FRANKLIN
The first Little Miss Franklin/Southampton Relay for Life Pageant, which was held Saturday, in Franklin High School, raised $3,200 for a Franklin teen’s new Relay For Life Team — The Dream Chasers — from ticket sales and the personal fundraising efforts of 19 contestants ranging in age from three to 16. The funds will ultimately benefit the American Cancer Society.

The Relay pageant, the first of its kind in the Franklin/Southampton area, featured five divisions: mini miss for children ages 3-4; little miss for ages 5-7; junior miss for ages 8-10; pre-teen miss for ages 11-13; and teen miss for ages 14-16.

Haleigh Andrew was crowned Teen Miss Franklin/Southampton, with the pre-teen miss crown going to Taylor-Ann Buchanan, the junior miss crown going to Carlee Babb, the little miss crown going to Paisley Benson, and the mini miss crown going to Breelyn Hewett.

Andrew is the daughter of James and Raquel Jones of Courtland. Buchanan is the daughter of Quinton and Michelle Buchanan. Babb is the daughter of T.J. and Nikki Babb of Sedley and Todd and Christy Miller of Courtland. Benson is the daughter of Kevin and Michele Benson of Franklin, and Hewett is the daughter of Scott and Brandy Hewett of Ivor.

The one other contestant for teen miss was Claire Watson, daughter of Royal and Stephanie Watson of Severn, North Carolina.

Other contestants for pre-teen miss included Avery Bowen, daughter of Mallory Edwards of Ivor; Madison Belch, daughter of Angela Belch of Ivor; Madison Lowe, daughter of Jeremy Lowe and Jackie Hines of Windsor; Savannah Buchanan, sister to Taylor-Ann Buchanan; Rachel Blythe, daughter of Dwayne and Kim Blythe of Courtland.

Other contestants for junior miss included Jade Dawson, daughter of Joe and Holly Dawson of Courtland; Keira Doss, daughter of Joey and Shannon Beltrami of Franklin; and Jordyn Robertson, daughter of Karl and Robyn Robertson of Franklin.

Other contestants for little miss included Caroline Priddy, daughter of Jonathan and Samantha Priddy of Franklin; and Gracie Parker, daughter of David and Ashley Parker of Ivor.

Other contestants for mini miss included Peighton Hacker, daughter of Amanda Hacker of Courtland; Gabrielle Bedia, daughter of Jesse and Ann Bedia of Virginia Beach; and Chloe Snow, daughter of Brian Snow and Dawn Edwards of Courtland.

The winner of the pageant’s shooting star award, intended for the contestant who raised the most money, was Jordyn Robertson for raising over $400. The winner of the community service award, intended for the contestant who submitted a paragraph regarding why they should make a difference in the community, was Rachel Blythe.

The Relay For Life sweetheart queen award, intended for a girl who had never won a queen title in a pageant and had the highest overall score sans the queen title, went to Peighton Hacker.

The Relay pageant was the idea of mother-daughter team Kasey and Madelyn Cosby, who co-directed the event. Thirteen-year-old Madelyn decided she wanted to start her own Relay For Life team – The Dream Chasers – in memory of her close friend, Nikki Outlaw, who lost her battle with cancer in January 2016.

“[The contestants] did a phenomenal job showcasing their personality, formal wear and representing those loved ones who were still fighting their personal battle with cancer as well as those who had lost the battle,” said Kasey Cosby. “A big thank you goes out to all who helped judge, backstage and just overall supported our team’s vision of making this pageant possible. We would like to thank Franklin High School for allowing us to host our event there and for all those that came out.”