207
0
Peachtree City’s Sophia Wootten will compete for the Miss America title Sunday, and her former school is inviting the community to gather and cheer her on.
Trinity Christian School will host a free Miss America Watch Party September 6 for Wootten, the reigning Miss Georgia and a 2023 Trinity graduate.
Doors open at 6:30 p.m., with the live stream beginning at 7 p.m. in the Building 1 Student Center at Trinity Christian School, 8817 Highway 54 in Sharpsburg. The event is free and open to the public.
The Citizen reported on Sophia Wootten’s story a few weeks ago.
Although Wootten graduated from Trinity, her roots stretch across Peachtree City. Born in Atlanta, she moved to Peachtree City before her second birthday and attended Peeples and Braelinn elementary schools before enrolling at Trinity in sixth grade.
“We grew up on the golf cart trails,” Wootten told The Citizen in July. “I tell everybody, you drive to middle school on a golf cart, you see golf cart parking spots, and you don’t really see that anywhere else in Georgia. That’s what makes us special, and that’s what I love so much. I carry Peachtree City with me everywhere I go.”
Wootten won the Miss Georgia crown June 20 in Columbus, earning the opportunity to represent Georgia at Miss America. For her, the national stage also provides a platform for a story that began long before pageantry.
Born with a complex cleft lip and palate, Wootten underwent 20 surgeries during her first 20 years. Her condition affected her jaw, nose, ears, palate, hearing, and speech, and her parents were once told she might never be clearly understood when she spoke.
Instead, Wootten grew up singing and performing.
At Trinity, she served as Student Council president, spoke at graduation, and participated in musical theater. She also spent years studying voice in Peachtree City, an experience she has credited with helping both her speech and her confidence.
“My story spans 20 surgeries in 20 years,” Wootten told The Citizen. “That inspired my platform going into Miss Georgia.”
She is now studying Communication Sciences and Disorders at the University of Georgia and plans to pursue a Doctor of Audiology degree, with the goal of working with children facing challenges similar to those she experienced.
Her nonprofit, AccessAbility, focuses on disability advocacy and inclusion, particularly for people with hearing loss and craniofacial conditions. Wootten also recently became a Youth Advocate for Smile Train.
Wootten told The Citizen that becoming Miss Georgia has given her an opportunity she once could not have imagined.
“Because of this opportunity, I get to break barriers and make history,” she said. “I am the first Miss America contestant to walk that stage with a cleft lip and palate.”
On Sunday, the community that watched much of that story unfold will have a place to watch its next chapter together.
The Trinity Christian School Miss America Watch Party begins at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, September 6. The Miss America live stream begins at 7 p.m.
Leave a Comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.