Carr crowned Miss Nation Ford High 2016

The house was packed Saturday night for the Miss Nation Ford High School Scholarship Pageant, as Ariana Carr took home the title of Miss Nation Ford High 2016.

The evening had more than a few technical and mechanical difficulties – even having to stop the pageant for several minutes to fix the errors – but the show eventually went on.

Morgan Witherspoon, Miss NaFo 2015, said she was backstage trying to help the technical team keep the show going. The 33 contestants, she said, were resilient throughout the evening, which included a curtain that blocked half of the stage when it would not re-open after the show stopped briefly. Competition continued, and contestants completed their routines using just half the stage.

“They pushed through it very well,” Witherspoon said.

In addition to Carr, other winners included Miss Senior, Ashton Irvin; Miss Junior, Lili Martinez; Miss Sophomore, Isabella Heusing; Miss Freshmen, Gracyn Kidd and Miss Congeniality, Samantha Vanderwalker.

Pageant emcees were Miss South Carolina 2014 Lanie Hudson and NaFo Student Body President Cutler Arbon.

In the Miss Nation Ford High pageant, contestants compete for scholarship money that is sent to each contestant’s college upon graduation. Each grade level winner earns $500 and Miss NaFo wins $1,000. Carr will attend the College of Charleston this fall, and plans to major in Communications. She wants to be a reporter, and eventually a television news anchor.

“I really need the scholarship money,” Carr said. “I’m really, really excited.”

The pageants’ platform this year was “Memories Matter” promoting Alzheimer’s awareness. The contestants raised money and presented a donation to The Haven at Carolina Place, a senior living and memory care center. The contestants also visited the center and made Christmas ornaments with residents. Each contestant gave a 30-second speech during the evening wear competition on what they learned about Alzheimer’s from their research and service project.

“The residents were super duper sweet,” Carr said. “I’m hoping to go back.”

Carr explained that there are seven stages of Alzheimer’s, and while estimates vary, it is believed that five million people suffer from the disease that causes dementia.

“I found out that in some cases, blueberries and coconut oil slow progression (of Alzheimer’s)” Carr said. “It’s not a lot, but it still makes a difference for the family.”

Jeannie Jenkins, Community Relations Director at The Haven, was also one of the judges. Jenkins said the residents appreciated the girls coming and spending time with them.

“Volunteers are the way that they thrive in their environment,” she said, adding that interaction is especially important to the residents’ overall well being.

“They still need a purpose,” Jenkins said. “To have a conversation, whether they remember or not, is important.”

“Whenever I’m having a bad day, I go and talk to a resident,” she said. “It’s amazing.”

Lili Martinez, Miss Junior, said Alzheimer’s awareness is important because it is a “cruel” disease with no cure.

“You lose the only thing that you can always hold onto, which are your memories,” she said.

This story was originally published February 1, 2016 at 5:29 PM with the headline "Carr crowned Miss Nation Ford High 2016."