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Sheina Liles, the 1982 Miss Opportunity winner, said they want to encourage people of all races to enter, not just minorities.
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Past winners of the pageant were honored during the contest. “We have to do something to take the kids back,” Drake said. Kesha Drake, executive director of the Bradfield Center, where the event was held, said the event will again be a tradition in Lima. The winners and the first and second runners-up had the distinction of being awarded by Jelisa Barringer, the 2015 Miss Black America title holder. “We want to seek out that positive and grab it, and let these girls show it to the community.”
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“We just want people to know that there is still a lot of positive in our community,” Dansby said. The talent portion of the evening brought forth some spirited performances, including a magnificent cover of a Beyonce song by 13-year-old Jayla Austin that brought the crowd to its feet. The girls were judged on talent, casual wear, formal wear and impromptu questions. Grades seven to nine made up the junior division and the older girls participated in the senior division. The only stipulations for entering the pageant was that the girls be between seventh and 12th grade. “There was a need for involvement with our young ladies.” “In light of recent things in Lima, we felt there was a need in the community,” Dansby said. In the end, 14-year old Jada Rose, a student of West Middle School, was crowned the winner of the junior contest, and Jelisa Austin, a 16-year-old junior at Lima Senior, was crowned winner in the senior division.Ĭommittee member Regina Dansby said they felt bringing back the pageant that was especially popular in the 1970s, ’80s and into the early ’90s was just one of many things that can be done to help with youth in the community. It was a first of many steps to help recapture the youth of the Lima community.Īfter a more than 20-year absence, the Miss Opportunity Pageant was brought back to Lima with 11 girls participating in the event.