The Power of Mentoring and Igniting Your Sparkle: Meet Cydney Bridges the Miss. Indiana That’s Sparking Change, Authenticity, and Love for Our Youth
By LaCrystele Brown
FWIS Contributing Writer
Cydney Bridges and her family moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana when she was just 2 years old. At the age of 6, her father decided to leave but that didn’t stop her mother from making sure her babies reached their full potential. She made sure that Bridges and her older siblings were involved in several youth organizations that involved dancing, singing, and sports. Bridges remembers having some astonishing mentors who made sure that she and her siblings knew that their circumstances in no way defined who they were, and who they could be; it didn’t matter what the world had to say, they were in control of their destinies.
At a youthful age, Bridges was aware of her potential and how boundless it was. At the age of 10 years old, Bridges was introduced to pageants. She entered the Miss. Huntertown Pageant on the north side of town, and she loved it. Bridges was the only black girl in the pageant that year which left her feeling a little out of place, and wondering why she didn’t see any faces that looked like her own, but this didn’t stop her from embracing the experience and having a great time. Bridges recalls wearing her dance costume for one of the phases and then going to Macy’s with her mother to find a beautiful dress.
The next year at 11, Bridges went on to compete in the Miss. Fort Wayne Preteen Pageant, this was the first Miss. America Pageant she would compete in. The following year, at 12, Bridges went on to compete in the Miss. Dublin Pageant. Miss. Dublin Preteen 2013 was the first title Bridges ever held, this was also a pageant in the Miss. America system. Bridges gained some incredible mentors here as well, and she had so many people to look up to, but her fear of competing in the teen division stopped her from continuing at that time.
Bridges went on to play volleyball, and she loved it, she had plans to play throughout college and to try and get a sports scholarship, but that vision came to an end during her junior year in high school when she was cut from the volleyball team. Less than 24 hours later, Bridges let her mother know that she would be doing another pageant. It had been 5 years since she had been in a pageant. By this time, Bridges was used to wearing sweats, she didn’t know how to do make up, and she didn’t know how-to walk-in heels. Luckily, she was able to research what she needed to do by watching YouTube videos and she was able to train by leaning on the village of people who she’d gained throughout life. Two of those people were, Miss. Pat White who would come to her house to help her with her talent, and Deandra who helped her with her walk. Bridges entire village was behind her and ready to push her to her full potential. Bridges went on to compete in a few pageants becoming Miss. USA National Indiana and Miss. Indianapolis Black Expo. Bridges mother drove her to Indianapolis every weekend for
12 weeks to participate in workshops that prepared her and the other young ladies for the
Miss. Indianapolis Black Expo Pageant. Bridges reflected on how her experience with
Indianapolis Black Expo was a huge help with not only that pageant but the pageants she would go on to compete in moving forward. Every weekend they would learn things such as how to walk, how to talk, proper manners, opening number dances, and interview prep. A few weeks after winning Miss. Indianapolis Black Expo Bridges flew out to Florida to compete for USA National Miss. Nationals, where she placed in the top 6. During this competition Bridges realized she didn’t have to have the most expensive dress, because hers was about $100 and had some loose strings, she didn’t have to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for professional hair and make-up, because she just had a friend there who curled her hair for her, and she didn’t have to spend much money on her interview outfit because she had just gone and got one from Dry Goods.
Bridges realized that she had placed in the top 6 without having any of the things the other young ladies had. This made her confident and happy that she could show the world that you don’t have to have the most expensive dress, and you don’t have to have the most expensive hair or know how to beat your face with make-up, all you have to do is be yourself, be comfortable in the skin you’re in, be passionate and speak from your heart, and you’ll be fine. Bridges went on to admit that she had initially been intimidated by the other girls, especially since she had won her title of Miss. USA National Indiana by default, because she was the only one who had come out to compete, but the intimidation Bridges felt had been washed away by the end of the pageant.
By the age of 18, she was ready to compete in the Miss. Fort Wayne pageant again. Her hopes were to compete with the teens as she was still a senior in high school, but due to being 18 she would have to compete in the adult division with ladies who were in college and some who had already graduated from college. That year she got first runner up and Jordan Axle was crowned Miss. Fort Wayne 2019. Lydia Suzan, who was the previous Miss. Fort Wayne and Miss. Indiana
2018 let Bridges know that she believed she had great potential and that she could one day be Miss. Indiana and she really wanted her to keep going. Bridges thought she was crazy and though she had done very well in the Miss. Fort Wayne 2019 Pageant and received great advice and love from Lydia, she was still a little nervous, and this caused her to decide not to compete locally for the rest of the year.
However on October 26, 2019, at the age of 19, Bridges was crowned Miss. Fort Wayne 2020.
Then, the Covid 19 pandemic hit, so there was no Miss. Indiana Pageant the following summer. Bridges held the Miss. Fort Wayne title for 2 years due to there not being a competition during the pandemic. In the summer of 2021, she passed her Miss. Fort Wayne crown to her successor Lindsey Brown. She then competed for Miss. Banks of the Wabash and won, which allowed her to go on and compete in the Miss. Indiana Pageant, where she was 3rd runner up. Bridges then went back to compete in the Miss. Fort Wayne Pageant last summer, and Lindsey Brown got to crown her Miss. Fort Wayne 2023.
