Festival Queens Pageant

I am Kate Mantell, your 2024 Miss South Webster. I am the daughter of Jason and Lindsay Mantell. I have two siblings, Braden Mantell (16) and Mia Mantell (13). My family is a huge part of my life and we do everything together! We are very involved in our community with sports and events. I am so proud to represent the South Webster community and hope to make them very proud!!

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Some of the sports that I am involved in are cross-country and cheer.  I am also involved in our school musical, Select Sound, DFCA, art show and Hooey Hounds. Being involved with various activities in my school is a huge part of me and who I am. 

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The platform I choose is “Different, Not Less.” It is about empowering adolescents with disabilities. I chose this platform because I have been surrounded by people with disabilities since birth. This includes family members and classmates. My aunt, is a speech language pathologist. She works with these children everyday and has taught me how important catering to each individual child's needs are. The easiest way to make sure these kids get the resources and help they need is by early intervention. The purpose of early childhood intervention is to face these childrens struggles head on. By doing this it could promote positive social and emotional skills, improve language and communication, and so much more. Today, the main reason why parents don’t put their children in early intervention is because they are afraid of a diagnosis. No one should be afraid of a diagnosis and a child should not only be seen as their diagnosis. These programs are put in place to help them grow as individuals. My overall goal is to make every single person I come in contact with that is affected by a disability to go home feeling stronger, confident, and most importantly happier.