17-year-old Alison Appleby has been crowned Miss Dallas Teen USA 2022 – and her seizure alert dog Brady is right beside her.
The teen, from the Texan city of Sherman, has autism and epilepsy, and told Fox News that she was “just thrilled to go”, let alone win the pageant.
“I’ve always dreamed of being a pageant girl, but it just never seemed like I could do it,” she said. “I was terrified the whole time… but having Brady by my side made it so much easier. He is my support through it all.”
She said that she wanted to show other people that you could “do it with a disability”, and her Golden Retriever companion certainly played an important role throughout.
Being Crowned the Miss Dallas Winners
During the ceremony on Oct. 9th, both dog and dog parent wore crowns, but Brady didn’t seem to appreciate his, even shaking it to the ground. But Appleby said that her “heart absolutely melted” when Brady wore his crown. And fortunately, the pooch “got used to it pretty fast”.
Jennifer Ortiz, the pageant director, explained that organizers purchased the special crown for Brady once they knew he’d be taking part alongside Appleby, in case she won.
“Alison really won the entire pageant,” she said. “She was just absolutely amazing — the way that she spoke, she was very intelligent, and very communicative with our judges. She’s just a phenomenal woman all the way around”.
Not Giving Up
“I’m still in shock about it … I never expected this to happen,” said Appleby. “The judges didn’t let my disability change how they saw me — they judged me as a person.
“I think that we all have the inner strength that we can pull from and that can sometimes shine despite any limitations that you have.
“Don’t let your setbacks make you give up on your dreams,” she added. “You can do it and you can be successful. You don’t have to give up on life just because you have an illness.”
