Addison Lucas, the 2026 Miss Greater Columbus Teen, said she appreciates how her new title will help amplify the community service she performs in the Ohio Valley.

BETHESDA — For Addison Lucas, her new title of Miss Greater Columbus Teen affords her some important benefits. She has always been interested in community service, participating in several avenues throughout the Ohio Valley. Her new crown, she said, could amplify her voice and help her reach even more people.

And for the Disney princess fan in her, the crown and the luxurious gown are a blast to wear.

“When the opportunity presented itself, the little girl in me was like, ‘Oh, this could be cool,'” she said. “And then I also could go on and do some really amazing work with it.”

While many girls are mere toddlers when they don their first tiaras, Lucas, a senior at The Linsly School, entered pageant competitions relatively late, starting at age 15. The Bethesda, Ohio, native started at smaller festivals like the Barnesville Pumpkin Festival before this year entering the Miss America Pageant system.

While she was competing against more veteran girls, Lucas said she wasn’t deterred.

“I knew I was going to have to work a lot harder, but that didn’t really scare me,” she said. “I’ve been swimming since I was 8, and I’m just kind of used to digging my heels in at this point.

For me, it was a fun challenge to try to not necessarily win, but just keep up at first,” she continued. “And then, eventually, the work pays off, and it was really amazing and a lot of fun to see that happen.”

Lucas’ talent is singing — she performed “Shy” from the musical “Once Upon a Mattress” at the Miss Greater Columbus Teen competition — but what she really was excited for was the interview portion of the event. That’s why she chose the Miss America system, because the interview portion was the heaviest weighted in the competition.

“I love it,” she said. “I love speaking on stage. It’s one of my favorite parts of competing, so it was a natural pull for me to do that.”

Winning the crown was a surreal moment, she said. When she heard her name called as new Miss Greater Columbus Teen, she said she “ugly cried like I never ugly cried before.” She felt extremely proud that, while she had been in pageants for a relatively short time, she was able to accomplish something so significant.

“I’ve been dreaming about a moment like that since I was little,” she said. “Watching Miss America and watching Miss Ohio for the last few years, just feeling like I belonged in that sisterhood, I feel like I really earned a place that was so special.”

Lucas isn’t about to waste her new platform. She’ll continue her work in raising awareness for endometriosis, a chronic disease in women that can cause chronic pain in the pelvis, nausea and severe bloating. Lucas was diagnosed with the disease in high school, and said she felt alone, as she didn’t know anyone else her age who had it. Now, she wants to reach out to others, especially young women, to let them know they aren’t alone in their journey.

There are other causes, too. She’s working with the Central Ohio chapter of the American Heart Association to raise awareness for heart disease and prevention, and hopes she can broaden the scope of her message by working with other local chapters. She’ll also continue working with the Arc of Ohio – a grassroots organization which advocates for human rights, personal dignity and community participation of individuals with developmental disabilities. Lucas’ mother Carrie was a Special Education teacher for 18 years, and Lucas has been helping with the Arc of Ohio for a while because of it. She recently collected prom gowns around the Ohio Valley for girls and women to wear for the local “Night To Shine” event.

Lucas’ pageant journey is far from over. She’ll compete in the Miss Ohio Teen pageant and hopes to advance to the Miss America Teen competition. This most recent win has only steeled her resolve to continue in the pageant world – with a goal of one day competing for Miss America.

“It gives me more confidence to continue going out and making a change,” Lucas said. “I feel like I never wanted to just do one thing. I never wanted to just be a swimmer or a singer. I wanted to be able to do it all and be fully myself. I feel like the Miss America organization has given me the space to do that, to represent the causes that I want to represent fully and to continue to be who I am and to be myself.”