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SAN DIEGO
If there’s one thing that has always come easy to Destiny Parker, it’s singing. It’s a passion that began when she was toddler and it’s now her ticket to one of the nation’s most prestigious music conservatories.
But life for the 17-year-old Southeast San Diego resident has never been easy. Born in Bulgaria, she was 1 year old when she came to the U.S. with her Bulgarian mom. She grew up under difficult circumstances that included a stretch of homelessness. Without money for formal training, Destiny honed her singing skills alone in grade-school talent shows and middle and high school musicals, always with the dream of studying music and acting in college one day.
Life just got a lot more fun.
Parker was accepted to the highly selective Berklee College of Music in Boston and given a full-tuition scholarship for $184,000.
“I screamed and then I screamed to my family, ‘Oh my God! Destiny! Destiny got into Berklee!’” exclaimed Carrasco.
“I didn’t expect any of this,” smiled Parker, who also still appeared overwhelmed by the honor.
Parker said Berklee only awarded eight scholarships out of almost 7,000 applicants. She hoped the education will help her achieve her goal of becoming a recording artist and an actress.
Parker would follow the lead of another San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts student: Andra Day. Day was recently nominated for an Academy Award and took home a Golden Globe for her lead acting role in The United States vs. Billie Holiday.