An 18-year-old beauty pageant queen tragically died in a horror car crash on a Florida highway.
Kadance Fredericksen, a former winner of Miss Okaloosa County Teen USA from Baker, Florida, was named on Tuesday as the victim in a horrific crash the day before.
The beauty queen was driving down Highway 4 near when her sedan collided head-on with a tractor trailer driven by a 56-year-old man, Florida Highway Patrol said.
Authorities are still investigating the cause of the crash, and police have made no arrests regarding Fredericksen’s death.
Fredericksen previously made headlines in 2017 when she created ‘Kada’s Promise’, a charity initiative that provided teddy bears and blankets to children in foster care, homeless and abuse shelters, and hospitals.
She told WEAR News in 2019 that she was inspired to help others because she experienced homelessness and abuse as a child, until she was taken in by her father and adoptive mother.
On her Kada’s Promise website, she wrote: ‘During many dark times in my early childhood, the only thing that I could call my own or that made me feel safe was a single teddy bear that I received as a gift.
‘I carried him with me from house to house, couch to couch and clutched him tightly in the scariest times. It is from these memories that Kada’s Promise was born.’
Kadance Fredericksen, 18, a former winner of Miss Okaloosa County Teen USA from Baker, Florida, was named as the victim in a horrific crash in Baker, Florida on Monday
The 18-year-old previously made headlines in 2017 when she created ‘Kada’s Promise’, a charity initiative that provided teddy bears and blankets to children in foster care, homeless and abuse shelters, and hospitals
A former winner of Miss Okaloosa County Teen USA, Fredericksen competed in beauty pageants at numerous levels, including being named Little Miss Northwest Florida in 2017
Fredericksen was a senior at Baker School, and following the announcement of her passing the school paid tribute to the talented teenager.
‘Please keep the family, the town, and the school in your thoughts as they will all miss and grieve this young lady. Counselors, mental health and school psychologist are available today at Baker School for students,’ the school said in a statement.
A former winner of Miss Okaloosa County Teen USA, Fredericksen competed in beauty pageants at numerous levels, including being named Little Miss Northwest Florida in 2017.
She also competed in the Miss Teen Florida competition last year.
Just one week before her death, Fredericksen took to Instagram to celebrate being awarded a scholarship to help her go to college.
‘This generous support will help shape my future and bring me one step closer to achieving my dreams,’ she wrote in her final Instagram post after receiving the Ellison McCraney Ingram Foundation’s $40,000 scholarship.
Just a week before her death, Fredericksen had celebrated receiving the Ellison McCraney Ingram Foundation scholarship to help her go to college
Kadence was known for her charity work with disadvantaged children, seen with teddy bears given to them through her initiative ‘Kada’s Promise’
Alongside her charity work through Kada’s Promise, Fredericksen also used her platform to raise $25,000 for the Ronald McDonald House, reports WCJB.
Speaking of her charity work, Fredericksen told the outlet last year: ‘When I was little, I was abused and neglected by my biological mother and stepfather.
‘During those times, the only thing I had to call my own was a stuffed animal I received as a gift years beforehand.
‘Now that I’m in a safe home with a safe family, I learned I wasn’t the only kid that went through that.’
