Newly-crowned Miss America Emma Broyles says she’s “living the American dream.” She’s the first-ever Miss Alaska to triumph at the pageant — and she’s a Biomedical sciences major working hard to reach her goals.
When asked by Fox News why she’s “proud to be an American,” Broyles, 20, spoke about her work ethic, heritage, and the choice her family made to come to America.
“One of the proudest things for me is the fact that I’m half Korean, I’m a quarter German and a quarter Irish,” she said. “My grandparents came to America about 50 years ago right before my mom was born. They wanted my mom to have every opportunity possible to be successful.”
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Despite having a good life in Korea, her grandparents wanted their kids to have even more success and knew “they would need to grow up in America.”
Broyles, who is believed to be the first Korean to win the Miss America title, looked back at that decision and at her current opportunity and offered some insightful words.
“I am a hardworking girl working two jobs, going to school, being Miss America, promoting my social impact initiative and volunteering with the Special Olympics,” she told Fox. “I’m ambitious and I have dreams. I am living the American dream.”
Broyles spoke about her passion for the Special Olympics. She revealed that her older brother has Down syndrome, and explained that her mother was already a Special Olympics coach and a volunteer special education teacher when the family discovered her brother’s diagnosis.
“I’m glad that she was prepared to take on that challenge of having a child with an intellectual disability,” she said. “I think for other parents who don’t have that experience, hearing that they have a child with an intellectual disability is tough.”
Broyles continued, “A lot of people don’t realize they can be productive members of society. They go to college, have jobs, get married – they can do all the things we can.”
Listen to her discuss special needs and her brother:
Even hours after her win, Broyles was still in disbelief, telling the Associated Press she “never could have imagined in a million years” she would be Miss Alaska let alone Miss America.
Broyles is studying in hopes of becoming a dermatologist.
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