By Steve Svetovich
Marlena Pegula is busy with academics, sports and clubs, but her biggest honor came in the beginning of her senior year when she was named Miss Buck at Dunmore High School.
Daughter of Diane and Mark Pegula, Marlena is a four-year member of the volleyball and softball teams at Dunmore. She is a four-year manager of the girls’ basketball team.
She is a member of the Spanish Club, French Club, SADD (students against destructive decisions), TACT, National Honor Society, Health Careers Club, Earth Club, Drama Club, Art Club, Band, Chorus and Show Choir. She also helps with the costumes for school plays and has been a varsity basketball cheerleaders for two years And with all that extracurricular activity, Marlena still puts academics first. She has an impressive 93 academic average. Her favorite subject is Calculus.
A four-year starter on the softball team, she pitched, played outfield and third base for the Lady Bucks last season. She will concentrate more on pitching this year.
Humble in nature, Marlena takes her role as Miss Buck seriously.
“I am very honored and proud to represent my school in a very positive way,” she said. “My goal is to represent myself in a way that the younger students can look up to me. I want to help show the younger students to always do their best to succeed at what they want in school and in life.”
Marlena said she has learned how to balance her time with a busy schedule.
“I always find time for studies before anything else. Then I put the time in for sports and clubs.”
The scholar-athlete said her experience at Dunmore has been like no other. “It is an experience I will never forget. I have been very honored to go to Dunmore High School.”
The new Miss Buck said her parents have been huge mentors in her life.
“They always tell me to do my best at anything I attempt and to never give up on anything.”
Marlena said she enjoys listening to music in her spare time and the late Whitney Houston was always an inspiration. She would like to see Misterwives and The Lumineers in concert.
Her sister Marina, a sophomore softball player at Lackawanna College, played volleyball and softball for two years with Marlena at Dunmore. Marlena was also the basketball manager for two of the years her sister played on that team. “It was a lot of fun being with my sister,” she said.
Marlena would like to study pharmaceutical science at either the University of Sciences or Louisiana State University in college. She would also like to play softball in college.
“I want to become a pharmacist someday, work for a pharmacy and someday open my own pharmacy.”
In the meantime, Marlena will do her very best to represent all Dunmore students as Miss Buck. “I am just so very honored,” she said.
