Junior hostesses organize PACA Style Show

Jun. 14—The junior hostesses of the Pattie A. Clay Auxiliary hosted a style show on Sunday, June 12, at Chenault Vineyards in honor of the 51st annual PACA charity event, which will be hosted later this week.

All 29 junior hostesses showed off clothing from local businesses as a way to give back to the community. This year's PACA theme is "A Whole New World."

"They are just delightful, the sweetest," Ariel Barrow, Chair of the Style Show Committee, said of this year's junior hostessess. "They just give you a little bit of hope for the future. You know, when they choose to do this, they're getting involved in the community and they're bettering (it) whether it's ringing bells for the Salvation Army or if it's modeling boutique clothing to support local businesses."

Being involved in PACA is another opportunity to help young women become more confident, Barrow said.

"Seeing them also grow too; because a lot of these girls are super shy when they get on that stage. Whenever they get out there, they have a confidence that they didn't have," Barrow said.

The outfits the junior hostesses wore on stage were a direct reflection of their personal style. The boutiques sponsoring the style show were The Cotton Market, Olive You Boutique, The Boutique at Merle Norman, and The White Stitch.

"We had the girls fill out a bio sheet, so we got to know them a little bit better. So we can find out if they're more of a casual gal or they're dressy and then we place them in boutiques that fit their style," Barrow said. "They make an appointment and then the employees of the boutique help them pick out their outfits to kind of make them feel comfortable, because some of them you saw were really dressy. Some of them were casual, and it was what they're comfortable with."

Peyton Gabbard, one of the junior hostess, shared she enjoyed the opportunity to meet other people her age.

"(I've learned) just to be more comfortable with trying new things, because I was always trying something new and I never would have been thrown into this situation," Gabbard said. "It's a fun experience, because I got more used to it."

In preparation for the ball later this week, Gabbard shared junior hostesses take a dancing class with their father.

"Neither of us are very graceful," she laughed when asked if she was excited to dance with her father.

The other 28 junior hostesses were: Abigail Aldridge, Adaleen Chaney, Emmy Collier, Kate Conley, Macy Conston, Bailey Davis, Claire Denvers, Kaylee Durbin, Riley Harris, Courtlyn Hoover, Alyson Hornsby, Claire Howell, Emma Lake, Ava Lepp, Lacey Long, Faith Meadows, Ella Nassida, Phoebe Omohundro, Emerson Rudacille, Helena Rudacille, Ava Stotts, Ava Lee Ann Tackett, Addyson Taheny, Lynde Vencill, Holly Welch, Taylor Williams, Alexandra Willis and Sasha Yow.

"It's all girls at the same age, but they come from Berea, or Madison Central, so it's a good group of girls and it's a good way to meet other people in the community," Barrow said.