Village of Pinecrest Aventura Mkt Council

When senior Wendy Ecker, a student at Palmetto Senior High School, opened a letter from the Orange Bowl Committee recently, she was thrilled to see she had been nominated to the Court of Honor.

Wendy Ecker

The committee chose 120 girls and boys from Miami-Dade and Broward counties to represent students with the highest standard of scholarship, leadership, integrity and service.

Following and interview, Ecker was chosen along with five others to reign over the Orange Bowl Festival and Parade on New Years Eve. The event will be nationally televised.

Ecker, originally nominated by her counselor, recommends that students who might want to follow in her footsteps stay active in the community and school activities and to keep up their grades.

"You need good involvement and a good GPA," she said.

Ecker and Robert Dubin, another Palmetto student, will represent Miami-Dade County in various Orange Bowl events during the year. They, along with two other students, were given scholarships in the amount of $250. Two others won full scholarships to the University of Miami.

Ecker is looking forward to representing the committee and riding on the float on New Year's Eve. The three boy and three girl representatives have official blazer jackets and Obie pins, but on Dec. 31 they will be all dressed up. The girls will be wearing Renaissance gowns and crowns.

"I was excited. It's been a nice experience. My parents were very excited for me," Ecker said. "It was a really big honor.".