TAHOE CITY, Calif. — This year, there are eight local young women vying for the title of 2016 SnowFest! Queen — Emma Appleton, Kassidy Commendatore, Viviana Corona, Michelle Gomez, Xochitl Perez, Kyla Pierce, Estrella Sanchez and Lindsey Twomey.

Below is brief biography information (slightly edited for clarity and grammar) from the candidates, as provided to the Sun by the team at SnowFest!, presented in random order.

Photos of Corona and Sanchez were not submitted in time for this story’s deadline.

Estrella Sanchez

My name is Estrella Sanchez. I am a junior at North Tahoe High School. I’m very open minded, and a risk fanatic. I find my best self when I try new things, and get out of my comfort zone. I try to be optimistic, and believe that the world would be a better place if we all learned to free our mind from hatred, anger, and ignorance. I do this by interacting with multiple social circles, and enjoy picking up new hobbies. They say your attitude determines your latitude, and I am ambitious, determined, and outgoing. Lastly I am fluent in sarcasm.

Xochitl Perez

I am Xochitl Perez, a junior at North Tahoe High School. Currently I am running for SnowFest! Queen representing Tahoe City Rotary. One of the most important reasons that I want to be SnowFest! Queen is I want to get as much help as I can get to go to college. I’m also working hard on my grades to be worthy of getting this opportunity, I am taking advanced placement class and doing many extracurricular activities like lacrosse. This is really a great opportunity and I am very grateful.

Kyla Pierce

Kyla Pierce was born and raised in the Tahoe area. At age three she began skiing at Homewood and Squaw Valley and absolutely loved it. At age four she began taking ballet classes, and loved those as well. She now dances with Lake Tahoe Dance Collective, skis in her free time, and also enjoys running, hiking, and swimming.

Michelle Gomez

My name is Michelle Gomez. I am 17 years old, a senior at NTHS, and will be graduating with a 4.4 gpa. This upcoming fall, I will be pursuing my dream of becoming a doctor at a University in California. Growing up in Tahoe has given me a love for the outdoors and giving back to the community!

Kassidy Commendatore

Kassidy Commendatore is a 16 year old junior and honor student at Truckee High School. Kassidy has been dancing since she was 2 and has danced with InnerRhythms Dance Centre since it was created. She trains in Contemporary, Ballet, Hip Hop, and Breakin’ dance styles and teaches younger students the fundamentals of Contemporary and Hip Hop styles at InnerRhythms. Kassidy is involved in volunteer work for the Humane Society of Tahoe Truckee and helps to run their summer camp programs. She is a lead organizer of Giving Voice, a student-run performance company dedicated to educating middle and high school student about youth suicide prevention.

Emma Appleton

Emma Appleton is a Junior at North Tahoe High School. She is a passionate academic student who loves school. She is a member of Youth in Action, Leadership, Executive Band Council, Toast Masters, Prom Committee, Yearbook Staff and acts as a Peer Mentor. She is also a member of the NTHS Wind Ensemble, having played the Tenor Saxophone since middle school. Emma plays tennis for the NTHS Varsity BOYS tennis team, is a member of the NTHS Alpine Ski Team and plays club lacrosse for North Tahoe. Emma is aspiring to attend Stanford, Cal Poly or UCLA where she intends to study Biomedical Engineering with the intention of pursuing a career in medicine and/or engineering.

Lindsey Twomey

My name is Lindsey Twomey and I am running for SnowFest! queen for the Tahoe cross country center. I have lived in Tahoe my whole life and have always enjoyed getting involved in the community. I am a junior at North Tahoe High school and love to play soccer.

Viviana Corona

Viviana Corona is a young Latina that was raised in the beautiful North Lake Tahoe area. Viviana is currently a student at North Tahoe High School. She works 16 hours on weekends to help her family whom she loves a lot. She enjoys to go on hikes and loves to watch the sunset at the beach. One of her biggest goal is to attend the military to make a difference.