LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — A Lexington woman is competing in the national Miss All American pageant in August.
"I wanted little girls to see me from Lexington, and with the amount of diligence and resilience that no matter what anyone tells them, they can do this too," said 25-year-old Kailey Boyles.
Boyles is the first Latina Miss Lexington All American; she was adopted at 6 months old from Guatemala City, Guatemala.
She said seeing someone who looks like her and has her background is part of the reason why Boyles got into pageantry.
"I was looking at the people around me and looking at what I was seeing in things like pageantry and modeling and leadership in my communities, and I wasn't seeing me," said Boyles.
She said that when she was younger, she was bullied. Being successful in the pageantry world, in Boyles' eyes, would be proving her bullies wrong.
"I was being told all these things that I couldn't do, and I was tired of being told no," said Boyles.
Her philanthropy work centers around making sure all voices are heard, especially those of the elderly, homeless, and adults with special needs. She spreads the message of love and inclusivity.
"You are welcome here, you are invited here, we want to see you, please take up space," said Boyles.
She said she wants to make sure those she works with feel important.
"That's something that I didn't always feel like I had growing up, and I may not be able to fix that for five-year-old me, but I can fix it for everyone else at 25-year-old me," said Boyles.
Boyles said her faith is extremely important to her; she leans on it often.
"It is my life and my responsibility to give back to others because that is what God would do," said Boyles. "Regardless if the person across from me agrees with me or not, regardless what their faith is regardless what their background is, my job is to love them."
Boyles is a graduate of Centre College in Danville. She said next she will be attending NYU to get her masters in social work.
The national Miss All American pageant will be August 1-2 in Charleston.
