Jul 28 2008
Cerebral palsy doesn’t stop St. Ambrose student from winning Miss Iowa USA crown
Curran, a Kewanee, Ill., woman who attends St. Ambrose University, Davenport, remembers a teacher telling high school that may never come into county fairs pageant - a dream of a lifetime - because he had cerebral palsy .
Curran did not listen and entered the pageant anyway. Now, a few years later, has been named one of the best Iowa beauties.
Having had a stage victory in stage of the Bridge View Center in Ottumwa on Saturday, Curran picked up the phone and asked the teacher. “I woke up from his bed and said, ‘Guess what!” He said, still giddy Monday in the rush to win the right to use the tiara. “Saying it’s a dream come true sounds so cliché, but in third grade I had friends who wanted to be a fireman or a doctor, and I always wanted to be Miss USA or Miss americas.”
Curran represent the state in the Miss USA pageant next year at a time and place to be determined. While she travels the state in the coming weeks, is scheduled to visit children in therapy centres, Easter Seal sites and other places where you can find other young people with special needs. Curran wants to tell them that they too can make their dreams come true, despite his disability.
“I take that with me emotionally and mentally,” said it “can-do” attitude. “What we have to do is tear down the walls in our minds. Accomplishments start with two words -” I will try. “We need to step up the plate and swing that bat.”
Curran founded the Miss You Can Do It pageant for people with special needs a few years ago. The pageant is currently being carried out in Kewanee, but Curran hopes to use his new platform to expand regional contest.
In addition to winning the Miss USA contest Iowa title, Curran took a grant of $ 10675, a new wardrobe, iPod, digital camera, luggage and much more. She majors in public relations at St. Ambrose and also hopes to become a pilot.
Curran pageant called “the best I’ve had personal experience in my life,” although he had to rehearse and compete for two long days in high heels. “It’s hard to be prepared and happy and beautiful, and look down and feet were bleeding.”
What could have been one of the most difficult parts of the competition - which included interviews, as well as swimsuit and evening dress modeling - proved to be a high point, said Curran. For the opening number, all the contestants performed a dance, which is difficult for Curran, due to problems of balance.
“Normally, people would say, ‘Abbey, sitting out this’,” said Curran, but with the help of a chaperone who threw out the act. “It was something of the Rockettes something to do, so I was able to cling to someone all the time.”
Melissa Young, an actress who appeared earlier in the day soap “The Young and the Restless”, served as a judge in the pageant. She predicted Curran “blow the world out of the water” during his reign.
“Abbey was surprising in a personal interview,” said Young. “She completely blew me away. We interviewed 40-and some women when I walked down Abbey, instead of looking down or to the past, she looked directly into my eyes and saw his soul.”
In the interview, Curran said that entered the pageant to be an ambassador for people with special needs throughout americas. “I’m so excited by it,” said Young. “It’s going to be an incredible experience for her.”
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