The ambitious and energetic Amber Norton has been diligently splitting her time between helping organize an upcoming Winter Wonderland dance in western Nebraska, attending existing Miss Amazing organization events, and undergoing treatment for breast cancer. A passionate athlete, she excels in track, basketball, volleyball, and especially swimming. As brave as she is bold, the beautiful brunette doesn’t let things outside of her control determine how she spends her days, and instead chooses to spend them empowering other girls and women.
“My wife signed Amber up for her first Miss Amazing event in 2015,” John Norton recalled of his then-teenaged daughter. “She was just a shy girl who didn’t really want to engage much. Her disability really kept her kind of introverted; she didn’t want to be the center of attention at all.”
Amber has Moyamoya disease, a rare condition in which blood flow to the brain is reduced and causes complications that lead to cognitive, physical, and developmental delays.
“She calls it her ‘different ability’, not her disability,” her father clarified. “She is very passionate about making sure that people know she can do anything anyone else can do, and she can probably do it better—she just has to do it a little differently.”
John credits Amber’s experiences with the nonprofit Miss Amazing organization for not only helping her develop socially, but also for teaching her to be a loud and proud advocate for other women.
“Miss Amazing isn’t a beauty pageant where you have 49 losers and one girl who is named ‘the best’ at wearing a swimsuit,” John said. “There’s no cattiness and no real competition.”
Miss Amazing isn’t about beating an opponent, but about each girl developing important life skills.
“Amber won (in her age group) her first year, and she was crowned 2016 Junior Teen,” John continued. “She went to nationals to represent there, and I got to watch her and all of the other contestants just loudly cheering one another on. I made a joke that my fishing buddy became a girl that day. It is a joke, but something did shift. She came out of her shell, and she took us with her.”
Amy Stoddard, National Director of Chapter Relations and Development for the Miss Amazing organization, remembers her first encounter with John.
“My first year with the organization, after an event, one of the dads came up to me with a list of demands. Events like the Amplify Event (what some people refer to as the ‘pageant’) tend to be very mother/daughter focused. He wanted a way for the dads, uncles, and brothers to get involved,” Stoddard explained. “He was very passionate about supporting his daughter, and so the Fairy Tale Ball was added to the calendar.”
The ball carries the spirit of a father/daughter dance, but with an eye toward inclusivity to those with differing family dynamics. Each girl invites a “prince” of her choosing, a dad, stepdad, grandfather, godfather, or any strong male influence they want to include in the enchanting event.
Stoddard took suggestions from the girls and parents who had participated in past events to grow the organization and what it had to offer.
“Really (the parents’) only complaint was that there weren’t enough opportunities for the girls to get together. The events are fun, but each one is helping them build their confidence, develop communities and organization skills, opportunities that those with developmental disabilities are often just not getting enough exposure to,” Stoddard said. “But these skills are necessary to everyone—to work, to become a voice that people hear and respect, to lead a full life. They deserve every opportunity, and we are working really hard to create a platform and an environment where they are given an expectation and a goal, and they are exceeding them, taking those skills into their futures, and doing it together.”
The girls find their own voices and their own platforms, and while they’re given abundant support and resources to accomplish their goals through the Miss Amazing organization, it is ultimately up to each girl to drive her own success.
“They have to find something they are able to sustain, and bring it to the national stage and continue to represent themselves for the entire year that they are crowned,” Stoddard said. “A national queen from last year made a goal to become an engaged public speaker. She had seen it as a weakness; she didn’t enjoy public speaking and chose to strengthen that skill during her reign. She successfully used that skill to get others involved and excited about the organization. Another one of our young ladies wanted to showcase her cooking. She set up at craft fairs doing demonstrations, and even launched a YouTube cooking show. We give them a platform, but it’s up to them to utilize it.”
The Miss Amazing organization only works because participants and volunteers are so motivated to provide opportunities for the young women they serve. Anyone can become involved by volunteering for the upcoming Fairytale Ball, attending events, or supporting the funding efforts. Downloading the free NebraskaMissAmazing app is an easy way to follow the organization.
To learn more, visit missamazing.org/chapters/NE.
This article originally appeared in the January/February 2025 issue of Omaha Magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.
