MCLEAN COUNTY (25News Now) – 25-year-old Bloomington music teacher Destinee Feliciano has been declared the winner of the Chicago White Sox national anthem contest. She is a lifelong fan of the team. Feliciano will sing the anthem before the 6:40 p.m. game against Cleveland on Tuesday, Sept. 10.

“It really means the world to me. I feel like singing the national anthem at a sports game, a major sports game, is something that a lot of singers, if not all singers, think, ‘I want to do that one day!’ So the fact that I get to do that for my favorite team is huge for me. It’s like a dream come true,” Feliciano said.

This is Feliciano’s second performance for the White Sox and their fans, having previously sung the anthem before a game in 2019 as part of an a cappella group.

The White Sox received hundreds of fan submissions for the contest. Seven finalists, including Feliciano, were selected to audition in person at Guaranteed Rate Field. Judges gave Feliciano a near-perfect score for his audition.

Feliciano teaches music and choir at Tri-Valley High School in Downs, where she has worked for three years.

“I’m just really happy for her. Like I said, she works really hard with our kids. She’s just a positive leader at our school and for her to have this opportunity and see one of her dreams come true is really exciting for her, for me, for our community and for our school,” said Principal Frank Arnolts.

Feliciano is currently recording her debut EP, “Stories I’m Ready to Tell.”

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