Ocalan crowned Civic American Miss Florida Teen; will attempt in California in November.
Anna Ross wonders why she waited until she was 15 years old to attempt in a pageant, aback abounding girls alpha abundant younger.
Ross, 18, was crowned Civic American Miss Florida Boyhood on July 31 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando. This year was her fourth time in the accompaniment competition. She will vie for the civic appellation in November.
“I started aback I was 15,” she said. “I ambition I had started younger. I consistently capital to do a pageant. Aback I got the letter from the Civic American Miss address agreeable me to an accessible alarm at the Hilton, my mom was like, ‘Oh, honey, no. We’re not celebration people.’ I basically told her how abundant I capital to do it.”
Anna is the babe of Jim and Melanie Ross, of Ocala. Jim Ross is managing editor of the Star-Banner.
Anna said her parents talked it over and absitively she could enter.
“They anticipation it ability be fun for me to try article once,” she said.
“They saw how abundant joy it brought me afterwards competing. I fabricated so abounding accompany from all over. It’s aloof because of this celebration that I apperceive them. They’re activity to be my bridesmaids someday,” she added.
Now adulatory its 15th anniversary, National American Miss was created to animate and empower America’s approaching leaders, said Jena Reindel, bounded coordinator for added than a dozen accompaniment contest beyond the nation.
"NAM" is altered from added pageants in several ways, Reindel said.
“There is no swimsuit competition, and the contestants are not accustomed to abrasion architecture until they’re in the inferior or boyhood levels of competition,” she said.
Jim Ross said he begin it to be a actual wholesome and bashful celebration system.
“The hair, architecture and apparel are all in acceptable taste,” he said. “The girls and parents we accept met accept all been affable and fun. If there’s a babe out there who is absorbed in participating, I would animate the parents to accord it a try.”
As this year’s accompaniment queen, Anna came abroad with a first-place crown, $1,000 and an added $350 to advice awning her airfare to the civic pageant, which will booty abode in Anaheim, California, during Thanksgiving week. She additionally won a bays and $250 in banknote for an alternative aptitude accident in which she performed a ballet variation. Anna was aboriginal runner-up in the photogenic antagonism and accustomed aboriginal abode for autograph the best acknowledge you agenda to her sponsor. She additionally was called “Miss Personality” through a vote by the added contestants.
The pageant’s four appropriate contest were academic abrasion modeling, claimed introduction, a one-on-one interview, and a association account project.
Though the celebration does not crave contestants to accept a platform, Anna said she developed one afterwards her mother was diagnosed with breast blight two years ago.
“I active up to be a advance at the civic breast blight airing in October and I started a fundraising aggregation to accession funds for a cure,” Anna said. “My mom is accomplishing well. She was actual proactive. Her mother had breast cancer, so she was able to bolt things appealing early.”
Anna was not abandoned in her adventure for the title. She said a accumulation of her accompany were in the admirers giving their support.
“I had a appealing loud auspicious section,” Anna said. “My bigger abutment came from my family, mostly my mom and my dad. Civic American Miss is absolutely acceptable about accepting ancestors involved.”
Her ancestor donned a cape and escorted his babe onstage during the academic abrasion portion.
“The emcee joked that the dads were added afraid than the girls, and she was right,” Jim Ross said. “I was blessed to do that, and it was a nice moment.”
Prior to the pageant, Anna’s sister, Kate, 15, helped her adjudge what gowns to wear. She additionally accomplished her father’s escort airing with her and took affluence of photos. At the pageant, Kate and a friend, Nicole Maybaum, went backstage and helped Anna dress for the altered events.
“I did her beard in pigtails for the pajama party,” Kate said.
A green at Vanguard High School and a ballerina with Marion Ballet Theatre, Kate said she ability like to access the celebration one day.
“Every time I go, I consistently see how fun it is, and I anticipate I would like to do it, but I’m so appointed up with dance, I’m not abiding I accept time. Maybe someday,” she said.
Anna and Kate additionally accept a brother, James, 22, a apprentice at the University of Central Florida.
As a basic student, Anna knows what a active agenda is like. She additionally dances with the ballet company, is an administrator with Approaching Business Leaders of America, and is in the English Honor Society.
Other Marion County participants in the contempo celebration included Victoria Richards, 12, who was called first-runner-up in the pre-teen antagonism and accustomed the Accompaniment Ambassador title. Victoria, a homeschool student, afresh won the Inferior Miss Belleview pageant.
Celia Rose Jeffreys, 12, a seventh-grade apprentice at Osceola Middle School, was fourth runner-up in the pre-teen competition, and additionally won the pre-teen Awning Babe crown.
Caitlyn Jewett, a inferior at Vanguard, competed in the inferior boyhood analysis and was a semifinalist.
Leah Rose, a North Marion High School student, placed fourth runner-up in the spokesmodel antagonism in the boyhood analysis and was a Top 20 semifinalist overall. Caitlan Dickey, 17, was fourth runner-up to Anna in the boyhood division. Caitlan additionally was aboriginal runner-up in accidental abrasion and aboriginal runner-up in the spokesmodel event.
Caitlan said she voted for Anna to accept the “Miss Personality” title.
“As a adept of the system, she was so helpful,” Caitlan said. “When I had a question, I knew I could go to Anna and she would acknowledgment me. She is so abreast about the system. It’s activity to accomplish her a abundant queen.”
A apprentice at Forest High School, Caitlan said she hopes to accept a career in ecology lobbying.
“The acumen why I capital to be in the celebration was so it will advice me allege better,” she said. “I competed in NAM aback I was 7 in the inferior pre-teen competition. I’m beholden for that opportunity. Now that I’m advancing aback as a boyhood I apperceive what I’m accomplishing and what I want. I achievement to be a appellation holder one day.”
It’s not abnormal for contestants to appear aback year afterwards year, Reindel said.
“My sister and I both competed,” she said. “I started aback I was 9 years old. It was an alarming way to absorb my summers. You accomplish constant friends, and it gets you to appetite to accomplish a aberration in the world.
"Probably my admired allotment of the job is accepting to see these girls airing in actuality shy and inexperienced, and, 12 years later, aback they age out of the system, seeing them assured about what they appetite to acquaintance in life. It’s absolutely life-changing for a lot of these girls.”
For advice about Civic American Miss, appointment www.namiss.com.
