JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2014 One Jacksonville native is shining bright after her most recent statewide success.<\/p>\n
Action News Jax anchor Chandler Morgan sat down with Miss Florida, Paris Richardson, about what it means to hold the title and represent her community.<\/p>\n
Before the crown, there was persistence.<\/p>\n
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<<\/a><\/p>\n Jacksonville native Paris Richardson didn\u2019t just wake up Miss Florida. She worked her way there, one setback at a time.<\/p>\n Richardson grew up on Jacksonville\u2019s Northside, learning early that success doesn\u2019t always come quickly, but it does come with grit.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been a lot of ups and downs, more downs than ups,\u201d Richardson said.<\/p>\n She first entered pageants as a teen.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t do as well as I thought I would,\u201d Richardson said.<\/p>\n But she kept showing up. In high school, she won Miss John Ribault Senior High and reigned for a year.<\/p>\n \u201cI won Miss John Ribault Senior High. I reigned for the year. It was a magical year for me to be able to, again, live out that dream of mine,\u201d Richardson said.<\/p>\n Richardson went on to earn both a bachelor\u2019s and a master\u2019s degree at the University of Florida, all while cheerleading in college.<\/p>\n She kept at her dream, balancing multiple Miss Florida competitions, refining her talent, sharpening her focus, and building resilience along the way.<\/p>\n [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks<\/a>]<\/p>\n \u201cThinking back, there was times when I didn\u2019t want to keep coming back,\u201d Richardson said.<\/p>\n That perseverance paid off this past year.<\/p>\n \u201cFor the Miss Florida competition, this year I felt like I\u2019d done everything that I could do to show them that I really worked really hard to put myself out there and show them the best talent I had,\u201d Richardson said.<\/p>\n Richardson won the Miss Florida title<\/a> while completing her master\u2019s degree and starting a career in medical sales.<\/p>\n Her work, from advocacy to authorship, reflects a deeper purpose beyond the pageant stage.<\/p>\n \u201cThinking about the little girls who would come up to me and tell me, \u2018Hey, you look like me. You\u2019re competing in Miss Florida. You\u2019re doing so well,\u201d Richardson said. \u201cWe only have one other Miss Florida who happens to be African American, Ericka Dunlap, who also won Miss America. And I know how much she meant to me and so many other of my peers who competed. So that really pushed me to want to continue to come back and to be that influence on other young Black women as well.\u201d<\/p>\n Now back home in Northeast Florida, she balances her professional life with a mission rooted in service.<\/p>\n \u201cGrowing up in Jacksonville, I saw a lot of health inequities in my community,\u201d Richardson said.<\/p>\n She works to address health inequities and food insecurity in the same community that raised her.<\/p>\n And at just 24, Paris Richardson is still defining what\u2019s next.<\/p>\n But one thing is clear: Her success isn\u2019t about a title.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m going to continue to stay impactful in my community,\u201d Richardson said.<\/p>\n [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter<\/a>] <\/p>\n Click here<\/a> to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here<\/a> to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here<\/a> to stream Action News Jax live.<\/p>\n Action News Jax Top Stories<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2014 One Jacksonville native is shining bright after her most recent statewide success. 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