CORPUS CHRISTI, TX — Buc Days is returning to the Coastal Bend next week, bringing parades and festivities, but for one former scholarship recipient, the event represents a life-changing opportunity.
Bella Rizo, a first-generation college graduate, received a $4,000 Buc Days scholarship as a high school student. Texas A&M-Kingsville matched the award, allowing her to study marketing.
"In any way they can help out my parents and take that burden off of them in me going to school," Rizo said.
Now, Rizo is back in the same office she visited as a hopeful student, working as an events intern for the nonprofit organization behind Corpus Christi's biggest celebration.
"They invested into me and now I'm coming back to help serve the community again," Rizo said.
"I think walking in here for my interview as intern, I was like oh I've been in here countless times when I was a scholar in high school," Rizo said.
As an intern, Rizo gets a behind-the-scenes look at the preparation required for the annual tradition.
"It's a whole year of planning, people just think it's one month of events," Rizo said.
Beyond the parades and festivities, Rizo sees the deeper mission of the organization and is proud to be part of a tradition that changes lives.
"That's the goal of Buc Days is really to bring the community together and kids together," Rizo said.
"I just think it's so beautiful that no matter how big of a difference we are from each other, that we could all come together at this time of the year," Rizo said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
For the latest local news updates, click here, or download the KRIS 6 News App.
Catch all the KRIS 6 News stories and more on our YouTube page. Subscribe today!
