Page 29 - Iris Tennessee Teen Judges Book 2022

What can you do during your Tenure of Service as a Titleholder to impact your community? Try to be the most positive influence that I can. It is more than just a crown even though seeing the young kids sparkle when they see their real live princess is the best feeling showing them that I can go to school, serve in my community, and earn money for my education is even better. It truly is about the 5 points of the crown and I can’t wait to show other girls and teens they can make this impact on themselves and their community as well.
What has been your involvement with your platform? Speaking to younger classrooms and my classmates is a huge part of my platform. I try to practice what I preach so speaking life into my friends and teammates on a daily basis is easy. One of my Beta projects was helping one of our very small towns start a community garden that was free for everyone to use. We built the garden boxes and planted potatoes, carrots, lettuce and other vegetables to get it started. There are lots of families that have had trouble during Covid making ends meet so we thought a free community garden that everyone could enjoy would help. Another project to promote my platform was making cookie trays and delivering them to various businesses and our schools to let them know how much we appreciate them.
What inspired you to first become involved in your platform? Comparison can be the thief of joy. As I am still growing and learning and shaping the person I want to be there is one thing that I am certain of we are all different in our own special way. My best isn’t your best and your best isn’t mine. We all have our own special talents and things that we excel at that maybe completely different than someone else’s. It is easy to look at someone else and wish that we could do or have what they have. I struggle sometimes in school I study and try my best but sometimes that doesn’t always equal an A. I am more than a test score or a grade on my report card. Being kind, encouraging and being happy for your friends when they excel at their talents is a huge part of this platform. The younger we can realize that doing our personal best and excelling in our talents can help us achieve anything that we put our minds too we can learn that comparing ourselves to others only holds us back.
If you are selected as the winner, how would you mobilize and market your platform nationally?
If selected as the winner, I would challenge other young teens not to be afraid to fail. In our society so many people are afraid to push themselves to failure. It’s important to fail and to fall but to keep going forward. When we learn how to pick ourselves back up from our failures and keep moving we get one step closer to reaching our goals. Don’t be afraid to be the best YOU.
How would you utilize social media in order to positively further your position as a titleholder if you are selected as the winner?
Social media is a platform my parents have taught me to use responsibly. With over 90% of teens in the Unites States using social media it can be very powerful tool. I never want to display a fake or false me. I understand with this title I represent more than just myself. I would want to promote SERVE by walking the walk and talking the talk. One doesn’t have to wear a crown to make a difference but by letting ones guard down and showing the real you can reach multiple platforms.