Campus Cutie: Denver Blickhan

Tell Us a little about yourself?

Though it may be deceiving, I am not from Denver, Colorado. I am from beautiful sunny San Diego, California where my three best friends, my mom, my dad and my sister Brooklyn (nope, not from New York) live. After the first day of kindergarten, when my teacher told my mom I was going to be a talker my entire life, I knew I was made for greatness. This is my second year here at UH and I am studying Secondary Education with a focus on English. I am a part of Alpha Gamma Delta and Love Your Melon on campus.

What are your favorite activities?

One of my favorite activities is dancing. I have been a dancer the majority of my life and it has become something that really helps define who I am. Another activity I really enjoy is singing (not Beyoncé or anything). When I was younger, I was heavily involved in theater and found a passion for performing and singing. Though these days most of singing debuts are in my shower, I do have hopes to pick it back up again.

What is your ambition in life?

Luckily, I was raised having an amazing support system and best friends as parents. What I have always been taught my whole life was it doesn’t matter what you do, but it’s the way you do it. I am the only person who can make certain things happen in my life and relying on other people to do it for me won’t get me anywhere. I’ve always known that I work well with people, so my ambition is to do just that: to do what makes me happy in life and to rely on myself and be confident enough to know I’m capable of anything if I really want it.

What are your favorite memories at UH?

I think my favorite memories at UH stem from my friends. I am so blessed to have met a variety of different people and with meeting these people, I have learned how to appreciate a simple Tuesday movie night or even trip to Safeway. My dad always says, “In college you learn in the classroom, but there’s so much you can learn outside of the classroom too,” and that statement has stuck with me throughout this entire experience. Having the opportunity to branch out of my comfort zone and talk to people I wouldn’t normally is something so rewarding that I cherish so much.

What are you involved with at UH Mānoa?

Here at UH, I am involved with the sorority Alpha Gamma Delta and Love Your Melon. AGD is one of the Greek organizations here on campus and Love Your Melon is an organization that supports pediatric cancer research. Considering how outgoing I am and how sociable I can be, I feel as though being involved as much as you can in anything you do is so important, especially when it comes to school. I feel like in high school, being a part of clubs or participating in school activities was seen as “uncool”—whatever that means. But here at UH, I feel like this community is extremely unified and to be involved only bring benefits. I am so fortunate that I get the opportunity to associate myself with these organizations.

What made you want to be in Greek life?

Coming to Hawaii, I had no idea what to expect, as I’m sure several people didn’t. I knew no one or nothing about the culture I was about to experience. Luckily, my roommate and I became friends instantly. I decided to enter Greek life and, as cliche as it may seem, if i didn’t have Alpha Gamma Delta in my life, I would not be here. Every single one of my sisters teaches me something new every day. They have all be there to remind me that having a bad day doesn’t mean you have a bad life. Some of them have seen me at my absolute worst and always encourage me to try to be my best. To say I love them would be a complete understatement, so I would just like to give them a few words: thank you for dealing with me, not because you have to, but because you see me as human.

What does Songfest mean to you and why do you love choreographing for it?

Songfest is probably one of the few things I look forward to every year, next to the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show and Christmas. Songfest is the final day of Greek week where each Greek organization creates a dance and performs for the rest of Greek life. The reason I love this day so much is because it is entirely what I live for: dance. In high school, I was the dance team captain, so choreographing was pretty much my life. Once I got to UH and realized I could continue that passion of mine, I knew I had to take the opportunity. What I love about choreographing for my girls in AGD is being able to see the progress and the potential they all possess. I have a lot of girls come to me and tell me they can’t dance and my reply is, “IT DOESN’T MATTER.” I love to provide something for them that not only brings them joy, but also makes them feel like a confident woman. The process and the product is something I am extremely proud of every year.

Anything else you want to share with our readers?

Coming to Hawaii, I have really learned a lot about myself. I feel like students who go to UH know exactly what I mean when I say you won’t be able to get a college experience like this anywhere else. What I love so much about my experiences is how unpredictable they are. The unknown is scary to people, but I say screw it! Life is full of too many beautiful things and people to waste it. I will be studying abroad in London next fall, and I already know that, that semester alone will be another crazy experience. But I encourage every single person reading this to do something that scares them. What’s the worst that could happen?