Growing up with the words “Miss America” stamped on the back of her dance jacket, Liz Cochran was chasing a dream — a dream that began fostering itself in reality June 6 when the 20-year-old was named Miss Alabama 2009.
A member of First Baptist Church, Pelham, Cochran said winning the title gives her a great opportunity to demonstrate her faith in all things and set an example.
“Everyone needs someone to look up to, someone who leads by example,” she said. “I was fortunate to have good role models … to help guide me in the right way, and if they can be good role models for me, I can be for somebody else.”
And Cochran will do a great job of that, said Mike Shaw, pastor of First, Pelham.
“Liz is just a caring person,” he said. “Her beauty is not just external; it’s internal. She cares about everyone. She has gone on missions trips and worked block parties to help share her faith and to show people that somebody cares about them.”
A junior dance major focusing on pre-medicine through her biology and psychology double minor at Birmingham-Southern College, Cochran said she is honored to promote her personal platform With Every Beat, which encourages the prevention of cardiovascular disease.
Cochran’s passion to teach children about developing and maintaining a healthy cardiovascular system has led her to volunteer with the American Heart Association, speak in elementary schools, write a book — “The Quest for a Healthy Heart” — and raise $8,000 over the past three years for cardiovascular disease prevention.
The women of First, Pelham, have committed to praying for Cochran every day of the next year, as she seeks to impact the state of Alabama in the same way she already “has made a tremendous impact” on her church and community, Shaw added.
“It’s a cohesive force that we can all encourage her and pray for her and lift her up,” he said. “She will have a lot of opportunities as Miss Alabama … and we want her to know we love her and are praying for her during this time.”
Along with a crown and $10,000 cash scholarship, Cochran, who competed as Miss Hoover, earned a spot in the 2010 Miss America Pageant.
During the Miss Alabama Pageant, the University of Mobile’s Miss UM Pageant was also named the 2009 Outstanding Small School Preliminary.
For more information about Cochran’s platform, visit www.webprevention.org. (TAB)
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