The next contestant to be featured as part of our series, "The Road to Miss Arkansas" is Kyla Soden. Continue reading to learn more about Kyla, her journey to the crown and much more!

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Please share with our readers your  platform along with a brief description of what it is.

My platform is “Mentoring to Make a Difference.” This is a program designed to share the importance of pouring into someone’s life and essentially match mentors with people who need to be mentored. It is so dear to my heart because I have seen first hand on many occasions the true power of being a mentor.

How long have you competed in pageants? How do you think you’ve personally grown with all your prior pageant experience?

I have competed since I was a junior in high school. I competed my first and final year in Miss Arkansas’ Outstanding Teen at 16 years old and absolutely fell in love with the organization.

 

In regards to your platform, why did you choose to go with this particular one?

I actually have been mentoring since the second grade although I may have been unsure what it was at that time. I was involved in a “Kids as Teachers” program where we were able to work with special needs kids in their classroom and participate in things like Special Olympics. As I got older, my family took in two precious kids that were from very broken homes without a parental figure and I got to watch them grow, mature, and improve leaps and bounds which was a very tangible way to see just how important mentoring was. Throughout high school and now in college, I am involved in multiple mentoring clubs including Big Brothers Big Sisters and the Boys and Girls Club. I have always loved mentoring and done it in some capacity, so it just seemed natural to further that through my platform.

 

How has working alongside your platform made you into a stronger person?

Being a mentor has allowed me to grow more than I could have ever imagined when I started. It pushes me out of my comfort zone, challenges me, and teaches me. Seeing the impact my mentors have had in my life has been a huge encouragement for me to be the same for someone else. I want to make a difference just like they have.

 

What have you learned from your current Miss Arkansas Savannah Skidmore as well as our Miss America Savvy Shields, which you hope to carry with you if you were to win the title of  Miss Arkansas?

I hope to carry their encouraging spirit with me if I were to win the title of Miss Arkansas. Every single time I talk to one of them, they have a way of making me feel special. I want to have the same effect on people.

As a titleholder, what is one of the single-most important messages, which you think you convey to your followers?

I want to convey a message that has been my heartbeat throughout my time competing. It is all about how you can serve your neighbor. Wearing this crown may get me in the door, but it is how I make people feel and how I place others before myself while I am in there that truly matters.

 

If you were to win the title of Miss Arkansas, what is the one thing which you would strive the hardest to accomplish?

I want to partner with Home Depot and put a “Buddy Bench” in every single school in the state of Arkansas. I am working to implement that now, however, as Miss Arkansas that goal would be even more realistic.  A “Buddy Bench” is  a bench that goes on the playground that is designed to promote kindness and being a friend/mentor. A child goes and sits there when they need a friend and someone comes to greet them there and invite them to play. I have had the opportunity to watch how effective this is and support it wholeheartedly.

 

Imagine you’re competing for Miss America, and your roommate has never visited Arkansas; how would you describe your state to your roommate?

I would tell her how BEAUTIFUL it is. Arkansas is the Natural State and although that could be seen as cliche, it is the truth. My family and I love going hiking at Pinnacle mountain, going to the lake in the summer, and staying in the Ozark Mountains in the winter.

 

If you could place three items in a time capsule, which represent the women of today, what would they be and why?

-I would place a super woman cape because every woman truly exemplifies a superhero

-A butterfly because over time a woman who starts as a caterpillar blossoms through this organization into a butterfly by determination and strength

-An  iPhone because sadly…we all know we are addicted and I know for me, I need the maps app to get ANYWHERE

 

Because of media, many people tend to look at pageant with a very scrutinizing opinion; For you. personally, what have been some of the biggest benefits of being a part of the Miss America Organization. And how would you share the positive nature of pageants with others who may not be familiar?

I would tell anyone who has that negative opinion of a pageant girl to go out and meet one. I would encourage them to truly take the time to get to know a girl that is part of the Miss America Organization and I know they would see an exceptional, confident, service-oriented young woman who is competing for scholarship money to further her education. The most incredible women I know are those I have met through this organization and they exemplify every single thing it stands for. I have been humbled, encouraged, and grown tremendously by being a part of the beautiful thing we call Miss Arkansas.

 

The name of this magazine is Bravura.  “Bravura” is an artistic word for exceptional; in your opinion, what makes you “bravura”?

I would hope that I would be “bravura” in the sense of service as I mentioned before. I would love to be recognized as someone who truly placed others before herself, and remembered the importance of making a difference in OTHERS lives, even when there will be no personal gain.

 

Where can fans follow you on social media?

INSTA @kylasoden

TWITTER @kylasoden

FACEBOOK Kyla Brianne Soden

 

What advice do you have for those who want to take part in pageants?

DO IT. Without a doubt, go out on a limb, and try it. You never know if you don’t try. This organization has refined me in a million ways and I would recommend it to absolutely any girl who is interested. This scholarship organization is so much more than a pretty face, it takes a pretty heart.

 

What words of thanks do you have for those who have helped to bring you to where you are today  – a member of the Miss Arkansas Class of 2017?

Thank you just seems inadequate. Every single human I have encountered has helped me grow, learn, and become the very best version of Kyla that I can be and I am just so grateful.

 

What final words, if any, do you have for the readers of Bravura Magazine?

This has been so much fun! I hope you guys enjoy reading it and seeing beyond the surface of some incredible girls. Thank you Bravura!! I am so grateful.