Greetings from New York, born and raised in Upstate New York, an 8th grader, soon to be 9th grader come September of 2012 and an active member on the Junior Varsity Tennis Team I am your NEW Miss Junior Teen America for 2012, 14 year old, Christiana DiNardo. My hobbies include tennis, modeling, acting, spending time with my family, community service involvement and of course like any other teenager; I love shopping and spending time with my friends!
Being selected as your Miss Junior Teen America is a dream come true, a dream that comes along with many obligations, including nationwide appearances, volunteering, and many personal responsibilities. Though I have only been involved in pageants for a few years, pageant participation has helped me to learn more about myself. I believe that through pageant participation I have become a well-rounded individual and have learned many life skills along the way. A few of the life skills that I have learned include personal interviewing skills and public speaking skills, these are the skills and qualities that colleges and employee recruiters look for when making their decisions, and learning how to handle myself during the interview process which will help me become a successful person. I also believe that pageantry has increased my awareness on the importance of volunteering and giving back to other less fortunate. The Salvation Army and other local and national organizations are just a few of the many organizations that I have volunteered for over the years. Pageantry has also been a great way for me to meet new friends, friends from all over the nation, friends that share some of the same common interests and concerns that I have. Some of my favorite people in this world have been people that I have met through pageants, either by participating in a pageant, attending a pageant, or through volunteering within my community as representing Miss New York Junior Teen America 2012 and now Miss Teen America 2012.
I am very proud to announce that I have been asked to be the New York spokesperson for Soles4Souls. Soles4Souls has a simple mission: To impact as many lives possible with the gift of shoes. Over 300 million children in the world do not own a pair of shoes. Soles4Soul was formed in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and over 13 Million pairs of shoes have been donated. My goal is to organize fundraisers within schools, businesses and organizations and to continue the success of Soles4Souls throughout the state of New York, including major functions nationally. Volunteering in my community has always been important to me, starting back when I was in Girl Scouts, as a Brownie. I learned the importance of giving back to my community and giving back to others in need. I have found that being a pageant participant, state titleholder and now national titleholder that being active in pageants has given me the ability and confidence to reach out to others and make that difference. If there is truly something that you care about, pageant contestant or not, find your passion and give to others that may be in need. Volunteering is a wonderful experience and it reminds us to always be thankful for what we have. “The Importance of Volunteering” has always been my platform, not only representing Miss New York Junior Teen America 2012, but representing Christiana DiNardo, but now it is even more important as I represent the junior teens of America, as Miss Junior Teen America for 2012.
My advice to others, if considering entering a Miss Junior Teen America state pageant or thinking about joining any sport or activity, is just to BELIEVE IN YORSELF, BE REAL and let your true personality shine, ENJOY the experience and most of all HAVE FUN! My favorite quote of all time is “Be yourself, everyone else is already taken”, it is exactly that!
Follow me on Facebook through my journey as Miss Junior Teen America.
Christiana DiNardo
Miss Junior Teen America 2012 |
