Lucky Miss Kentucky, Ariana Rodriguez

By VOICE-TRIBUNE Photos By Matt Johnson 

Ariana Rodriguez, now crowned Miss Kentucky 2025, is both an advocate and emblem of the underdog. A student at the University of Kentucky pursuing dual degrees in Social Work and Psychology, Ariana’s life has been molded by her early experiences in kinship and foster care, as well as by periods of homelessness that once left her without a place to belong. Yet those same hardships became the foundation of her life’s work. Through her nonprofit, The Lucky Ones Foundation, she has transformed her story into a mission to uplift foster youth and remind them, as she says, that “our challenges and struggles don’t define us, they refine us.” 

Ariana’s early years were marked by instability. But where some might have seen brokenness, she saw the beginnings of her calling. “I have dedicated my life to creating a brighter future for youth in foster care through my non-profit, The Lucky Ones Foundation,” she says. “I believe that our challenges and struggles don’t define us, they refine us.” 

The title of her foundation, The Lucky Ones, was born from irony, from a moment of pain disguised as comfort. “When I was first placed in the foster care system, I remember standing at the doorstep of my first foster home and crying,” she recalls. “I had just been separated from my family, friends, and the only life I had ever known. It was in that moment that my case worker looked over at me and said, ‘You should be grateful, Ariana. You’re one of the lucky ones.’” 

The words stayed with her. “That moment was one of the first experiences that showed me the flaws of the foster care system,” she says. “I knew that something had to change, and that is why I created my non-profit, The Lucky Ones Foundation—because safety shouldn’t be a stroke of luck.” 

Ariana’s work extends into policy, advocacy, and the halls where decisions are made about children like the one she once was. “The most eye-opening lesson has been realizing how often the people making decisions for foster youth have never met one,” she explains. “Policy is very powerful. It shapes our everyday lives, but too often, those most affected by it have the least voice in the room.” 

In these rooms, Ariana’s voice carries the weight of lived experience. “I share my story in policy discussions to remind legislators that behind every case is a child with dreams, fears, and potential,” she says. “When youth are given a seat at the table, policy becomes more humane, more effective, and more just.”

Her advocacy is both personal and practical. Through The Lucky Ones Life Skills Series, she focuses on teaching financial literacy, goal setting, and career readiness. But the lesson she believes is most overlooked cannot be quantified on paper. “Emotional Intelligence,” she says simply. “We teach students how to manage coursework and extracurriculars, but we often overlook teaching them how to manage themselves, their emotions, boundaries, and self-worth.” 

Her dual roles as Miss Kentucky and as the founder of The Lucky Ones are surprisingly intertwined. As spokesperson for the Kentucky Proud initiative and farm safety, Ariana finds parallels between nurturing land and nurturing lives. “Both roles center on nurturing growth and protecting people,” she says. “Agriculture teaches stewardship of land, resources, and community. Foster care advocacy teaches stewardship of hearts and futures.” 

Whether she is speaking about food security or family security, her message remains constant: “We are working towards the same goal of making a stronger and safer Kentucky.” 

“Homelessness stripped away everything that I thought defined me—my home, my stability, and even my sense of belonging within the world,” she says. “Although extremely difficult, battling homelessness also revealed what truly mattered, which was character, faith, and the belief that I could turn ashes into diamonds.” 

She carries that belief into every interaction, with young people in care, with legislators, with audiences who see only the polished surface of a pageant queen. “I use that experience to show others that their past does not define their future, and that they are the only ones who can control their destiny.” 

Even amid the glamour and relentless schedule of appearances, Ariana keeps her balance through intention. “Balance, for me, begins with purpose,” she says. “By reminding myself in difficult moments that what I am doing matters, it can transform my exhaustion into gratitude.”

Her daily rituals are modest but grounding: journaling, reading, walking her dog, and taking time for family. “Those little moments keep me grounded in who I am beyond the crown,” she says. 

At the Miss America competition, Ariana made history as the first foster alumni to place in the Top 11, a moment she describes not as a personal victory but as representation. “Being the first foster alumni to place in the Top 11 at Miss America was more than a personal milestone; it was a moment of representation for the millions of individuals who grew up in the foster care system,” she says. “Standing on that stage reminded me that our pasts do not limit our potential; they prepare us for purpose.” 

With The Lucky Ones Foundation, Ariana plans to expand nationally, building networks of support for youth aging out of care. “My goal is to show every young person that if I can follow my dreams, so can they.” 

For Ariana, the conversation around foster care must include mental health. “Mental health should be treated as essential care, not optional,” she insists. “So many youth enter foster care with deep emotional wounds that are often misunderstood or overlooked.” At The Lucky Ones, healing is a part of the curriculum. “Our life skills series includes mindfulness workshops, self-reflection exercises, and partnerships with mental health professionals who volunteer to speak to our participants,” she says. “Healing must be part of the foundation if we want these youth to truly thrive.” 

If she could sit with every child entering foster care, Ariana knows exactly what she’d say: “You are not defined by what happened to you, you are defined by how you choose to rise from it. This chapter may be uncertain, but it is not the end of your story. You are loved, you are capable, and you are one of the lucky ones—not because of your past, but because you still have the power to write what comes next.” 

Perhaps the greatest misconception about foster youth, Ariana says, is that they are “damaged or troubled.” The truth, as she’s proven, is far less black and white. “They are resilient,” she says. “What they need isn’t pity, it’s opportunity. When we shift our perspective from what’s ‘wrong with them’ to what is strong within them, we open the door for transformation.”