Little Leyla: West Hempstead's Natural Beauty Queen

Little Leyla Kalmaz is not your typical beauty queen.

The 9-year-old West Hempstead girl has a tiara. It was placed on her head when she won the title of Miss Junior Pre-Teen New York in an American Beauty Pageant in April, but it's her smile and sweet personality that really make her sparkle.

Leyla, a third grader at George Washington Elementary School, had no prior pageant experience when she entered the April 17 contest with roughly 250 girls from Long Island and other parts of New York. Her division included girls ages 7 to 9. Still, that didn't scare her.

"All of our family and friends would always say to us that Leyla has a certain charisma, natural beauty, sweet personality and is very sociable," said her mother, Jackie, who added that her daughter loves to play soccer, cheer for the West Hempstead Broncos and play on the computer. (Don't worry, Mom always monitors her online activities.)

Jackie Kalmaz, like any mother, new pageants had a bad rep, but this particular one seemed to be more focused on finding well-rounded young girls, and not just judging them on their outward appearances.

She also stayed away from wigs, heavy make-up and other outlandish pageant tricks when prepping her daughter for the contest. (You won't be seeing her on any of those reality TV shows about crazed pageant moms.)

"I was not putting fake teeth in her mouth or extra [eye] lashes," she said. "She went in very natural."

For the casual wear portion of the pageant, Leyla even sported her Girl Scout uniform. Her formal wear was a simple but pretty blue dress, a pair of earrings and a neat up-do.

"It's all about the inner beauty of her personality," her mother added.

The judges were clearly impressed with Leyla, who was crowned the winner of her division, and will now represent New York in the national competition in Orlando, Florida this December. Hundreds of young contestants, four from each state will compete among others from their respective divisions before a panel of 10 judges.

There will be one-on-one interviews, formal and casual wear portions and the young ladies will have to answer questions on stage - some of which they can plan in advance for and others that will be a surprise if they make it to the later rounds.

"We advise Leyla repeatedly that losing a competition just means that the judges were looking for another quality of beauty and personality," Jackie says. "It's just the opinion of 10 judges."

She also reminds her daughter that inner beauty is far more important and she's happy to see that Leyla is not becoming a diva. In fact, she's noticed some positive changes.

"Leyla instantly took to the girls in her age group like she knew them for such a long time. She made sure everyone felt included," she said. "Leyla has that quality of making the other contestants comfortable and be themselves."

In addition to interacting with girls her age who share similar goals, Jackie said the pageant experience has also boosted her daughter's confidence and encouraged her to eat healthier and exercise more.

"She has a new and better outlook," she said. "I think this is a good thing. I want her to be strong."

To prep for the competition in December, Leyla is currently training with the John Robert Powers Acting and Modeling School in Westbury and trying to find sponsorships to help fund the costs of her wardrobe, travel and the various events she will need to attend throughout the week of the pageant.

Any individuals or businesses who wish to help can contact Jackie Kalmaz at ojkal102295@optonline.net or 516-924-6052. Checks should be made out to Cities of America but sent to the Kalmaz Family's address: 22 Oakland Avenue, West Hempstead, N.Y. 11552.