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Who's Modesto's Spirit Princess? See who won new pageant for girls

By Pat Clark
Pictured are Smith (center front) and Reyes (right front) surrounded by visiting regional royalty and Richard O’Brien, board president of the Society for Disabilities (back right).
Pictured are Smith (center front) and Reyes (right front) surrounded by visiting regional royalty and Richard O’Brien, board president of the Society for Disabilities (back right). Carolyn Teixeira Gomes

There’s a new princess in town and her name is Hayven Smith.

The 9-year-old was crowned Miss Stanislaus Spirit Princess at a pageant on Saturday for girls with disabilities ages 5-12. Juliana Reyes, 8, was awarded the Best Friend Award in the pageant, which had 11 participants.

The Modesto 500 Lions Club partnered with the Society for Disabilities to give the girls the opportunity “to have a magical experience,” according to a press release from the 70-year-old Stanislaus County nonprofit advocacy group. Organizers hope to make the pageant an annual event with a goal to add a second group of girls ages 13 to 22 to the program.

This story was originally published September 16, 2017 at 5:39 PM with the headline "Who's Modesto's Spirit Princess? See who won new pageant for girls."

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