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"Oh my gosh, how did this happen?" said Zach Ballamis, pure shock and excitement emitting from his face. Drew Poulson's reaction was the same; they just couldn't believe that they had just won DECA state.
Now that they have won state, it's on to nationals. "International actually, other countries will be there too," said Ballamis.
From April 26 to 30, Ballamis and Poulson will be representing Payson High School in Atlanta, Georgia, where they plan to work hard but play even harder. "We're going to party hearty," said Poulson. They plan to win a totally sweet, shining, glistening trophy. If they win, they will receive $1,000 and possibly scholarships.
DECA is an organization with approximately 185,000 students in all 50 states, Canada, Guam, Puerto Rico, Germany and Mexico. Its objective is to support the development of marketing and management skills in career areas such as hospitality, finance, sales and service, business administration and entrepreneurship.
The product Ballamis and Poulson will be proposing to the judges is "Laughs on Hold." Instead of listening to boring elevator music, with Laughs on Hold you would be entertained by comedy routines. Hopefully it will prevent you from falling asleep while waiting for someone to pick up the phone and talk to you. The name Laughs on Hold was thought of by Cherie Ballamis, Zach's mom.
When asked about his experience at state, Zach was all too modest. "At first I thought, 'Wow, the other people must have sucked,'" said Ballamis. In reality, they were up against some tough competition, and they won because they were amazing. "Well, it was a great experience, and I am just grateful that I was a part of it," said Poulson. |
