Photo By 1st Sgt. Heather Peters | SPC Hannah Lomax, 106th Army Band, Arkansas Army National Guard, laughing while...... read more read more
The Specialist in a Crown
Written by: Sgt. 1st Class Heather L. Peters, 119th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment
North Little Rock, Arkansas -- With her perfectly set bun and determined expression, one might not know that Specialist Hannah Lomax, a French Horn player with the 106th Army Band, serves her community in a dual capacity. Not only does she serve through music in the Arkansas Army National Guard (ARARNG), she serves the area around Russellville through community service as Miss City Lights, one of the 52 candidates in the competition for the Miss Arkansas title. Crowned on February 28, 2021, Specialist Lomax quickly embraced the life of service by scheduling and meeting with the women of the Russellville Chamber of Commerce less than a week later.
An Arkansas Tech University Sophomore in both Biology Biomedical and Music Performance in French Horn, Spc. Lomax enlisted in the ARARNG in December 2018 as an Army Musician with the 106th Army Band. While her mother, Cindy Lomax, expressed a little apprehension when she announced her intentions of serving, her father Loren Lomax, a Navy Corpsman, instantly supported the idea of her pursuing the path the previous three generations of family members followed. Not only is service in the military a family tradition, her grandfather, Mike Lomax, also served as an Army Musician in the 106th Army Band from 1980-1984.
While her path to service in the Armed Forces stemmed from family, her desire to be crowned came from growing up watching Miss Arkansas pageants and longing for the chance to take the pageantry stage. From the beginning of her journey, Spc. Lomax looks to the legacy set by the 2016 Miss Arkansas, and eventual 2017 Miss America, Savvy Shields. Spc. Lomax says “I will always aspire to be as genuine as she is and have her amazing sense of style!”
Spc. Lomax hopes to bring the growth she has experienced to her service in the National Guard. Through newly forged communication skills, she hopes to have personal courage to “step up and speak out about” important situations and break down some of the walls that, particularly females, face in Military life. She wants the Soldiers in the ARARNG to “Never be afraid to push past your own fear.” Despite her own fear and voice of doubt telling her to turn back, she believes “the more you push past that fear, the smaller that voice will become.”
Choosing a meaningful platform plays an influential part in a contestant's path toward Miss Arkansas. For Spc. Lomax, her experience during Basic Combat Training (BCT) inspired her to make a difference. Watching other Soldiers go weeks without any communication from family and friends from home weighed heavy on her heart. She wanted all Soldiers to feel the same joy she experienced. “I would spend my nights reading the precious words of encouragement and hope from home from the red light of my flashlight. It would absolutely break my heart when I saw some of my closest friends there receive no word from home,” said Spc. Lomax. Upon returning home, she found Operation Gratitude, an organization that writes and sends letters to Soldiers in BCT or that are deployed.
Specialist Lomax lets the Army Values, particularly Loyalty, Duty, Integrity, Respect, and Personal Courage, play a defining role in shaping her foundation for serving as Miss City Lights. Being in the spotlight, Spc. Lomax understands she serves as a role model for young girls and hopes to inspire others to find ways to give back to their community.
Throughout April, Spc. Lomax will be talking with local rotary clubs, churches, and schools about her social impact, Operation Gratitude. Through a contact forged through her service with Sergeant Lisa Butler, she will be working with Cedarville Middle and Elementary Schools to write letters to deployed Soldiers. She will also be focusing her community service in honor of Earth Day.
Follow Spc. Lomax on her journey by following the Miss City Lights Scholarship Facebook Page and looking out for the We AR Guard podcast episode presented by the State Public Affairs Officer Lieutenant Colonel Brian Mason featuring Spc. Lomax. Beginning June 13, 2021, Spc. Hannah Lomax will grace the stage at Robinson Center in her role as Miss City Lights. Tune in and support the Arkansas Army National Guard’s own as she competes for the title of Miss Arkansas!
| Date Taken: | 04.11.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 07.06.2021 10:16 |
| Story ID: | 400376 |
| Location: | NORTH LITTLE ROCK, AR, US |
| Hometown: | RUSSELLVILLE, AR, US |
| Web Views: | 75 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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