A Close-Up on Elizabeth V.

What activities do you enjoy most?

I enjoy archery, horseback riding, baseball, surfing, and being a member of Frontier Girls. I also like to do crafts, including fiber arts, such as spinning, weaving, and sewing.

What are your strengths?

I am very good at math and arguing!

What have been your challenges?

I had to deal with a teacher who was a bully; I eventually overcame her hurtful words. I also struggle with reading and communicating with people who don’t know me.

Of what accomplishments are you most proud? 

I am very proud to have been selected as the Million Misfit Sock March Ambassador based on my experiences with a teacher bully and to have been named the Arizona Equestrian Special Olympics Grand Champion twice. I am also proud that I earned the Fruit of the Spirit award, the Make a Difference award, two WOW awards, a Bright Idea award, and the Liberty award in Frontier Girls. Additionally, I represented my school in the regional science fair.

What are your ambitions? 

I hope to be selected to represent Team USA in Equestrian Sports in the  Special Olympics World Games and to raise awareness of and prevent bullying in our communities.

Thank you to Elizabeth’s loving mother, Suzanne, for helping to type these responses!

A Close-Up on Katie G.

Celebrating after the Miss Amazing Pageant!

What activities do you enjoy most?

I enjoy singing, dancing, and, now, participating in pageants!

What are your strengths?

I love talking to others and making new friends.

What have been your challenges?

I was nervous about getting through the interview portion of the Miss Amazing pageant, but it turned out not to be so bad!

Of what accomplishments are you most proud?

I am very proud of being a Miss Amazing participant.

What are your ambitions?

My goals are having a part-time job and having amazing friends.

A Close-Up on Andrea W.

What activities do you enjoy most?

I like bowling, playing basketball, and listening to music; I also love to fish, sing in the church choir, and go for bike rides. Volunteering with the elderly is very fun, as well.

What makes you smile?

Animals, especially cats and dogs, and spending time with my family and friends can always make me smile.

What have been your challenges?

Math, learning to tell time, and learning to ride the city bus have all been challenges for me.

What have been your successes?

My successes include being a leader at school and learning to have more confidence without being shy. I love being able to make people feel happy.

What would you like to share with others?

You can do anything; even if it is hard, just keep trying.

A Close-Up on Brittany K.

Brittany being crowned as a Queen at the Nebraska Miss Amazing pageant

What activities do you enjoy most?

I’m very focused on my future and want to be the best I can be, so I enjoy working toward becoming a teacher in the near future. I love hanging out with friends and family. Always having my mom right next to me when I’m going through something is more than I could ever ask for! I’m always smiling, no matter what. I love to be myself and I’m proud of who I am! I also love when people can make me laugh or smile- it always brightens up my day!

What are your strengths? 

My strengths are listening to people, making people smile, and being myself. Even when I’m in pain or I’m upset, I smile, and my smile makes my family and friends smile, too!

Brittany after a surgery- 6 weeks in leg casts, then 6 weeks in boots, and still smiling!

What have been your challenges?

A challenge in my life is people judging me for what they think of me, not who I really am. Most people see the wheelchair or my walker instead of the sweet, caring girl I am, and think I am not normal. I will admit not everyone has to deal with surgery or the challenges of everyday life like I do, but my disability doesn’t define my abilities. I’m proud of who I am and want to be thought of as a normal young adult facing life as it comes to her.

Of what accomplishments are you most proud?

I am already doing college courses and haven’t even graduated high school yet, and I also got my first scholarship in 8^th grade. I am also proud of going to school throughout the years and of getting through all the pain of surgeries. Waking up after surgery, I’m more determined to get up and keep going; nothing can ever push you down unless you let it.

What are your ambitions?

My goals are to grow up to be the best I can be. I want to become a high school history or child development teacher as soon as I graduate from college. I’m excited to learn about the lives of my students and want to help them learn to the best of my ability. I want to teach them that, even if you have a disability, go for what you truly desire in life and don’t give up.

A Close Up on Kayla B.

What activities do you enjoy most?

Kayla at Relay for Life, her first event as New Jersey Miss Amazing Pre-Teen 2013!

Some of my favorite activities are spending time with my dog, doing community service (including helping animals in need), listening to music, writing, and doing crafts and karate. I also enjoy watching movies, TV, and baseball and participating in Girl Scouts and my social group, Fantastic Friends.

What are your strengths?

My strengths are helping people and animals in need, remembering lines from TV shows, music, and movies, writing, making PowerPoint presentations, and researching. I am great at being a very hard worker, overcoming challenges, and being a good friend and role model for others.

What have been your challenges?

Some of the challenges I have faced are not feeling accepted by adults and my peers and overcoming the fear of being judged by others. Due to being bullied, I have struggled with low self-esteem and building confidence. I have also faced depression and struggle with daily medical issues that have taken away a lot of my childhood. Another challenge was losing a dog that I was very close to last year, along with losing two other pets.

Of what accomplishments are you most proud?

