Miss Catawba Valley's Teen

✰ Miss North Carolina's Teen✰

In January, , Hanley House, is competing for MISS AMERICA! To help her promote her CSI and take the Miss America crown home to NC, make sure to subscribe to her youtube channel!

Honored to be a part of an organization that cares so deeply about women's health!

✰Morganton Christmas Parade✰

Last night, the Morganton/Catawba queens got to represent our community in the parade alongside the Miss Patton queens! It never gets old hearing "you're a real life princess" at any event where i get to represent MAO and Catwaba Valley, but last night was extra special and filled with love.

🎅 Breakfast with Santa!!🎄

Today, the Morganton/Catawba Valley Queens got to appear and volunteer at Downtown Morganton's Annual Breakfast with Santa! I had a great time meeting community members and representing the Miss America Scholarship Organization! Also, a little fun fact, the place where Breakfast with Santa was hosted is located next to Queen Street!

❤️‍🔥Miss America is going red!! ❤️‍🔥

Miss America is collaborating with American Heart Association Go Red for Women initiative to promote women's health! Cardiovascular disease is the number 1 killer of women in the United States, which is why it is so important to spread awareness about CVD prevention, treatment, and research.

🜲 STYLE 🜲

This point of the crown exemplifies one way that titleholders can express their personalities and individual styles. To me, having style means showing up every day as my most authentic self and wearing what makes me feel like ME!

🜲 Points of the Crown 🜲

All Miss America Scholarship Organization Crowns have four points, each representing different aspects of the Miss America Program as well as traits that titleholders should exude and embody. The four points stand for scholarship, style, service, and success. Watch out for more posts coming up where I further explain the four points of the crown and what they mean to me!!

Some things that I'm thankful for this Thanksgiving🫶🏻🍂....

Today, I got the honor of visiting one of our sponsors and got to look for dresses! I had the best time and am so thankful to everyone who has been helping the girls!!

Gown!! This is the fifth and last phase of competing for a title through the Miss America Scholarship Organization! In this phase, I was able to showcase my personal style, confidence, personality, and love for being on stage!

It's Love Your Body Week!! Love your body week is a week hosted by the National Honor Society for Dance Arts that is dedicated to promoting positive body image in dancers as well as celebrating all of the things our bodies can do! According to the National Library of Medicine, "[a] study [has] concluded that dancers had a three times higher risk of suffering from eating disorders, particularly anorexia nervosa and EDNOS". This increased risk for mental illness via eating disorders is why we must work to make more accepting dance environments and educate dancers on mental health!

Miss Statesville/Iredell County!! Last night, my sister queens, and I got to go see the Miss Statesville/Iredell County Pageant! We had a great time, and I am so proud of all the gorgeous girls who were crowne!!

Talent!! 🩰 This is one of my favorite parts of competing in the Miss America Scholarship Organization because it allows me to showcase what I love doing... dance!! I started dancing when I was two years old and have been dancing competitively for the past five years! Dance has become an outlet for me to express myself, an incredible form of exercise, and has provided me with an unwavering community.

Fitness!! This is the third aspect of competing for a title through the Miss America Scholarship Organization! As a competitive dancer and a member of my local chapter of the National Honor Society of Dance Arts, I firmly believe in the importance of exercise and health. I practice with my dance team for several hours, 4-5 times per week, and work out weekly with our team trainer. Exercise and physical activity release endorphins in your brain and are strongly associated with improving mental health and reducing anxiety and depression symptoms!

On-stage question!! This is the second phase of competition and where you get the chance to share your community service initiative and are then asked a question from your judges. I got to speak about how I believe that to end the stigma around mental health, we must work to educate our youth on the subject as well as provide further resources for those struggling with mental illness.

Meet AJ Thomas, Miss Catawba Valley's Teen 2024 #missamericasteennc #catawbavalley #morganton Find a local organization to start your journey at https://missnc.org/local-competitions ...

Yesterday, I got to visit a local elementary school and make my first official appearance as Miss Catawba Valley's Teen! While I was there, I got to read to and speak with students about feelings and how to cope with them. Teaching elementary school students emotional regulation and empathy skills sets them up for success in the future, which is why I am so grateful I got to speak with them!

It has officially been a week since I've been crowned!! I truly can not explain how magical, busy, and exciting this first week has been. During my first week as Miss Catawba Valley's Teen, I have done a lot of planning as to ways I can instate programs that support my CSI, Mental Health Matters, into schools. In addition to that, I have planned my first ever appearance as queen (stay tuned this week for pics)!!

Interview!! Interview is the first phase of competition, and where your judges get to learn more about who you are as well as your community service initiative. I loved getting to speak about my plans to promote mental wellness through my CSI Mental Health Matters, as well as getting the opportunity to showcase my personality and values.

While "Sisterhood" may not be one of the four points of the Miss America Organization's crown, it certainly is an integral part of this organization. I'm so thankful to my fellow sister queen's, and I know that the year ahead will be one filled with love and service!

Hi my name is AJ Thomas, and I am so honored to be your FIRST EVER Miss Catawba Valley's Teen!! 🜲 I am incredibly excited to be a part of the sisterhood and use my title to promote my Community Service Initiative, Mental Health Matters! I'm so grateful to the Miss America Organization for the opportunity to represent Catawba Valley and I can not wait to see what this year holds!!