By Derrick Smith

There are people in each of our lives that help us become the best person that we can be. And for Charley-Ann Ortiz, that person is someone that is very close to her. 

“My mom has had the biggest influence on my life,” Ortiz said. “She has been with me through it all and I am so thankful for her. I would not be where I am today without her.”

Charley-Ann is a senior at Wichita East High School. Throughout her high school career, she has played two different sports. She played soccer during her freshman and sophomore years, while last year and this year, she plays golf. 

Ortiz’s golf coach, Tyler Dansel, says that she is a great leader on the team and has been an ideal player.

“Charley-Ann is our team’s lone senior,” he said. “She set a great example of how to work at practice. She is driven to improve her performance from last year.”

During her career, Ortiz has made some great memories with her teammates, both in competition and away from the competition. 

“I have a couple of favorite moment from my career,” she said. “I loved the bus rides to our soccer tournaments with all of my teammates. Another one was when I one-putted a long difficult putt at a tournament.”