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Since winning Miss Louisiana Teen USA, Kelsey Lawson, has been very busy. She has been travel-ing around the state making personal appearances and connecting with teens and adults. A few of the many appearances she has made have been for Hurricane Katrina relief, Dare graduations, and walks to raise money for cancer. When appearing at a 5th grade Dare graduation, she spoke to the students about some of her personal experiences and how making the right choices can affect your life forever. She also has a special connection to the work she does for cancer because she had a grandparent die from the disease. Kelsey is proud of Louisiana residents for staying strong and pulling together in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. 

She had approximately twenty family members from New Orleans stay at her home for several weeks following the disaster. Her school also gained 500 new students. She is very thankful to everyone who has contributed to the relief efforts. Kelsey watched pageants on television as a young girl and began dreaming of being on TV in a pageant herself. She began by participating in local pageants. Before winning Miss Louisiana Teen USA in 2005, she had participated in the pageant twice before. She finished in the top five both times. She was inspired to try again in 2005 by her strong performances in the past. She had also competed with Shelly Henning, Miss Louisiana Teen USA. Seeing Shelly go on to win Miss Teen USA was another motivating factor. She knew Shelly was from a small town like herself. Yet, she stayed true to herself and went on to win the national title. Kelsey believes her participation in pageants has made her a better person. 

She has gained self-confidence and is more comfortable when speaking in front of groups of all sizes. Her experiences have helped her know who she really is. When asked what she would tell a young girl who is inter-ested in participating in pageants, she said she would say, “Just do it!” In April of this year, Kelsey traveled to Baltimore to attend the Miss USA pageant. She had a good time with many different experiences. She remembers thinking as she watched Miss Kentucky be crowned Miss USA, that she hoped it would be her receiving a national crown in August. To prepare for the Miss Teen USA pageant in August, Kelsey has been doing many things. She has been practicing for her interviews with Coach Don Baker. As part of her state prize package she attended a seminar present-ed by Eagle “U” at Pepperdine University in California. The semi-nars were very beneficial in improving self-esteem and commu-nication skills. She became good friends with Brittany Smith, Miss South Carolina Teen USA, while attending the seminar. They are now planning to be roommates at the national pageant in Palm Springs. 

She has also worked with designer Gregory Ellenburg to create the gown of her dreams. She is also hoping her dedica-tion to working out will pay off. She is looking forward to going to California and thinks she will like the dry heat of Palm Springs to the humidity of southern Louisiana. During this last year, Kelsey has made several appearances with Christina Cuenca, the current Miss Louisiana USA. She is thankful for the advice she has received from Christina. She says some of the memorable advice is, “Have fun, be yourself, and make sure the outfits they give you for competition fit!” When her year as Miss Louisiana Teen USA is over, she wants to be remembered as a real person, someone people can relate to – not just a pageant girl. As for her future plans, she hopes to at-tend LSU. She also loves competing and wants to be in the Miss Louisiana USA pageant. 

Brittany Smith has been busy and enjoying her reign as Miss South Carolina Teen USA 2006. She has especially enjoyed her involvement with the “Queen for a Day” program. She is spokes-person for the Greenville/Spartanburg area. This program exists to raise the self-esteem and self-confidence of girls with cancer. They host parties that give the girls, from age 17 months to 21 years, manicures and makeovers. Each girl is given a tiara that has been donated by a title holder. Brittany does whatever is needed at these parties from putting on make-up to helping with crafts or just talking. 

She was especially touched by a little girl who had been in remission for three years but then had a reoccurrence of her leukemia. Brittany remembers the little girl was so brave and always smiling. During her reign as Miss South Carolina Teen USA, she hopes to encourage others to become active in this wonderful program. A friend suggested that Brittany enter a local pageant. She did and won the title of Miss Greater Greer Teen USA. That year she was second runner-up at the state competition. She decided to try again and won the title of Miss Lexington Teen USA and returned to take the state title on her second attempt. She admires Austen Brown, Miss South Carolina Teen USA 2002. She says Austen is like her big sister. She is glad for all the support and words of encouragement she receives from her. 

She is also busy preparing for her national competition on August 15 in Palm Springs, CA. Part of her preparation was attending a workshop provided by Eagle “U” at Pepperdine University in Malibu, CA. The workshops help participants gain self-confidence and better their communi-cation skills. The workshop was part of her state prize package. While there, she met her future roommate for the Miss Teen USA pageant, Miss Kelsey Lawson, Miss Louisiana Teen USA. Brittany says there have become good friends and she is looking forward to spending time with her in Palm Springs. She says realizing that she will be one of the girls on television this year is a dream come true. Brittany has been talking to Miss South Carolina USA, Lacie Lybrand, and received advice and words of encouragement. 

The best thing she told me is, “Make sure you have fun and be yourself.” At the present time Brittany does not know if she will enter any other pageants in the future. For now, she is focusing on her appearance in August. She hopes she has represented the state of South Carolina in a way that would make everyone want to visit. She wants everyone to know she has been active this year representing South Carolina. The state has many historical places to visit and is full of friendly people. In the fall, she plans on attending Clemson University. She will be studying Marketing and Business Administra-tion. Be sure to watch Brittany represent the Palmetto state at the Miss Teen USA Pageant, August 15, live on NBC from Palm Springs, CA.