Miss Pee Dee Teen working hard to become Miss South Carolina Teen 2017
In the Olympics the motto of athletes is “Going for Gold” and the new Miss Pee Dee Teen Kinsley Odom is making that her quest as she goes for the Miss South Carolina Teen crown this summer in Columbia. Odom, 16, a Florence native and a junior at West Florence High School, is hoping that the third time is the charm as she walks across the Township Auditorium stage in the capital city in June.
“This will be my final time to compete for Miss South Carolina Teen and I’m working really hard,” Odom said. “It’s definitely made me a better all-around person and I’m ready for the job this year.”
Odom has competed as Miss Hartsville Teen and last year she was Miss S.C. Sweet Potato Festival Teen; she has won more than $5,000 in scholarships and savings bonds.
Contributed Photo
She was named a top 15 quarterfinalist, won the Teen Quality of Life Award (best platform), the STEM Scholarship, the Miracle Maker Award (raising the most money for the Children’s Miracle Network), the Media Award (most media coverage) and won the award for the most community service hours for teen contestants.
As Miss S.C. Sweet Potato Festival Teen she also was a nominee for a National Youth Activist Award sponsored by the Omni Hotel & Resorts in Nashville, TN.
“Last year was wonderful and I feel like I proved to everyone that I was a candidate that was ready to become Miss South Carolina Teen,” Odom said. “This year is even going to be better.”
Odom’s platform is called “Downright Perfect” promoting Down Syndrome Awareness and Acceptance. It not only focuses on her 11 year-old brother Kayden who has Trisomy 21, but she has also partnered with Family Connections of South Carolina, which focuses on Down Syndrome Awareness. She also has plans of taking her platform on an international level as an ambassador with the International Down Syndrome Coalition.
She also started her “Downright Perfect Pledge” campaign in South Carolina last year, visiting schools and organizations and collected almost 2,000 signatures from individuals proclaiming to be nice to a person with an extra chromosome.
“I felt like I needed to focus more on not just what was going on locally, statewide and nationally,” Odom said. “I wanted to get the word out internationally and let everyone in the world know that it’s ok to treat everyone the same, even if they are a little different, so I’ve become an ambassador for an International Down Syndrome Coalition.”
Odom also received a letter from South Carolina Senator Tim Scott last year and recognition from Florence School District One for the work she has done on her platform.
Since she was awarded her title of Miss Pee Dee Teen last September she has continued to travel our state and was able to emcee the S.C. Sweet Potato Festival; she participated in the city of Darlington’s Martin Luther King Jr. service on January 16th.
“I look forward to serving the citizens of the entire Pee Dee area,” Odom said. “This is a dream come true and citizens can look for me at many events throughout the next few months.”
Odom is the official spokesperson for Pee Dee Auto Sales; she can be seen monthly on the commercials running on all the local affiliates from Myrtle Beach to Florence.
Visit her website at http://misspeedeeteen.wixsite.com/peedeeteen or her facebook page at Miss Pee Dee Teen Kinsley Odom for all the latest updates.
