Even at her young age, Mallory Alverson has a history of volunteer service.
She hopes it makes up a lot of her future, too.
Alverson, Miss South Carolina Teen Volunteer, is competing this week in Jackson, Tennessee for the title of Miss Teen Volunteer America. The winner will be a national ambassador for the Salvation Army and for St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.
“I’ve been working with those organizations since I won my title in July,” she said. “This is a fantastic opportunity to represent America. Hopefully, I can come back to South Carolina with that title.”
Volunteerism is something that holds a deep, personal meaning for Alverson.
“Growing up, I saw my entire family volunteer,” she said. “My mom with Hospice, my sisters and brothers with National Honor Society. As Miss South Carolina Teen Volunteer, I’ve been able to work hand in hand with the Salvation Army. I was given the opportunity to go to New York Fashion Week, and while I was having so much fun, I was able to slip away from the fashion side and go to Harlem and serve in a soup kitchen there for the Salvation Army. Being able to wear South Carolina across my chest and have people ask and let them know that this is what we love to do. We love to volunteer. That’s just one example.”
Alverson has done a hot meal drive-through to benefit St.Jude. She enjoys working with Hospice, helping those nearing the end of their lives.
“It’s something I’m passionate about,” she said. “It’s something I’m going to continue to do for the rest of my life.”
Alverson is also passionate about helping schoolchildren.
“It all kind of wraps back to when I was a very young student in the second and third grade and I discovered I had a reading disability,” she said. “Growing up, I struggled asking for help. I had no want or need to improve in life, so I shadowed myself into the back of the classroom, failing the grades. Now I’m able to advocate. There are one in five children who are struggling with disabilities in silence. Now I’m able to have a voice for them.”
She does that, in part, by reaching their peers.
“Kids that age might not understand exactly what goes on with disabilities,” she said. “I read a book to them called ‘Kindness Is My Superpower’, just talking about how kindness can be just opening a door, or telling someone to have a great day. You never know what their home life is like. I explain that to the younger kids, but to the older kids I talk about data. I talk about the statistics they might need to know or need to look for in a classroom. It’s just something I have built up over the years.”
Alverson’s passion has even got a name: Mal’s Mission.
“I love working with the state of South Carolina to get Mal’s Mission posted,” she said. “Identify, Connect, Conquer. It’s a step-by-step process of identifying a disability and connecting with the resources in your community to conquer it. It’s my story, but I’m projecting it to the rest of our communities.”
It’s about overcoming challenges, and challenges aren’t anything new to Alverson. In fact, she faced a major one in her pageant talent.
“At the age of 15, I had full reconstructive hip surgery,” she said. “For a dancer, that’s a big no-no. You do not want to be out for an injury, especially a surgery like that. It’s so critical. When you’re a dancer, you use your hips in every aspect.”
The surgery was a setback both physically and mentally for Alverson, but she’s back to full strength after a year-long recovery. The ability to dance is something she treasures.
“I’m back dancing as a senior elite dancer at Shock Dance Center, and my talent for Miss Teen Volunteer America is dance. It’s something I’m very passionate about. I love to perform, and dance is an outlet for me. It’s something that really saved me when I was a kid. When I was going through my disability by myself, I went to my room and I danced. That’s the way I let out those emotions. So now that I’m able to perform and show those emotions to the audience, it’s really something special. I love that I can be a resilient person and speak about my struggles even though at that time they were really hard.”
Alverson is headed to the University of South Carolina next year, where she plans to major in political science. She’d like to be on the Gamecocks’ dance team, and then move to Dallas and try her hand at being a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader. Then it’s law school, where she wants to study criminal justice with an eye on special victims’ units. She’d like to eventually be a lawyer, a judge, and even a public official, a desire sparked by her time last summer at Palmetto Girls’ State.
All those dreams are fueled by her commitment to service.
“I just want to help my community,” she said. “Be it a person, a family, a community, or a state.”
Once we heard of her goal to be a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader, we knew we had the perfect boot to surprise Mallory! They might not be the exact style of iconic white boots worn by the DCC, but we think she likes these Ariat Casanova boots all the same.
Good luck this week and beyond, Mallory. You are shining your light in the world and we know you'll continue to make Spartanburg and all of South Carolina so proud!
Learn more about Mallory
https://www.misssouthcarolinavolunteeramericapageant.com/malloryalverson-miss-sc-teen-volunteer-2025
Learn more about the Miss South Carolina Volunteer Pageant
https://www.misssouthcarolinavolunteeramericapageant.com/