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Show rCWM Making a Difference by Being "Positively Beautiful" -Tt' li ' -V. k, m '-i ' 'A , a;a i ' v. f Ml by Marissa Moncayo One year ago, Alyson Johnson was crowned Miss Pleasant Grove. Throughout her reign as queen she has devoted time and work towards her platform "Positively Beautiful," helping youth groups to increase self-esteem and self-acceptance. Alyson was born in Mesa, Arizona and began tap dancing at the age of three. By the time she was five she was competing in numerous duets, trios, and production numbers. After moving to Utah, she quickly immersed herself in jazz and lyrical dancing. She loves spending time with her family and friends, as well as exercising, reading, and cooking. She graduated from Pleasant Grove High School in 2012, where for three years she was a member of the dance company and drill team serving as captain as a senior. Aly is currently attending Brigham Young University where she is studying Human Development with hopes to become a social worker or a family therapist. Her platform is very personal as she shared her own personal experience with lowered self-esteem and self-acceptance. self-acceptance. Aly suffered a knee surgery her junior year in high school that put her out of dancing and physical activity for three months. Aly said, "I went through many physical, mental and emotional trials on my road to recovery and my self-esteem took a major hit. I was unable to use my body the same way I was used to prior to surgery. I distanced myself from friends because I wasn't confident in my personality, and I wasn't comfortable with my body shape. I was constantly tearing myself down for the little things and comparing myself to , the world's advertised "perfect body". My past is what drives me to empower others to develop a more positive self-esteem. My platform, "Positively Beautiful" comes straight from my heart because it is my personal story." There are many statistics that prove this is a problem in today's society. At the age of thirteen, 53 of girls are unhappy with their body type. That number jumps to 78 by the time girls reach seventeen. In today's society we are constantly bombarded with advertisements involving diet-related products and the media's idea of the "perfect body". Over the course of a lifetime, individuals spend countless hours talking negatively about themselves, building a badly tainted image of themselves. This issue affects hot only those in our state but also people all over the world. "Through my ambition to help others develop self-acceptance, self-acceptance, I have been able to make presentations to youth and young adults throughout Utah County. I have also partnered with a new program entitled "My Beauty Biography" to create awareness in young women of self perception. There are currently journals building throughout the United States and India where women can draw a picture or write a few words about how they view their personal beauty. The end goal is to publish all of these anonymous entries into a book that will empower girls everywhere and let them know they're not alone," Alyson Johnson reaffirmed, as she continues to work towards this goal and promote what she believes in through her platform. Miss Pleasant Grove 2012, Alyson Johnson, helps to teach youth to increase self-esteem and self-acceptance. |
