Brooklyn gets pageant-ready

First Mallory Hagan, now Delaney Druckman! Brooklyn is leading the way in producing poised, eloquent, beautiful pageant contestants!

This newspaper caught up with eight-year-old Druckman and her mother, Darlene Faraino, as they shopped for shoes at the mall and tried out new looks at Sephora for the Miss Jr. Pre-Teen New York City Pageant on April 14 at Bishop Ford High School at 3 p.m.

“This is her first pageant,” said Faraino. “We are so excited!”

Druckman is a born and bred Ridgeite who went to kindergarten at P.S. 264 before the family moved two years ago to Manhattan Beach. Her daughter still plays soccer at St. Patrick’s, said Faraino, who said that, despite the move, the family’s home is still right here.

The girls in the pageant will perform modeling routines, including casual and formal wear. However, the competitors are judged primarily on their personality and interviewing skills by the New York City judging panel.

Faraino believes it is her daughter’s personality that will help her the most in the competition.

“Her personality is definitely her strength,” Faraino said. “That’s what is going to make her score more than her beauty. There are some very beautiful girls out there, but she has a lot of confidence.”

As for Druckman, who is having fun just preparing her costumes, there is less to be nervous about than there is to be excited about.

“I love making new friends!” she said. “But the main reason I’m doing this is because I really want to be Miss America one day. I know I could be a representative for our country and it makes me so happy!”

Hagan, the current Miss America, is also a Brooklynite, so Druckman would be in good company.

Like her mother, Druckman is counting on her personality and communication skills to help her. To secure her place in the pageant, she had to go through a preliminary interview, which she enjoyed.

“I was really nervous because I knew I could get rejected, and I wanted it so bad!” she confided.

“But on the other hand, I was so excited because I’ve never done an interview before. I love people asking me questions and talking to new people. Even the judge was nice.”

Despite her tender years, Druckman already has an extensive vocabulary and a desire to speak to people.

“People ask me all the time if she’s really as young as she says,” stated Faraino. “We’re so lucky that she’s so smart and friendly.

“She will do very well,” the proud mom predicted.

Should Druckman win the title, she would represent the New York metropolitan area at the national competition in Orlando Florida. The pageant is open to the public (admission is $20 at the door), and Faraino said, “Anyone who knows Delaney is welcome to come and cheer her on.”

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