One of DeKalb’s own, Alaysia Gonzalez Giraldo, 26, has been crowned Mrs. Illinois 2026.

During her reign, Gonzalez Giraldo plans to engage in volunteer work and community outreach.

“Honestly, it means everything to me,” Gonzalez Giraldo said of the title.

Growing up, Alaysia Gonzalez Giraldo never imagined she had what it takes to compete for the title of prom queen, let alone Mrs. Illinois.

She said she was very shy throughout her time in school and mainly kept to herself.

This is no longer the case, however.

“I definitely learned to come out of my shell,” Gonzalez Giraldo said.

But this is not her first go-around at competing, either.

At age 12, Gonzalez Giraldo competed and was the state runner-up in the national pageant for the National American Miss pageant.

Gonzalez Giraldo, who works as a certified end-of-life doula and bereavement coordinator, said she plans to use her platform for good.

“I have already started initiatives on trying to uplift others, empower others who are going through tough transitions, but now that I have a platform, I’m going to use it to its best ability.”

Gonzalez Giraldo said she also looks forward to competing for the Mrs. United national crown in the fall.

“That’s a big thing,” she said.

In leading up to the competition, Gonzalez Giraldo said there’s a lot to take into account.

“It’s not your traditional pageant,” she said. “It’s based off of the work that you get out and do for the community. And what I have been doing to prepare for that is getting out in our community volunteering, trying to make a community impact.”

During her reign, Gonzalez Giraldo has been building on her service experience by serving as one of the local organizers behind the new Juneteenth Community Festival. She’s also hosted free financial literacy workshops on the basics of budgeting and workshops for mothers who are struggling with their identity after becoming a mother and the grief that comes with it.

“I feel like that title, it’s more of a deeper meaning for me because I did run for National American Miss when I was younger, but again, due to finances, we weren’t able to go through with it. Ao to me, it means empowerment,” she said. “It means unity. It means community.”

Gonzalez Giraldo said to claim the title of Miss United America would hit home on a personal level for her more than people may realize.

“It is also helping me break out of my comfort zone to get out there and get involved in the community, where before I was very introverted, and now it’s forcing me to work on myself and build my confidence and self-esteem,” she said.