In May of 2024, I had just wrapped up my statistics final. Brain fried and more caffeine needed, I was finally ready to stop staring at Excel for the first time in days. Before I could take a step toward summer break, my phone exploded with notifications, group chats, DMs, and news alerts, all with the same message: “The reigning Miss Teen USA has resigned.” For the first time in the organization’s history, the national titleholder had stepped down — and I was asked to step up and accept the crown.
This was a decision I couldn’t have imagined making. My pageant journey began when I was 13 and drawn to the combination of service, scholarship, and empowerment that pageantry celebrates. As I was growing up with an untraditional family background, pageantry gave me a voice through which to represent something larger than myself. Being raised by a single mother who served in the Army instilled the importance of creating opportunities through grit, not waiting for them to happen.
It felt like my dedication had finally paid off when I earned the opportunity to compete for my childhood dream. This goal was much more than a crown; it was proof that my past wouldn’t dictate my future. I won Miss New York Teen USA, a title that gave me a platform through which to expand my advocacy and ultimately to compete at Miss Teen USA 2023. On the national stage, I was honored to win “best interview” and be named first runner-up for the title. That accomplishment was even more meaningful because I knew that in addition to the competition, I’d spent years balancing Wharton deadlines with nonprofit work, hundreds of hours of service, and the launch of my own youth empowerment movement, Hands of Hope.
Read the full story in Wharton Magazine.
Posted: June 5, 2026
