Miss Teen USA Pageant Queen Kadance Fredericksen Dead at 18
Kadance Fredericksen, a Miss Teen USA pageant queen, died this week in a tragic car accident, new reports reveal. She was 18.
The rising star, who won the title of Miss Okaloosa County Teen USA 2024, died as the result of a traffic collision in Florida on Monday, Feb. 17, when a tractor-trailer collided with her vehicle in Santa Rosa County, local news outlet WKRG reported.
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Fredericksen was reportedly driving a sedan when the vehicle collided with a tractor-trailer driven by a 56-year-old man from Milton, Fla. The unnamed man reportedly sustained minor injuries in the crash.
A news report from the Florida Highway Patrol confirmed that an 18-year-old female died in the crash on State Road 4, though Fredericksen was not specifically named, per WKRG.
The Miss Florida USA Instagram account later confirmed Fredericksen's death in a heartfelt tribute to the legacy left behind by the late teenager.
"It is with profound sadness and a heavy heart that we share the passing of one of our beloved delegates, Kadance Fredericksen, Miss Okaloosa County," the Feb. 18 post read. "Our pageant community has lost a beautiful soul - one who was a true light in this world. She was ambitious, driven, kind, and a leader among her pageant sisters."
The update continued, "In times of grief, we are reminded to love one another and cherish each day as a gift. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family, friends, and all who are mourning this devastating loss. May we honor her memory by carrying forward the light she so effortlessly shared with the world and our Florida pageant community."
In addition to her pageant accolades, Fredericksen was an up-and-coming humanitarian, founding a nonprofit organization in 2017 called Kada's Promise, which donated over 14,000 teddy bears and blankets to children who have been "homeless, neglected or abused," according to the organization's website.
Fredericksen, a two-time recipient of Crestview's Citizen of the Year award and the youngest person to ever receive the award, also raised over $25,000 for the Ronald McDonald House during her pageantry career, according to Northwest Florida Daily News.
In addition to the flood of tributes pouring in for Fredericksen online, , wife of country star , also posted a heartfelt message in honor of the late pageant queen.
"What an honor it was to meet Kadance," wrote Brittany, who helped judge the Miss Florida Teen USA pageant. "I vividly remember her advocating for children despite her young age."
"Her personality, beauty and selflessness were only a fraction of why so many people were drawn to her," Brittany continued, before calling Fredericksen, "An amazing girl, gone too soon."
"Heaven sure did gain a beautiful angel," the post concluded.
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