A Pageant Story

I entered pageants when I was 14 years old, because another girl in my school said I could never win a pageant. Her reasoning was “You limp.” I limp because I am differently-abled. I fell into a lawnmower in 1978, when I was two years old. I was left with, among other more serious issues, a pronounced limp. Needless to say, girl’s comment hurt my feelings. Seeing me hurt, my Dad decided that I should enter and I became first runner-up for the title, Massachusetts Most Beautiful Teen. The girl did not place in that event.

After the event, I was hooked. I entered a series of modeling and natural pageant that same year winning the titles International Model of the Year, Miss Teen New England, and Miss Athena National all in a row.

I loved being on-stage, wearing the beautiful clothes, meeting the judges in interview, and most of all being judged for me, not as “The girl with a disability.” In the pageant world, scores come from so many areas (photogenic, interview, beauty, talent, and fitness) that the fact that I am disabled and therefore often score in the middle of the group in fitness, does not matter! The “who I am” comes out in my smile and confidence on stage, personality and accomplishments in interview, and love of the camera in photogenic.

I tried many types of pageants over the years, from full glitz, southern nationals to Miss USA. I enjoyed the full-glitz at first, but as they evolved into their current state, I lost interest. I did not want to perform a dance routine in a modeling competition, or have my pictures so retouched I could not recognize myself! Plus, the expense! My first car did not cost what a full-glitz pageant gown cost! So, I returned to natural events, and stayed there for the final eight years of a 14 year competition history.

What I love about pageants, true beauty pageants like the Young Miss North America, Miss US of America, and Miss United States titles I won is that after the pageant is over you do something with the title. I appeared in parades, advertisements, fashion shows, and wrote for magazines. I met with talent scouts and obtained a walk-on part on All My Children. I hosted other pageants and was a judge.

More important to me was the charity work I was able to do. I volunteered for the Children’s Make-a-Wish foundation and told my story during the national television campaign. I fundraised for the Shriner’s Hospital, and went to other children’s hospitals to visit and encourage the patients. My most memorable visit was when a chronically ill child asked for a crown every day after seeing me. The director of the hospital called after a week and asked if I had one to spare. I brought the little girl one. She passed away a few weeks later, but she was so happy in the moment that she received that gift!  

Though I have taken a break from pageants to focus on other aspects of my life, like being a Mom this coming December, I do plan to return. I already have my sights set on the Beauties of America and Ms. US Continental titles. Why you may ask? Well, there is an old saying that goes, “You can take the girl out of the pageant, but you can’t take the pageant out of the girl.” That is the truth! Simply put, I miss it! I miss the ladies, the lights, the sounds, the adrenaline…I miss the entire package. Most of all, I miss being a part of an industry that if approached correctly and for the right reasons provides confidence to the “disabled,” service to the community, and friendships that last a lifetime.

I will be writing for TheCuteKid, and answering direct questions via my own CuteKid Blog. Please keep an eye out for it. I'd love to help those with Pageant interest.

Happy Pageantry!