Fifth-grade princess sees beauty in service

San Marco resident and Hendricks Avenue Elementary School fifth-grader, Kendall Cosper, recently was tapped to be the junior “princess” for neighborhood Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen, Jennifer Stehlin.
Cosper has served as Stehlin’s princess as part of the Miss America organization’s mentoring program. This summer, the pair visited patients at Wolfson Children’s Hospital and is developing a “healthy habits” workshop for young girls.
The Resident asked Cosper a few questions about how the royal treatment has translated into a focus on others.
How were you chosen as princess?
I have known Jennifer a long time because her older sister, Jamie, was our babysitter before she went to college.  Their family goes to our church, Southside United Methodist.  She asked me to be her princess for the Miss St. Johns’ County Pageant last November.  Jennifer had not competed before and realized about a week before that she needed a younger girl to escort her during the evening gown competition.  Who knew she would win and go on to be crowned Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2012!
What have you learned from your mentor so far?
It is important to put your relationship with God first, others before yourself and to help your community.  Finding a way to volunteer that you love makes volunteering fun. We made blankets for children at Wolfson Children’s Hospital and helped raise money for Children’s Miracle Network.  It was fun to do it together.  She has been volunteering for the March of Dimes for a long time and I can tell she loves it because of how excited she gets talking about it.
What do you admire about her and why can her strengths be an inspiration to you and others?
She is very confident and has taught me that true beauty comes from the inside.  She says, “let your light shine!” and means that if you work on being beautiful on the inside, that is most important. Just loving who God made you to be and being yourself makes it easy to focus on things that really matter and have fun serving others.  She is also really silly and we have lots of fun being goofy together.
What have you enjoyed doing most in your new role — where have you visited?
We just got back from Miss America’s Outstanding Teen National Competition in Orlando, FL.  It was great meeting other girls from all the country and I made great friends from North Dakota, Georgia, New Hampshire & North Carolina.  It was neat to meet all the teens and learn about what they have done to help others and make a difference in their states even though they are only teenagers.  I got to know Miss America’s Outstanding Teen 2012, Elizabeth Fechtel,  and met Miss America.  They are both so sweet and I learned about the work they have done during their year of service.  It has made me start thinking about all the things I can do before I even graduate from college and that I don’t have to wait until I’m an adult to make a real difference in the world.
What role does charity play in your work?
In the Miss America organization, when you win a title, the following 12 months are called your “Year of Service.”  Jennifer’s job as Miss Florida’s this coming year is to promote her platform — The March of Dimes and the official charity, CMN.  Helping others is just how we share the love God shows us with others.  I am excited to continue helping Jennifer with her work, learning from her & spending time making a difference.
What’s next?
We are working on a workshop for girls my age called R.E.A.C.H. It stands for Raise Enormous Awareness – Change Hearts.  We’ll talk with other girls about developing healthy habits that last a lifetime, taking care of the body God gave you and using your life in service to others.  I can’t wait to finish the planning and get started because it’s going to be a fun way to learn and share what I’ve learned with other girls.

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