Downey's Daleysis Teran crowned queen of ‘Luz de America’ Club

DOWNEY — Daleysis Teran is an honors graduate from Downey High School (DHS) who is currently in her senior year at the University of California Irvine (UCI) studying journalism and film studies. Recently crowned new Queen of “Luz de America” Club, she represents this non-profit organization, comprised mainly of Ecuadorians and Ecuadorian-Americans living in Los Angeles County, seeks to strengthen the unity and well-being of the Ecuadorian community, as well as carry out various activities and support projects that benefit the less privileged sectors in Ecuador.

Daleysis was born in Quito, Ecuador, on July 17, 1997. She came to the city of Lynwood with her family when she was just six years old in December of 2003. She attended Washington Elementary School in Lynwood until her family moved to Norwalk, where she attended Morrison Elementary School following her 7th grade promotion to Corvallis Middle School and graduated with honors in 2016 from Downey High School.

During her time at DHS, she excelled in sports such as lacrosse and track and field, pole vaulting to heights over 9’0 ft tall. She was also part of Downey High School’s award winning and first ever robotics program.

She collaborated with her peers by programming robots to complete various challenges, as well in public relations of the project. DHS Robotics group got to participate in the interstate competitions representing Downey High School in Long Beach and Las Vegas. The team received awards for excellent rookie performance and was invited to the World Competition in St. Louis, Missouri.

Daleysis recently completed her third year as a student at UC Irvine and is part of Gamma Phi Beta, a sorority that is dedicated to helping a non-profit organization called “Girls on the Run.” They work together to support pre-teen girls to develop a healthy lifestyle through dynamic classes and interactive and athletic competition games culminating to a 5k celebration competition. Since 2017 they have collected more than $20,000 for that organization.

While attending college, she also has a part time job at Wahoo’s Fish Tacos, where she has learned to cook Asian, Brazilian and Mexican foods.

Ecuadorian Cultural Week lasted from July 31 to August 5, with the highlight of the week being the Ecuadorian parade on Sunday, August 5. Daleysis represented her club, “Luz de America” in a horse drawn carriage that traveled from Downtown LA to Placita Olvera where the music and food festival took place. She was able to enjoy her favorite Ecuadorian dishes “guatita” and “empanadas de viento.”

Daleysis is very proud of her Ecuadorian roots, proud to be a resident of the City of Downey, and proud to be an alumni of Downey High School.