Lions' pride

Jun. 15—Abby Sosa didn't grow up caring much about pageants — or about beauty, for that matter. A self-confessed tomboy with a natural inclination toward high-energy activity and casual clothes, she spent far more time sweating it out in the dance studio or getting dirty in the outdoors than in front of a mirror.

"Her whole life, all she would wear was athletic shorts and T-shirts — and most of the time it was the same color top and same color bottom. She wouldn't wear a bow in her hair for more than two seconds," says Jamie Helms, Abby's mother. "It was all dirt, wrestling, dancing, playing football. I never thought she would do a pageant — ever."

Now the 2022 Cullman High School grad is about to step on the biggest pageant stage Alabama has to offer, representing Cullman as one of 42 contestants in this year's Miss Alabama contest, which will crown a winner in Birmingham on July 2. The Miss Alabama organization invited Sosa to join its ranks, in the process giving a statewide platform to her chosen social impact initiative, after Sosa was crowned Cullman County Fair Queen last October.

Sosa, whose father, Ezra, is of Mexican descent, has teamed with Vinemont-based ministry Send Me Refuge to promote the outreach portion of her platform as a Miss Alabama candidate. For both pageant organizers, as well as Abby herself, it's serious business: Her brother Gabe ended up moving to the ministry's field location in Tapachula, Mexico, after Abby's initial service trip two years ago — in her words — "changed my life completely."

Since then, she's partnered with ministry founders (and Cullman County natives) Archie and Annette Hand, with generous help from local donors, in raising more than $600,000 for the ministry's poverty-alleviating efforts. The ministry serves as inspiration for her Miss Alabama platform, "Bridging the Gap," which aims to recruit Alabamians in helping to elevate the quality of life for Hispanic communities not only in Mexico, but here at home.

"The goal is to 'bridge the gap' from the Hispanic poverty in Mexico to Alabama," Abby explains. "We have a drastic amount of Hispanic poverty here in our communities in Alabama too, which is something that many people here are not aware of. I want to help change the legacies of families in both Mexico and Alabama, and Send Me Refuge is a tremendous organization to help do that; one that has deep roots in Cullman."

No matter the outcome at Miss Alabama, Sosa has the unwavering support of an especially avid fan group: The Cullman Lions Club. As the chief annual sponsor of the Cullman County Fair and, of course, the Fair Queen pageant, local Lions are laser-focused on the next big step in Abby's journey, which owes its start to her initial decision to enter last year's Fair Queen contest as Cullman High School's representative.

"We are extremely proud of her getting to be 'our' first candidate," fair president Charlie Childers told local Lions at a pre-pageant celebration held Monday in Abby's honor.

"We're very proud that she's going to be the first one to represent the Cullman County Fair and the Cullman Lions Club. ... [Past Fair Queen contestants] tell me that their experience in the pageant, win or lose, was just an awesome experience that they'll never forget, and I can only imagine, going to that next level, what that experience will be for Abby. ... Win or lose, we're extremely proud of her and what she's done."

Abby's pageant journey started almost on a whim, primarily because she knew she'd have the talent portion covered — even if she didn't know much about evening gowns or tiaras. An accomplished competitive dancer from childhood, Abby leaned into the idea that her dancing gifts could carry her far — an intuitive hunch that's paid off more than she and her family expected.

"Honestly, it all started because this pageant system — the Fair pageant — had a talent portion," explains Jamie. "She entered the high school pageant, and at that point, we had no idea what we were doing. She wanted to perform her talent, and she said 'I don't think i'll embarrass myself in the pageant, because at least I know I can dance.' That's how she entered — and she won. We were shocked! We'd had to rent her a dress for her to even participate. But it's been wonderful, because she has a very huge heart for the Hispanic poverty that is inside of Alabama, and this gives her an even bigger opportunity to share that passion."

Abby choreographs all her bespoke routines from scratch, and she'll be performing a jazz dance set to Michael Bublé's "Feeling Good" for the talent portion of her upcoming Miss Alabama appearance. As anyone knows who's seen her dance or, more recently, watched her speak before big crowds at pageant-related public events, she doesn't mind the spotlight.

"I just hope I represent Cullman well," she told the Lions Club on Tuesday. "I will try my best. I will not let y'all down; I will give everything that I have and not hold back. If I do win Miss Alabama, that will be awesome. But if I don't, I will for sure make sure that I still give Cullman everything I have to offer."

Benjamin Bullard can be reached by phone at 256-734-2131 ext. 234.