The Making of Queen for a Day
As I entered Thomas Persons Hall Saturday afternoon I was immediately filled with energy. There were a dozen local ladies, parents, siblings, hair and make-up artists, Miss Georgia USA Emanii Davis and Miss Teen Georgia Bentley Wright, female disc jockeys, music, food and fun going on with all of the tributes getting ready for their big night—PROM!
Local native and Miss USA runner-up and the former Miss Georgia, Tiana Griggs reached out to me months ago to promote her latest outreach here in her hometown, “A prom season/crown season, glam party for high school girls where I bring in my team of make-up artists and hair stylists to aid the girls getting ready for prom,” Tiana expressed excitedly to me.
And excited she was. I spoke with Tiana throughout the planning stages of the “glam party” event and she shared with me the need to get back into her home community and bring positive inspiration to the girls there. “Ever since I’ve become Miss Georgia, I’ve had girls from home and all over actually reaching out to me for advice. How to get into acting, modeling, pageants…I wanted to share everything with them that I’ve been blessed with,” she said.
During what Tiana commonly calls “Crown Season,” she put up a promotion encouraging girls that were attending the high school prom to sign up to get pampered and inspired by some of those in the industry. Over a dozen girls signed up, and one lucky lady, Jamecia Thurman, won the grand prize giveaway of having her dress and shoes purchased and provided (she went shopping with Tiana, she says), to have her hair, nails, and make-up done by Tiana’s team and she also got dinner for two as a part of her package.
Back to Saturday…when I got to Thomas Persons Hall it was already abuzz with energy with local girls getting pampered. Tiana had prepared a lavish space equipped with three make-up artists and a hair stylist and nail technician.
There was a female DJ (another avenue for female promotion) and food, drinks, a picture back drop, changing room and all of the volunteer support anyone could want.
The girls spent their time socializing, mingling with the beauty queens and getting hair touch-ups and makeup applications. The before and after looks were vast, high end, and overall the parents as well as the girls were shocked by the transformations from “that’s not my baby,” as said by one parent, to fashion beauties.
As each person visited their respective stations each one was prepped for their big night. Before the “Georgia girls” left they each made speeches that included words such as “you’re all already beautiful and the enhancements of your natural beauty are amazing!” They continued, “please be sure to enjoy tonight, but to not forget to respect yourselves, and your dates will respect you. Please take the time to make memories, but remember that you are all beauty queens and you should treat yourselves that way.”
Those assisting Tiana Saturday included make-up by Chelsey Jones, Akelia Goolsby, and Kameisha Clark; hair by Aaron LaGarde; and nails by Donyale of DonMarie Nails.
Other volunteers and support persons assisting with dressing room duties, photos, etc. were Theresa Griggs, Ashley Crutchfield, Brenda Norris, Vickey Bostic, Kimberly LaVaughn, Charlene Buckner, and Chiquita Thurman.
As far as catching up on Saturday, Tiana and I did just that as she also managed what was going on in the space. I learned that Tiana is going to launch a blogging website (the new crown season website) which will include modeling tips and beauty tutorials. She is also doing photo shoots for local Atlanta retailers including H&M and Zara women’s clothing to focus on fashion trends and hair trends.
When I asked what was next, she said “well now the adults want me to come back and do an adult prom, so we’re looking into that.” She also said that there was such an overwhelming response to this event that she is already looking to doing it again next year.
She is going to need help and donations, however and anyone interested can contact her via e-mail at info@crownseason.com.
