Making a Difference

By Tara Ryazansky

“There’sso much I want to do with my reign. I want to leave an absolute legacy,” Alexandra Lakhman says with a smile as she adjusts her crown. “Some people are asking me how I’m sleeping. I’ve put a lot on my plate, but it’s all exciting stuff.”

Lakhman is Miss New Jersey USA. She wants to use her title to make a difference in Hoboken and beyond.

“I have a brother who has a progressive physical disability called spinal muscular atrophy. He can’t walk, and he needs help with all of his daily life necessities. Unfortunately, to date, there is no cure for the disease,” Lakhman explains. She and her brother, Joseph Lakhman, are close. She visits him at Seton Hall, where he attends college, providing care when needed. “Throughout my life, I’ve been volunteering for the Cure SMA Organization. About four years ago, I became the communications chair for the New Jersey Chapter. As the communications chair, I not only raise awareness about what SMA is, but I help put on different events throughout the state of New Jersey that help fund scientific research that ultimately can lead to finding a cure for the disease.”

Now that she’s Miss New Jersey USA, she plans to continue her work with the organization. She met with the president of Cure SMA after winning her title last April.

“I want to bring more awareness to what spinal muscular atrophy is on a national level, because not many people are familiar with it. It’s a lot more common than people think. One in four people is a carrier of the SMA gene. All it takes is for a mom and dad to both be carriers for SMA to have a 25 percent chance of having a child with SMA. A lot of people don’t know that unless you teach them that.”

August is SMA Awareness month. She will be updating her Instagram at @alexandralakhman to include any upcoming events or fundraising efforts.

First-generation American

“I hope that my voice can inspire those around me to advocate for what they believe in. I know not many people can relate to what Cure SMA is because it’s not active in their life. Hopefully, they can use my voice as inspiration to say, ‘Ok, here’s an organization or a cause that I’m truly passionate about, and I see what she’s doing, so I want to do something that is advocating for that.’”

Lakhman also hopes to bring awareness to the crisis in Ukraine.

“I’m a first-generation UkrainianAmerican,” she says. Her parents, Igor and Tami Lakhmn moved here in the 1980s. “I feel very deeply connected to what’s going on there because that’s where my roots are. When the war had first started, it was in news outlets, and a lot of people were aware of what was going on, but it’s lost a lot of the traction. It’s not over. If anything, it’s getting worse. I want to continue to raise awareness and help those who are affected. The refugees, the innocent people who are fighting for their lives and their country. I’m working with UNICEF, and I have plans to work with other organizations.”

Lakhman says that growing up with immigrant parents inspired her drive.

Pageant Journey

“Being a first-generation American, I remember hearing the stories about how my parents immigrated over here. They had to work really hard to provide the opportunities that I have and that my brother has. I really appreciate all of the sacrifices that they made,” Lakhman says. “It was instilled in me from a young age to work really hard towards all of my goals and dreams. I continue to carry that on with any dream that I have, whether it’s career-wise or pageant-wise, it really stems from my upbringing.”

Her pageant journey began in high school. Lakhman, who grew up in Old Bridge, competed for the Miss New Jersey Teen USA title in 2013 when she was 17. She was picked as the first runner-up.

“I just fell in love with it,” Lakhman says. “I had originally done it as a way to gain confidence in myself and make new friends. Girls can be really hard in high school. I didn’t have the best experience with some girls. I ended up falling in love with competing in this system. It was something that I became very passionate about.”

The following year, Lahkman aged out of the Miss New Jersey Teen USA pageant and was up for the Miss New Jersey USA title.

“I actually got fourth runner up at 18 years old. I was competing against women who have full-time jobs, who have had internships and know what they want to do with their lives,” Lakhman says. “I was still a teen.”

“I kept doing it year after year, always placing somewhere within the top 5,” Lakhman says. She competed throughout her college career. “I was convinced that I had a first runner-up curse. I was first runner-up 50 percent of the time that I competed.”

Career Focus

After competing in her senior year, she decided to take a break from trying for the crown in order to concentrate on finishing her degree at FIT.

“I really just wanted to focus on my career and growing as a young woman because pageantry is not forever, but your career is,” Lakhman now works in digital marketing at a Fortune 500 company.

After taking a three-year break, she decided to compete again, and again she was first runner-up.

“I thought it would be my final year of competing, a one-and-done kind of thing, and then if it’s for me, it’s for me, and if it’s not just move on, but I clearly could not move on,” Lakhman says with a laugh. “I really just didn’t want to live life with any regrets, and I didn’t want to feel unfulfilled in any way, shape, or form.”

Miss New Jersey USA has an age limit of 28 years old, so Lakhman knew that at 26 she only had a few more chances to compete. When the pageant system announced that the 2022 competition would be held early this past April, Lakhman decided to go for it.

“I’m really glad that I made the decision to come back. It was on a whim, and it really was last minute. I think that going into it with a completely different mindset is actually what allowed me to win because I wasn’t hyper-focused on it. I’m so glad I did,” Lakhman says. “I’m really honored, proud, and it still feels really surreal for me.