Sophia Takla, All American Pre-Teen Queen, starring as Ariel in West Sylvan Theater’s production of Disney’s The Little Mermaid.

Sophia Takla All American Pre-Teen Queen starring as Ariel in West Sylvan Theater’s production of Disney’s The Little Mermaid.

Sophia as Ariel!Sophia Takla, our newly crowned All American Pre-Teen Queen, is starring as Ariel in West Sylvan Theater’s production of Disney’s The Little Mermaid. It’s a big show and she is having a ball! What a great time and a wonderful experience she is having.

Sabrina Abreu, Miss Florida Jr.Pre-Teen, at The Mall of the Americas.

Sabrina Abreu, National American Miss Florida Jr.Pre-Teen Queen, at The Mall of the Americas.

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Sabrina2Miss Florida Jr. Pre-Teen Sabrina Abreu in a presentation The Mall of the Americas in Miami Florida.

North Carolina Cover Girl Princess, Amaris Shipman participated in the “Stuff the Bus” Zumbathon Charity Event and donated school supplies for children in Cumberland County North Carolina.

North Carolina Cover Girl Princess, Amaris Shipman participated in the “Stuff the Bus” Zumbathon Charity Event and donated school supplies for children in Cumberland County North Carolina.


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Amaris Shipman8North Carolina Cover Girl Princess, Amaris Shipman participated in the “Stuff the Bus” Zumbathon Charity Event and donated school supplies for children in Cumberland County North Carolina. The event was held by Cumberland County Department of Social Services Social Workers and local Zumba instructors in the surrounding communities. The supplies she donated will go to underprivileged kids in Cumberland County (Fayetteville) North Carolina. The family friendly event had a live DJ, door prizes, and lots of fun! See National American Miss making a positive impact in the community!

Rebecca Markert, Miss Florida Junior Teen Queen, was featured in The Pineapple Newspaper.

Rebecca Markert, Miss Florida Junior Teen Queen, was featured in The Pineapple Newspaper.

Pineapple-Newspaper-Rebecca-MarkertDelray Beach teenager Rebecca Markert has given her home city something to celebrate. The 16-year-old beat out hundreds of other Florida teens on her way to winning the title of Miss Florida Junior Teen. The “South” State of Florida’s National American Miss pageant was held July 20-21 in Miami, Florida. With her win, Rebecca received cash prizes, the official state crown and banner, a VIP day at Disneyland®, and a complimentary trip to the National American Miss competition in Hollywood, California this November. There she will compete against hundreds of Miss Junior Teen state winners from around the country for the title of National American Miss Junior Teen Queen, including the Miss “North” Florida Junior Teen winner, Haley Asofsky.

“The entire pageant experience was eye opening to me,” said Rebecca. “I am thrilled to have this opportunity and I am excited to bring exposure to my platform charity Little Smiles, learn more about the entertainment industry, and represent the sunshine state as Miss Florida Junior Teen.”

The National American Miss Pageant is based on inner beauty as well as poise and presentation. Its founders say emphasis is put on the importance of developing self-confidence, learning good sportsmanship, as well as setting and achieving personal goals. The State of Florida competition was divided into the following areas: beauty and poise, personal introduction, as well as seven individual interviews with the judges. In addition, contestants, including Rebecca, were recognized in a number of other categories, including Miss Personality, Volunteer Service, Talent and more. Despite being new to the pageant arena, Rebecca impressed the judges with her personality, casual wear, spirit, and acting skills – winning awards in each of those classifications.

Rebecca’s talent during the competition included playing the ukulele and singing. While singing comes natural for the high school junior, who has performed in numerous plays and theater productions, playing the Hawaii-born ukulele is not. Always up for a challenge, Rebecca taught herself to play the small string instrument only months before the Miss Florida Junior Teen pageant and performed it with ease.

