Amanda Ng, a fourth grade student at Cypress Trails Elementary School in Royal Palm Beach, will be vying for a national title this summer after taking home honors in two community service oriented pageants earlier this year.
In the USA Ambassador Pageant, contestants are scored on their interview, an evening gown presentation, a stage chat and one optional category — an outfit that represents your hometown, talent or community service. Ng was the first-place winner in the optional category for her community service with Royal Manor Nursing Home. She was named the second runner up overall and invited to compete for the national title of USA Jr. Ambassador in July.
She was also crowned Beauty Supreme Queen in the USA Dream Girls Pageant last month, where she competed in the spokes model, community service, cover model and evening gown categories. Ng took the community service and cover model titles, and her crowning as Beauty Supreme Queen qualifies her to compete for the national title in July.
Ng said her proudest moment was winning the community service awards at both pageants.
“I have always gone with my brother to his community service projects,” she said. “When I was six, my mom let me start doing my own projects, and it felt good.”
With shows about pageants gaining national attention, Ng said she feels they are misrepresented in the media.
“I watch Toddlers and Tiaras a lot, and these two pageants are nothing like that,” Ng said. “At the USA Ambassador pageant, all the queens brought good luck gifts to the girls competing and talked with us to help us. At the USA Dream Girls pageant, the current queen helped me so much with everything. All the girls help each other; it’s helping each other do good, not hoping each other fail.”
She credited her teachers for helping her to prepare for the interviews and speaking in front of large crowds.
“For math this year, I could either make a game show or song about a math subject, and we had to present it to the class,” she said. “So I got to practice speaking in front of a lot of people. My reading teacher also had us present a biography about a famous person, so that helped me write about myself. My chorus teacher took us to sing in front of the whole Royal Palm Beach Village Council, so that was in front of strangers. I love my school and my teachers!”
Ng has been a community activist since age six when she cut off her hair for Locks of Love. She recently penned a book about colors and will be sharing it with local children’s hospitals and schools.
For more information, contact Sandi Ng at sng112@bellsouth.net.
ABOVE: Amanda Ng (center) with teacher Danielle Hendrix and Cypress Trails Elementary School Principal Tameka Moore-Robinson.
