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Girls with a dream

By WILLIE J. ALLEN JR.
Published April 18, 2007

It's Saturday evening and the Frank Pierce Recreation Center seems like the place to be. The parking lot is so packed that people have resorted to parking on the grass. Hugs and hellos are exchanged as they head for the front doors. The recreation center, one of the city's oldest, has long been a meeting place for the community south of Central Avenue. Saturday's occasion was the Miss Frank Pierce Pageant, where 12 girls competed in seven categories for the crown.

Their talents ranged from lip-synching the song One Night Only from the movie Dreamgirls to a live snake being kissed on stage.

"This is the only pageant that gives African-American girls a chance to compete ... and it's affordable," said Adrienne Douglas, a pageant organizer. "It gives all the girls an opportunity."

The girls practiced two nights a week for a month and spent anywhere from $50 to $400 for outfits and props.

Behind the rented charcoal black curtain, the girls were primped and pampered before taking stage. Mothers coddled and cajoled as they multitasked, overseeing props, applying lip gloss and offering last-minute words of encouragement.

When Arneciya Campbell, 10, took the stage, the gym filled with the sound of her cracking her whip. She was modeling a lion tamer's outfit in the sports competition.

Mom Pamela Rosebud watched. "She loves to perform," she said.

This year's winners took home trophies that looked like mini skyscrapers, but no one went away empty-handed. Everyone received a plaque.

Haneffah Sheerrieff, 13, said she wanted to enter because the pageant seemed "fun and exciting." Afterward, even though she didn't win, she said it was all she thought it would be. "I was nervous and excited," she said.

In the future, the teen hopes to become an attorney. But, more immediately, her thoughts are on next year. "I want the crown!"

The winners

Miss Frank Pierce Pageant

Ga'Kira Bell in the preschool to second-grade category.

Arneciya Campbell in the third- through sixth-grade category.

Sache Davis in the sixth- through eighth-grade category

Chaleah Morris in the ninth- through 12th-grade category.

[Last modified April 18, 2007, 02:51:28]