One of Rebecca’s more important responsibilities as Miss Florida Junior Teen is to be involved with and champion a charity of her choice. Rebecca has already started partnering with the Florida-based Little Smiles charity, a local organization dedicated to children, which she chose as her campaign platform. Little Smiles is a non-profit volunteer organizations based in Florida that provides toys, movies, computers, celebrity meet-and-greets, concert and sporting event tickets, theme park trips, junk food runs, and much more to children in local hospitals, hospices and shelters throughout Florida. Through the charity, Rebecca has already had the opportunity to spend time at the Miami Children’s Hospital with some of the young patients, Virginia from the KVJ radio show, deliver pizza to the nurses, and shoot Nerf® guns with the kids! Learn more about the organization at www.LittleSmiles.org.

About Rebecca Markert
Rebecca Markert is 2013 Miss Florida Junior Teen. Rebecca is 16 years old and lives with her family in Delray Beach, Florida. She is a junior at Pope John Paul II High School in Boca Raton, Florida, where she is an honors student; National Honors Society member; member of the school’s varsity cheerleading squad; an actor in the fall and spring theater productions; and a member of the school’s Thespians and Cappies “Critics and Awards Program” clubs. Rebecca is a New England Academy of Dance and Boca Ballet Theatre trained dancer with more than 12 years of experience. She also spent two years at the prestigious Stagedoor Manor summer camp in the Catskills.

New to pageants, Rebecca is thrilled to have been part of the entire Miss Florida Junior Teen experience and ecstatic that she won! She is hoping her title will allow her to bring awareness to the Little Smiles organization and help open new doors within the entertainment industry. Her aspiration is to one day be an actor in TV and film.

See the original newspaper article at http://pineapplenewspaper.com/delray-beach-teen-wins-miss-florida-junior-teen-pageant/14487

Abigail Satter, Miss North Carolina Jr. Teen at Race for the Cure.

Abigail Satter North Carolina Jr. Teen Queen at Race for the Cure. She was very happy to be able to help with such a worthy cause.

Abigail Satter at Race for the CureAbigail Satter North Carolina Jr. Teen at Race for the Cure. She was very happy to be able to help with such a worthy cause.

Jaymason Mease, Miss South Carolina Princess, volunteers at Race for the Cure.

Jaymason Mease, National American Miss South Carolina Princess Queen, volunteers at Race for the Cure.

Jaymason Mease, Miss South Carolina Princess volunteers at Race for the Cure. It was an amazing opportunity and she was happy to be able to be part of the Race for a Cure, Susan G. Komen event in Greenville, South Carolina. There she volunteered at the information booth, handing out free gifts and informative packet regarding breast cancer along side her new friends from Clemson University.

Shivali Patel, NC Jr. Teen Queen helped at Light the Night Walk.

The annual Light The Night Walk in Downtown Raleigh occurred Saturday, October 9,
2010 and October 22nd, 2011 at the Halifax Mall. Shivali Patel, the
National American Miss North Carolina Junior Teen 2011 volunteered befor and during the event. She was a tremendous help to the
team and played an important role in helping to execute a successful Light The Night Walk.

The annual Light The Night Walk in Downtown Raleigh occurred Saturday, October 9,
2010 and October 22nd, 2011 at the Halifax Mall. Shivali Patel, the
National American Miss North Carolina Junior Teen 2011 volunteered befor and during the event. She was a tremendous help to the
team and played an important role in helping to execute a successful Light The Night Walk.

The money raised with Light The Night supports The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s
mission to cure blood cancers and improve the lives of our patients and their families.
Seventy-three percent of our total expenses supports research and local patient services
such as family support groups, financial assistance and education programs. The Society
invests more than $71 million annually in blood cancer research. Included in that
tremendous figure are projects totaling more than $6.8 million at UNC-Chapel Hill and
Duke University. Since its founding, the Society has awarded more than $600 million in
research grants. This important science has doubled and tripled the survival rates for
blood cancer patients in the last 40 years. One Society sponsored grant has led to great
achievement through the discovery of the “miracle pill” Gleevec, keeping one type of
leukemia, CML, in long-term remission.

If you would like additional information about the Society or the North Carolina Chapter,
feel free to contact us at 919-367-4100 or visit our Web site at: www.lls.org/nc.