Page 50 - Iris Tennessee Teen Judges Book 2022

What can you do during your Tenure of Service as a Titleholder to impact your community?
The most important thing I think I can do to impact my community as a Titleholder is to lead by example. My small town has an amazing non-profit organization that serves families who are dealing with homelessness and domestic violence. This year it is my goal to serve those families by spending time with the children helped by this organization to make them feel loved and beautiful. Another non-profit organization that is close to my heart is Camp Good Grief. Camp Good Grief is a camp for children who have lost a parent or a sibling. In the past two years alone, 5 of my friends have lost a parent, and through Camp Good Grief I was able to reach out to them and let them know that they are not alone through this hard time. This past year, my school lost a student in a motorcycle accident. I reached out to the founder of Camp Good Grief and connected her with the guidance counselors at my school, to help the families and close friends of Moises. I also love working with kids who have special needs, NF can affect many people differently- some problems lead to brain damage. I have a cousin who has special needs, unrelated to NF, so I have a lot of experience in dealing with different situations with people who have different needs.
What has been your involvement with your platform?
My platform is Being Different is Beautiful: Raising Neurofibromatosis Awareness. I have been involved in raising NF awareness since I was about 10 years old. I have participated in the NF Walk sponsored by the Children’s Tumor Foundation for several years in Memphis. In my freshman year, I designed and sold t-shirts to raise money for the NF Network and was interviewed and featured in their national newsletter for my efforts in raising NF awareness. Just recently a young girl in my cousin’s class was diagnosed with NF2, after recovering from a brain tumor removal last year. The family was able to reach out to mine and we were able to connect them to the amazing doctors in the Memphis area.
What inspired you to first become involved in your platform?
When I was 3 months old, I began having symptoms of Neurofibromatosis type I. It’s a genetic disorder that can cause tumors to grow along nerves. By the time I was 2 years old, the diagnosis was confirmed. NF1 can be physically disfiguring from the tumors. I want people who have NF (as well as people with other physically visible syndromes) to know that they are still beautiful people. My goal is to inspire people who have been labeled different to overcome what the world has said about them or what the world has told them to be, and show that they can do anything they put their mind to, because an outward appearance is not reflective of someone’s inward beauty.
If you are selected as the winner, how would you mobilize and market your platform nationally?
If I become the next Miss Tennessee Iris Teen Volunteer, I plan to use national organizations such as the Children’s Tumor Foundation and the Neurofibromatosis Network to market my platform. I would really like to design another t-shirt and raise more money for the NF organizations. It’s amazing that something as simple as a t-shirt with a powerful message can reach so many people on a national level. My platform has now reached a national level. During the whole month of May, I partnered with the NF Network and people across the country shared their #BeingDifferentisBeautiful stories. NF Network featured my story and platform in their May national newsletter. This one meant more to me as May is National NF Awareness