Check out Miss Ohio Pre-Teen!

The third time was a charm for me!  This has been a magical year full of blessings.  The first thing I did after I won was “take a deep breath” and let it sink in!  My mom would look at me and randomly say, “You won NAM!”  And we would both laugh.  It was a big goal of mine that I was thankful to experience.  I wasn’t supposed to even be allowed to compete until I was 12 but my mom liked the “no makeup” rule and thought it gave me good experience interviewing, speaking on stage and acting like a lady even if I didn’t win.  And although I was pretty confident to start, each year I grew in NAM I became more confident.

I’ve been able to travel a ton!  We went to Chicago to the Illinois pageant and it was fun to be “Visiting Royalty.”  Then, we took off to Nashville, Tennessee to have my dress “blinged out” by the person who made it who was none other than “the” Jonathan Kayne!  And he let me play dress up in his studio & he let me interview him for my YouTube station.   I found out he almost became a Vet!  Can you imagine the feet of pageant girls all over the word if he had been a Vet?  He was awesome and I hope to have him dress me one day for the red carpet!  I even got a selfie with him, of course.

My service project is very special to me and was an easy experience because my mom & I have been serving Homeless Youth at Daybreak since I was born.  My mom stayed in that shelter as a Teen so it means a lot to me to help raise money & awareness for them.  And now I get to sell gourmet, all natural dog & cat treats for the organization at festivals all over.  The kids that stay at the shelter make the treats to learn job skills and all the proceeds go back into the shelter.  They will be sold at Home Goods stores all over the country  under the name Lindy and Company and you can buy them on line too (www.lindyandcompany.org).  My mom & I have been a part of raising over 1.2 Million dollars for this organization at the annual fundraising event we have directly participated since I was born.

Going to Nationals was a dream, come true!  I had a blast and made so many new friends.  I am even going to a major acting summer camp with Miss Georgia Pre-Teen in New Orleans where we will be participating in a showcase at the Spanish Mansion where Reese Witherspoon  & Sofia Vergara just filmed their latest movie “Hot Pursuit.”  We will be seen by Agents, Managers and Casting Directors from Los Angeles.   Also, I just happened to run into Calum Worthy from Austin & Ally on the Disney Channel and got a selfie with him too while at Nationals!  What a memory.  It wasn’t my year to win but I am a NAM queen for the rest of my life.

I am an Actress signed with Heyman Talent and that’s what I want to do for my career.  Right before I left for Nationals I had a call back for my first feature film and as soon as I came home from Nationals I had a workshop with a Nickelodeon Casting Director.  Well, I’m happy to say I got the part as the Lead Character’s younger self in my first feature film called Respite Care!  And, NAM tweeted about it, so my mom let me get a Twitter account, Instagram & Facebook (Twitter: @jademanleyy, Instagram:@jademanleyy & @namohiopreteen.jade and Facebook: Jade Capri Manley-Entertainer).   You know what NAM did for Rayvon Owen on American Idol and he’s not even one of their Queens!  J  I have also auditioned for series regular roles on Nickelodeon and Disney channel!  And I was in the final running to be Marissa Tomei’s younger self in a Diane Keeton movie.  I also played the Godfather in “Twinderella” and was recently cast as BEAUTY in “Beauty and the Beast”  at Town Hall Theater in Centerville, Ohio playing the first weekend in August!

Parades, photoshoots, and sister queen experiences were the icing on the cake this year!

The year was full of blessings, my life has been granted with so many opportunities and the NAM organization is forever a part of what built me up along the way.  Guess what?  I won NAM in 2014 and it is forever in my heart!  And you haven’t seen the last of me yet!  I’m only 12….I’m just getting started.

Sincerely,

Jade Capri Manley

National American Miss Ohio Pre-Teen 2014