The Miss. Fort Wayne 2023 title led Bridges back to the Miss. Indiana Pageant and this time around Bridges had the goal of winning, but she was also aiming to have a great time. Bridges wanted to win overall interview, and she did, but she also won the evening gown preliminary, and the title of Miss. Indiana.
Bridges explained that she is grateful for all the different experiences and circumstances in her life because they shaped her into the woman she is. She realizes that had she not experienced the national pageant where she learned she is able to succeed amongst those who seem to have more than she does, or hearing Miss. Indiana 2018 tell her she has potential to hold the crown, and holding Miss. Fort Wayne through Covid 19, she would not be the woman she is today, the woman who went on to become Miss. Indiana.
I asked Bridges about the responsibilities and duties that come with her title of Miss. Indiana, and she informed me that she has a number of service opportunities and of course she gets to go on to compete in the Miss. America Pageant. Bridges community service initiative or platform is the power of mentoring. This was inspired by her journey, as mentioned earlier, Bridges gives considerable recognition to those who mentored her and showed her that she can be more than her circumstances. She knows that without them and her mother she would not be who she is today. She has known since she was younger that she would probably want to be a mentor when she was older and that she wanted to give back and pour into others like so many people had done for her.
At the age of 19, Bridges got involved with The Brandon Foundation, a local foundation in Fort Wayne, and that is where she met her mentee. That is when she decided she wanted mentoring to be her community service initiative. During her time as Miss. Indiana Bridges plans to visit at least 24 youth organizations across the state and share her message. She created a program called, Ignite Your Sparkle, a 5-week workshop for girls ages 7-16, and every week she exposed the girls to the things that made them unique and special, the things that made them sparkle. As Miss. Indiana, Bridges plans to mobilize that program and share it at the different youth organizations that she visits. She would really like to show young children the power of mentoring and maybe even inspire people across the state to get involved in mentoring.
Bridges will be going to Miss. America orientation in August and to the Miss. America Pageant in January 2024. She expressed how it all still feels surreal and what made it even more special is that she won on the 5-year anniversary of previous Miss. Fort Wayne Lydia Suzan being crowned Miss. Indiana, and it’s even more special because Suzan is one of the local directors for Miss. Indiana this year. Suzan has been invested in Bridges not only as a friend but also as a director, and previous Miss. Indiana. She spoke about how it was important to her to wear her braids because Lydia inspired her by asking what she looks like on an everyday basis, to which she responded she usually wears her braids every day, this prompted Lydia to ask her why she would want to win as anything other than herself, since Bridges usually straightened or curled her hair for pageants. Moving forward, Bridges kept that advice close to her heart and decided that if she was going to win Miss. Indiana it was going to be in her braids. She not only wanted everyone to see her as the person they would see every day following the pageant, but she also wanted to be that inspiration for all the young black girls out there who look just like her, they need to know that they don’t have to change who they are to fit into pageantry. They are perfect just the way they are.
I asked Bridges about the most challenging part of her journey, and she informed me that it’s herself. She is confident in a lot of ways, but when it comes down to it, she’s always questioning how she’s going to wear her hair, or what she’s going to wear, and it’s just been a battle because she’s constantly asking herself what people would love rather than what she would love. However, in the end, Bridges brings herself back in because she knows she should never try to live up to what others want, and that she should always follow her heart, be authentic, and love and be who she wants to be. She realizes that in doing this she is inspiring other girls, and not only the black girls, but girls of all races as well who don’t always get to see someone different or who looks like them in pageantry. She is letting all those girls know that even though they don’t look like societies standards or have the same background for pageantry or any other field they may want to be in, they can still be themselves and dominate if they are authentic and genuine. Another challenge has been time management, Bridges has held all her titles while juggling nursing school, mentoring, and her personal life. She is now a nurse and plans to continue to juggle all these things that are equally important to her. She realizes that her life can’t be all work, she must balance it all to ensure she continues to live a happy and healthy life.
I then asked Bridges what the most fulfilling part of her journey has been, and she informed me that working with kids and watching them grow has been the most fulfilling. She shared that a few weeks ago she was asked how she would empower people moving forward to which she responded by explaining that empowering youth is not only her service initiative but it’s also a part of her life mission. She went on to say how grateful she is to be able to do that through this organization that not only allows her to grow professionally, and earn scholarship money, but also brings her amazing sisters and friends, while she gives back to the youth. Bridges expressed that regardless of the Miss. America outcome, and regardless of her placement, she knows that she is inspiring young kids along the way and that’s lasting. She just wants to know that when these 365 days of her title are over, she wants to have made a lasting impact and change, and that doesn’t come from being Miss. Indiana or Miss. America, but from changing hearts along the way and she plans to do that with the young people she meets throughout the year.
Bridges will attend the Miss. Fort Wayne and Miss. Northeast program which will be taking place at Dekalb High School on July 29th. They will have a princess program that will be available to young girls ages 8-12. The teen program is open to girls ages 13-17, and the adult program is open to ladies ages 18-26. Bridges will also be doing a little bit of her Ignite Your Sparkle workshop for the girls that attend.