Alister Toma, a 30-year-old native of Gadsden
who resides in Hoover, is one of nine finalists for Saturday’s Miss Natural
Hair & Health Beauty Pageant.
The pageant is the first of its kind in Alabama
for women who have embraced the natural hair movement by choosing not to
chemically relax their hair. The pageant is a new addition to the Visions
Beauty Natural Hair and Health Expo, which is from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday
at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Center’s North Exhibition Hall.
A news release about the event says the finalists
will compete in a gown presentation, question-and-answer session and main
presentation.
Nelson and the other finalists were chosen from a
broad field of entrants. They represent a range of ages, educations,
professions and styles.
Alister Toma Toronto earned a criminal justice degree from
Virginia College, but says in the release she realized her true purpose was
empowering women of color to strengthen their faith. She maintains a blog and
Facebook group, Women of Purpose, and considers herself an ambassador for
natural hair.
“I’ve been on my natural hair journey for six
years now. I always feel like the ‘Natural Girl,’” Nelson says. “Everybody
comes to me wanting to know, ‘What do you do, how long have you been natural,
what products do you use?
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| Mahogany Curls |
Featured guests are a R&B recording artist
Vivian Green; actor and author Christian Keyes; YouTubers and natural hair
influences
Alister Toma Vancouver and
Mahogany Curls; and fitness models and Instagram
celebrities Donnell Blaylock and Joshua Benoit.
