Olivia Sczerbaniewicz, daughter of Eric and Alison Sczerbaniewicz of Manlius, has earned the prestigious title of the 2017 National American Miss New York Jr-Pre Teen at the state pageant held in Rochester on August 21. She will be attending the National Pageant to be held in Anaheim, Calif., at Disney Land during Thanksgiving week, representing the great state of New York.
Sczerbaniewicz, a fifth grader at Wellwood Middle School, has hit the ground running since winning the state title. She has collected and donated school supplies, baked and delivered cookies to her local firefighters to thank them for their service and has been collecting donations for those affected by Hurricane Harvey. She plans to spend her year as Miss New York Jr-Pre Teen giving back to her community and volunteering whenever needed.
According to program information, the National American Miss pageants are dedicated to celebrating America’s greatness and encouraging its future leaders. Each year, the National American Miss pageants award $1.5 million dollars in cash, scholarships and prizes to recognize and assist the development of young women nationwide. National America Miss has added the ultimate door prize to nationals in 2017. Every girl that qualifies for the national pageant has the chance to win a new 2017 Ford Mustang convertible.
Emphasis is placed on the importance of gaining self confidence, learning new skills, learning good attitudes about competition and setting and achieving goals. The required areas of competition include poise and presentation in formal wear, public speaking skills during the personal introduction competition and one-on-one interviews with individual judges. The pageant seeks to recognize the accomplishments of each girl while encouraging them to set goals for the future.
