606-365-9782. Tickets will also be sold at the door.

Founded in 1958 in Mobile, Alabama, Distinguished Young Women (DYW) is the largest and oldest national scholarship program for high school girls. During its 60 years of operation, the program has provided life-changing experiences for more than 750,000 young women. Last year, DYW provided almost $1.5 billion in cash and college scholarship opportunities to program participants at the local, state and national level. The mission of DYW is to positively impact the lives of young women by providing a transformative experience that promotes and rewards scholarship, leadership and talent. National sponsors include Mobile County, City of Mobile, Wintzell’s Oyster House, Encore Rehabilitation, Alabama Power Foundation, Master Boat Builders, The Barbara Barrington Jones Family Foundation, Regions Financial Corporation, Evonik Industries and The Alabama Media Group. For more information about DYW, contact Adrienne Rea at National Headquarters 251-438-3621, Adrienne@DistinguishedYW.org or visit www.DistinguishedYW.org. Find us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.