I am very proud of keeping positive, gaining self-esteem and trust, and overcoming obstacles in my life, such as overcoming my fear of flying by taking my first plane ride to Nebraska for Nationals after winning the title of New Jersey Miss Amazing Pre-Teen 2013! At Nationals, I met some wonderful new friends!

What are your ambitions?

I want to continue spreading acceptance and teaching others that anything is possible with hard work and dedication and that, in life, we are all unique. I also want to continue working with people and animals through my community service. After graduating, my goal is to go to college to work with children, animals, or those with disabilities or to work in the health-care field or the police field.

Thank you to Kayla’s loving mother, JoAnn, for helping Kayla to articulate and type her responses!

A Close Up on Betsy H.

What activities do you enjoy most?

Betsy love to participate in the Special Olympics.  Her favorite sports are bowling, bocce ball and basketball.

Anytime she gets to spend time with her cousins and friends it is a good day! Her girl cousins, especially Jamie and Cara, are her heroes! Betsy also has a brother Kyle and a sister in law Amanda who live in Texas.  She misses them terribly and cannot wait to talk to them when they call. She also loves listening to oldies and knows almost every Beatles and Queen songs by heart.  She is sometimes shy, but at home she has no problem singing her heart out!  Listening to her makes her mom and dad smile!

What have been your challenges? 

Betsy is challenged in that directions are sometimes difficult for her.  She is always willing to try and wants to do her best.  She gets frustrated when she just can’t get something.  She always gets an A for perseverance!

What have been your successes? 

Betsy is employed at EMPAC which is the Sheltered Workshop in Washington, Missouri.  She gets great reviews and is well liked by her supervisors and co-workers.  She is independent in getting ready for work and getting on the bus for work.  She is very thoughtful and remembers birthdays like no one else! Betsey has also been part of the IC chimers at church and played with the choir last Christmas.

Winning the Missouri Miss Amazing pageant and participating in the National pageants was very exciting for her!  She loves Ellie Lorenzen and loves all of the activities with Miss Amazing! Betsy has the best aunts and uncles in the world!  They support her in everything she does!  I think Betsy had the most family at the National Pageant with a total of 28 fans and supporters!

Betsy always has a kind word for everyone.  She has a prayer list that is a mile long!  Her prayers are always answered so I think she has a pipeline to Heaven!

Betsy’s answers for this blog post were articulated by her loving mother, Sharon.

A Close Up on Tina M.

What activities do you enjoy most?

Some of the things that I enjoy are watching funny movies, reading, playing with my dog, hanging out with friends (as they are the best), camping, playing jokes on people, playing the keyboard, writing poetry, children’s stories and drawing. 

What are your strengths?

I excel in anything to do with computers. I enjoy writing poetry and children’s stories and drawing and have written and published 3 books. I also did all the artwork in those books.

How do you make a difference in your community and in the lives of others?

I love working in the Children’s ministry at Grace Fellowship Church on Sunday mornings. The children make me smile with their answers to questions on scripture that we study in the Bible and in what they say in general conversation.  I have been working with the children about 7 years now.  I truly love them and they love me.  To them, I am Miss Tina!  I help teach them about Christ and how to study the Bible.

For years, I have been active in programs and educational classes at the Ollie Webb Center in Omaha and this has helped me socially and also enhanced my learning skills.   After I graduated from South High School., I volunteered and also worked at the Henry Doorly Zoo while attending classes at Metro Community College using the $1200 scholarship that I received from the Rotary Club for my achievements in High School, especially in computers. 

Of what accomplishments are you most proud?

When I was in the first Miss Amazing Pageant, when performing my talent, I was so afraid that everyone would make fun of me like they did in school, but they didn’t; they clapped!  This encouraged me to continue to participate in the Miss Amazing Pageant. Each year, I continued to challenge myself and do things in the Talent Showcase that I was afraid to do. I began to speak to a large audience. Representing Nebraska as the Sr. Miss Amazing this year has been an awesome experience for me.  At Nationals, I met so many wonderful girls from other states and will always treasure those 4 days where we had the time of our lives.

I have also participated in Special Olympics since Junior High.  Some of them were, swimming, track, bowling, basketball, volleyball and tennis.  I have so many medals that show how I strove to excel in all of them.  I did win two bronze medals in tennis one in singles and one in doubles at the national games held at Lincoln in 2010.

What are your ambitions?

I was born with Cohen Syndrome, a rare brain and neuromuscular disorder. When I was diagnosed at the age of 13, there were only about 25 known cases globally and little support.  Now there are fewer than 1000 diagnosed cases and we now have a worldwide family support group where families of children with Cohen Syndrome can share their stories and life experiences with other families with this disorder.  My desire it to keep spreading awareness of Cohen Syndrome in the hopes of finding an earlier diagnosis for anyone who has this.

Another thing that is important to me is to try to further my education and I want to publish my poems and other stories that I have written. I also want to continue to encourage girls to participate in the Miss Amazing Pageant so they will get to experience what I have.  It just gets better every year. I encourage all people with any type of disability to REACH FOR THE STARS AND FOLLOW YOUR DREAM!