Mother-daughter bonding time can be a special moment. Adding layers of community service to that time can make the occasion even more special.

Juli Lewis and her daughter Annie have been doing pageants together since April of this year, representing Carter County in every one.

This year, Lewis competed in the Ms. Spectacular America pageants alongside her daughter. After placing in the regional and state competitions, they took home the national crown in late September.

Annie is currently three years old, and Lewis said she has been performing well from the start.

“Annie has done pageants since 2016,” she said. “She won best personality out of 40 babies.”

After a while of entering Annie in competitions, Lewis said her friends in the programs talked about entering herself in competitions alongside Annie.

“I was not sure about doing it at my age,” she said. “I got into pageants to compete alongside my daughter.”

For the competition itself, each participant has a specific platform they compete on. For Ms. America Spectacular, these platforms are dedicated to specific charities and organizations.

For Lewis and her daughter, they competed on a platform they called “Crowns for a Cause in our Community,” and they spent time before the actual competition weekend serving others.

“We helped food banks. I played my banjo for cancer patients. We donated to the Salvation Army and helped with the Relay for Life,” she said.

She has been collecting donations from families around the community to give to charitable organizations, and even though the competition is over, Lewis she plans to continue serving the community as part of her platform.

“These are more than just pageants,” Lewis said. “I can serve the community, I can meet friends and have fun while doing those things.”

The competition itself was a weekend-long event. Both adult and child had to don a variety of outfits for judging. Categories the judges critiqued contestants on included personality, poise and overall presentation.

“The judges liked my personality,” Lewis said. “They could tell I was having a good time.”

Lewis she plans to enter more pageants in the future, including Miss Christmas Spectacular on December 8.

“It is an honor to represent Carter County with my state and national titles,” she said.

Lewis and her daughter will appear in the Carter County Christmas Parade on Saturday, Dec. 1.