Southeast Fresno 'Destination Imagination' team qualifies for global competition

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- A Southeast Fresno improv team has the opportunity to take part in a global competition, but they need the community's help to get there.

It may look like fun and games, but these students from high schools across Fresno take what they do very seriously.

Estrella Monjaras, Nathan Castillo, Kyle Thao and Bethzayra Torralba are hard at work.

"We're competitive. We're very competitive," team spokesperson Bethzayra Torralba said.

They're a Destination Imagination Team called the "Krabbie Baddies," coached by Meghan Christopherson.

Destination Imagination provides challenges rooted in STEAM -- Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics -- while also supporting the creative process.

There are different categories of competition.

The "Krabbie Baddies" focus on improv.

"They have all these very specific elements that they have to work into their skit," Christopherson said. "They get scored on how well they integrate those different elements into their play and the creativity."

They have two minutes to prepare and five minutes to perform a skit.

The team started working together last year while attending Sequoia Middle School and did very well.

They placed first at regionals.

When they went to the state competition, Bethzayra says they surprised themselves by taking second place.

"We knew we were good. We just didn't expect to be that good," Bethzayra said.

That win has now given them the chance to be one of two California teams to compete in the DI 2025 Global competition held in China.

However, since they're now at different high schools and are technically an independent team, they need help raising money to attend.

It would be all of the students' first times on an airplane, so Christopherson launched a GoFundMe and took their request to TikTok.

In about a week, they raised more than $10,000, but they still need about $15,000 more.

"We're super glad to all the people that have actually donated and actually told us all these things. We're so grateful for them," Bethzayra said.

Christopherson says she hopes the community supports the students and gives them the chance to showcase their skills on a global level.

"Please help us get there. This is such a cool opportunity to represent California, to represent Fresno, to represent southeast Fresno," Christopherson said.

The global competition takes place December 13-15, so the team is trying to reach its $25,000 goal by the end of October.

You can find the team's GoFundMe by clicking here.

You can also support them on TikTok and Instagram.

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