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She found that as she was undergoing yet another knee surgery, she began to feel anxious and depressed and needed to seek out help. The setbacks from her knee injuries, however, did take a toll on Akers. She cannot always dance like she used to due to the continued struggles with her knee, but she makes sure to keep dancing as an important part of her life.Ĭurrently, she does this by teaching dance at Nikki K’s in Mt. She has danced since she was three years old. While volleyball has been an important part of her life, Akers says her favorite way to be physically active is through dance. With the support of her mom and dad, Angel and Bill, and her coach, Akers learned a new position at the back of the court, and continued playing the game she loves. She underwent surgery and was uncertain what her future athletic career would look like.Īgainst the odds, however, Akers continued to play volleyball, and even played at the collegiate level.ĭuring her time as a freshman player with Southeast Community College, however, she sustained another knee injury and had to have yet another surgery. Her junior year of high school Akers sustained a knee injury as she cheered for the Mediapolis Bulldogs.
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“ANTSO has really helped me to do that.”Īkers loves being active, but she has encountered a number of obstacles in her athletic career. “Until about a year ago, it took me a long time to come to terms with who I am as a person,” she said. With the platform “Be Healthy, Be Fit, Be YOUtiful,” it was a no-brainer for her to step into this new pageant circuit where she felt she could be more genuinely herself.
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“It was just a huge blessing that I follow him on Facebook, because that is where I found out about how to submit an application and portfolio to be considered to walk in his show,” she said. In fact, she was able to walk in New York Fashion Week for Marc Defang simply because she followed him on Facebook because he designs her favorite pageant shoes. Through her connections n the pageant world, Akers has had many once-in-a-life-time opportunities. “ANTSO really pushes us to be the best person we can be inside and out through the classroom and community service.” “They look more toward who you are as a person and focus less on the public speaking skills,” Akers said. She participated in the Miss Iowa system for a number of years and even earned herself the title of Junior Miss Iowa in 2012, but after participating in the full-fledge Miss Iowa pageant, Akers was approached by an ANTSO representative about participating in their pageant circuit. PLEASANT - Kilie Akers, an Iowa Wesleyan graduate student, currently reigns as America’s National Teenager Scholarship Organization’s (ANTSO) National Miss for 2022. Even while enjoying things like the Tulip Festival in Pella with her boyfriends, Akers has grown accustomed to wearing her knee brace.