Pink Hill’s first Beautiful Queen, ten-year-old Ella Grace White is working to help incarcerated women in two North Carolina prisons by collecting soap bars to include in hygiene Christmas Red Boxes that will be sent to them.

“The women in prison are separated from their mom, I wanted to make them happy. So I wanted to donate some soap in their Christmas box so they feel loved,” said Ella Grace.

Women in churches within the Women’s Missionary Union (WMU NC) provide the items. WMU NC is a nonprofit group of women throughout North Carolina who provides over 2,000 red boxes to the incarcerated women in the two state women’s prisons. The boxes which have to contain all the same 12 items, also include devotionals and books. These red boxes are the only gift many of the incarcerated women receive for Christmas.

“I realized we are still short of some items,” said Yvonne Deatherage, State Board Member of WMU NC. “I reached out to my Queens to see if any would be interested in conducting a soap drive donating bar soap (4-5oz). Several of our Queens as well as friends and family of the Queens have/are making the donations of the bar soap needed.”

Princess of Greater Pink Hill Ella Grace provided 150 bars being the first Queen to turn in soap, while Greater Pink Hill Little Miss Addison Herring, Greater Pink Hill Junior Miss Kendra Loftin, and Greater Pink Hill Ms. Alexi Casias have all agreed to collect or purchase donations of bar soap.

“I am grateful for this opportunity to teach Ella Grace about giving and serving others; especially those who are often overlooked,” said Ella Grace’s mother Marie White. “She has been genuinely interested in showing love to these women and it has been an incredible opportunity for us to show her how something so insignificant to us (like a bar of soap) could be used to show love and kindness to another person.”

Ella Grace would love to continue this type of work so that it isn’t just done at Christmas time but other holidays as well.

“I just want everyone to know that they are loved,” said Ella Grace.