Today we’d like to introduce you to Tia Frost.
So, before we jump into specific questions, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
My name is Tia Frost and I was a divorced mother of three when I competed in my first pageant at the age of 40 and won Ms. Florida Plus America Elite Queen in 2011. My platform was Autism because my firstborn son was diagnosed with Autism at the age of three and I knew that a state title would get the appropriate attention necessary to make a difference in my community. I always wanted to model since I was in my 20’s; however, life took me on a different journey. After my divorce, I was discovered as a plus size model at the airport in 2009; where I received my training for modeling at the age of 38 and began to inspire others to never give up on your dreams because it’s never too late.
My son John was non-verbal until the age of seven. At the age of 10, he expressed one evening that he wanted to model too after he saw that I was training his sister how to walk in a pageant. He said “mommy, me model, me pose.” I was so shocked that he spoke and expressed a want. Therefore, I researched agencies that could teach him to become a model but soon realized that the agencies would not understand how he learns. Later that month, I went to an ESE meeting at his school to learn more about the school’s curriculum for special needs youth and met a young lady with cerebral palsy that was the guest speaker. We connected and decided to collaborate the two entities of the special needs community and fashion shows in 2012.
After years of perfecting the shows, we have performed over 27 events including back to school and professional fashion shows completed. After realizing the need for more events like these for the special needs community, No Limits Foundation Inc, Everyone Has Purpose was created in 2017. Models have been paid and featured in the ADA gala in Dallas, TX at the George W. Bush museum, on the billboard of Memorial West Hospital as a triple amputee cyclist, on the billboard of Time Square two years in row for Down Syndrome awareness month, performed at the first ever fashion show called “Runway in the Sky” 2019 fashion show at the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood airport at terminal one at the Southwest counter, and received center page coverage in Southwest Internal magazine and website.
No Limits Foundation Inc. is not just limited to special needs models with Autism. We believe everyone has purpose and includes all disabilities, seen and unseen. We produce fashion shows and fundraising opportunities several times a year to increase awareness, self-esteem, confidence, and motivation for the models and their families. Due to our continuous work in the community, I was nominated by several people to be entered into the Lay’s smile campaign. To my surprise, I was chosen to be a 2020 @Lay’s smiler! I am excited to annouce I have partnered with Lay’s to celebrate smiles across America as part of the #SmilewithLays campaign #ad which supports Operation Smile!
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
In the journey of perfecting our shows, I was only familiar with Autism. The models I had the pleasure of meeting and working with had several types of labels starting from Down Syndrome, brain injury, Cerebral Palsy, Williams Syndrome, cancer survivors, cognitive learning disorders, amputees, quadriplegic, blind, legally blind, deaf, ADHD, Epilepsy, neurological disorder, diabetes, and more. Because I only knew how to teach someone with Autism, I did not know the limitations or challenges the other models faced with following directions, receiving corrective criticism, challenges with changing clothes in a fast-paced environment with limited mobility, and their learning style. The parents were amazing in helping my team and I with the information necessary to overcome obstacles during each fashion show.
Other challenges over the years has been and still is fundraising for the shows, finding venues to that could accommodate staging for our wheelchair users and those with special devices that needed additional assistance to access the runway. We have to outsource additional machinery to accommodate our models during the fashion shows and/or events. This becomes very costly. We are always looking for sponsors to collaborate and provide the best resources for our models. It takes a village to raise a child, but it take a community to make dreams come true.
No Limits Foundation Inc, Everyone Has Purpose – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
No Limits Foundation Inc, Everyone Has Purpose provides a multitude of services in the special needs community that involves inclusion in activities and events with volunteer services, jobs, and education workshops to increase social awareness of their abilities in the fashion industry. We specialize in recognizing the talents and abilities of individuals who are special needs and helping them realize their potential and purpose in society through fashion shows and inclusion with back to school events. We encourage siblings who are their support system to also model to provide a comforting environment on and off the stage.
Our biggest accomplishment to date has been the very first fashion show in the airport called “Runway In The Sky” 2019 at the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood airport in terminal one at the Southwest International counter. A fashion show has never been held in the airport where passengers can wait for their bags while being entertained with a special needs talent and fashion show! It was a huge success! No Limits Foundation Inc. is a trailblazing in the special needs community in South Florida and all over the world by being featured in global campaign such as #Lay’s and Southwest Airlines by creating events since 2012 and will be looking for talent across the country for years to come. We are hoping to partner with a modeling agency in the future.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
My proudest moment thus far is being recognized by the Lay’s campaign as a 2020 smiler across America and making dreams come true for the models and their families. I am humbled to be recognized with 29 other amazing people making a difference in their community across America.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.nolimitsfoundationinc.org
- Phone: 954-399-1848
- Email: tia.frost@nlfinc.org
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/nolimitsfoundationinc/
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/NLFINC/
Image Credit:
Marc Graham, Tireless Marketing/Advertising, LC Photographer
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