At 13, Emily is our youngest semi-finalist. This tiny, spunky girl is in dance class studying everything from cheer funk to ballet 6 hours a week and also plays soccer. Her dream is to go to college at F.I.T. in New York and study the art of fashion designing and then one day become a famous fashion designer. When not at school, in dance class or playing soccer, she volunteers with the 9 week Challenger Program playing sports with children who have disabilities. She shops at her local Rite Aid for her beauty products with the money she earns doing chores around the house.

When Emily entered she wrote…

Hi! My name is Emily, and I am thirteen years old. Ever since I could remember I have been interested in being involved with fashion. The only career I have ever thought about pursuing is in fashion designing. I think I should be chosen as the 2013 Glam Camp model because this opportunity will allow me to begin my dream and show girls my age that you can start your life at a young age. Taking a trip to New York would be a great learning experience in the world of designing. It would be an amazing opportunity to finally experience working with what I have been longing to do. It started when I was in kindergarten, and only four years old. I was at the beach sitting in the hot sand, looking up at my mother reading Allure. The young women in the pictures made me want to be exactly like them. I wanted people to look at me and feel the same way I felt when looking at the models on the pages. I was very young when I was first inspired, so my doodles weren’t very good, but I didn’t stop. I went to school a few days a week, and the days I wasn’t in school; I was dropped at my grandparent’s house. My grandfather and I were very close, and I would sit on his lap and tell him about my plan for my life. He knew so much about things he never experienced, and he would tell me all about fashion schools. My plan for high school is to be involved with the fashion program at Freehold, NJ high school. College is a long way from now, but I already know where my mind is set. I am applying to The Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City to try to pursue my dream further. My grandfather always said how he couldn’t wait to see me succeed my goals. In 2008 my grandfather passed away, I was nine years old. I was absolutely crushed, and so disappointed that he wouldn’t be around to see how successful I would turn out to be. I realized he would still be able to see me succeed because he would be watching over me as long as I lived. As I grew older, I read fashion magazines on my own, and I learned so much more then I already knew. I am now knowledgeable about fashion designing and will stop at nothing to pursue my dreams. Through this experience I hope to reach out to young ladies to always follow their dreams, and never give up even if the road gets bumpy.