05/14/2026
Yona | Class of 2026 🎓
Long post because I never heard the word “no”
from her when it came to needing a model and this was our last senior session before graduation!
I met Yona the summer before my senior year when she joined as a new manager on the football team, and if you would’ve told me then how close we would be today, I probably wouldn’t have believed you. Throughout my senior year, Yona and I created a bond that I genuinely cannot explain. One thing I can always say about her is that she always showed up no matter what. It didn’t matter if her hair wasn’t done, if she was tired, or if she wanted nothing more than to go home and take a nap, she still showed support and love to the people around her.
I watched Yona handle herself with so much strength and grace, even when people she considered close to her changed or when she thought her life was falling apart. I could honestly write a book about her character and the type of person she is. She’s strong (even when she’s being hard headed), intelligent, disciplined, loving, caring, and devoted. Since the day I met her, she has always carried herself like a lady and stayed true to herself.
Yona gave me a chance and became one of my biggest supporters during my last year of high school and even throughout my first year of college. I’ll always remember our vlogs we never forgot to make of us getting ready together before games, practices, the long talks we had after good and bad days at school, and always joking that I took her under my wing and became her “mom away from home.”
One of the hardest things was going from “I’ll see you at football” every day to “when’s your next free day?”. Graduating and leaving Yona to figure things out without me there every day was something we cried about for so long, and now it’s honestly unreal that it’s finally her turn to graduate and move on to her next chapter in life.
Yona is one of the most genuine people I know, and I’m so thankful to have been a part of her story and memories so far. I cannot wait to see how far she goes in life. Thank you to HC Football for leading me to one of my best friends, and thank you to her mother, Erica, for raising such an amazing young woman and blessing me with one of my closest friendships. Watching Yona grow has truly been a blessing, and I know this is only the beginning for her.
UTK is so blessed to have her 🧡
