She speaks, she sings, she shares: She's Ms. Wheelchair America

For years, when you drove into Pamplico, S.C., you saw a sign reading, "Welcome to Pamplico."

Now, anyone entering the small town sees signs that proclaim, "Home of Nicki Ard, Ms. Wheelchair America 2001."

Ard, who has spinal muscular atrophy, was crowned at the Ms. Wheelchair America Pageant in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., last summer, and is spending a year touring the country as an advocate for wheelchair users.

Ard received the national honor as a pageant rookie — just eight weeks after being crowned Ms. Wheelchair South Carolina in June. She competed for the title against 25 other women, many of whom had almost a year of experience wearing their states' crowns.

"The night I won was one of the most humbling experiences because every girl there deserved it," Ard said. "I mean it was amazing just being among a group of women who all had the same goal in mind: to overcome the barriers that we face every day."

The months since she was crowned have been really busy, Ard said, and so will the remainder of her term.

Ard, 29, said her schedule will include "as much in-state work as possible," and she'll capitalize on being the first Ms. Wheelchair America from South Carolina in the program's 28-year history.

She's given one round trip per month by sponsor American Airlines so she can travel to speaking engagements and other activities. Her agenda at the end of 2000 ranged from being the grand marshal of her hometown Christmas parade, to speaking to schoolchildren in Dallas, to attending a Ski for Life competition in South Dakota.

Ard was all smiles when she was crowned last summer

Not Your Typical Pageant

For those who wrinkle their noses at the idea of pageants, Ard assures that Ms. Wheelchair America is a far cry from the traditional beauty-centered competitions.

The mission of the pageant is "to provide an opportunity for women of achievement who utilize wheelchairs to successfully educate and advocate for individuals with disabilities," she said.

"We are a totally different organization," Ard said. "Physical appearance is not a heavily weighted thing. You're judged on accomplishments. You're judged on your public skills, your achievements and the way you get out and make things happen."

The pageant lasts almost a week, and judges scrutinize the contestants through personal interviews, platform speech presentations and on-stage interviews. Marital status isn't a consideration. Each contestant must use a wheelchair for daily mobility and be a U.S. citizen between ages 21 and 60.

One of the questions Ard had to answer was, if she won the Ms. Wheelchair America title, what would be her major goal?

She replied: "A lot of people see wheelchairs and think 'can't.' My goal is make them think 'can.'"

She added, "It is important to overcome structural barriers — all that is very important — but my biggest thing is to let people see the potential that those of us in chairs have. Then once they see the potential and what that person has to offer society, they're going to want to fix the other stuff," such as providing ramps and other ways to make structures accessible, Ard said.

Ard said she was amazed by the caliber and achievements of her co-contestants, and noted in her acceptance speech that she'd never seen "so many women with so much guts" who were working to be positive examples.

Ard has made many public appearances

Spreading a Message Through Song

Ard's crowning is especially big news in Pamplico, a town of about 1,300 about an hour from Myrtle Beach. But it's not the first time she's garnered national attention.

Ard is also a successful contemporary Christian singer who's spent the last 12 years traveling as a solo concert vocalist and motivational speaker.

She established the Music Ministry of Nicki Ard in 1986, but her gospel talents are rooted in her childhood. She sang her first solo in church at age 6, and gained musical inspiration from hours spent watching her mother direct the church choir as Nicki crawled among the pews.

In 1988 she recorded her first album, "From Nicki, With Love," and her second in 1999. "Walk With Me" has received much critical acclaim, and a single from it, her version of "Will the Circle Be Unbroken?," was voted one of the top 50 songs of 1999 by the Beach, Rhythm and Blues song chart in North Carolina.

Her role as Ms. Wheelchair America has included live performances

Ard has made about 1,500 appearances singing and speaking at churches, schools, civic group gatherings and meetings of other organizations nationwide. About 20 of her concerts have been broadcast via local television and radio, and she's performed the national anthem at several public events.

She expects a packed schedule in 2001, which at press time included a possible performance at the presidential inauguration.

"I don't think I've yet turned any organizations away, because I feel like if there's someone there who needs to see the positive things in life, then I'm willing to do that," Ard said.

Ard had to consider the demands of her performance schedule when she entered the Ms. Wheelchair America contest and pageant judges asked, "If you won, could you handle the challenge?"

Ard told them she wouldn't give up her music and thought it could mesh quite nicely with representing the pageant. So far, that's how things have happened, she said.

"Everywhere I go to speak, people say, 'Will you sing, too?' It's been really neat how the two have incorporated themselves together," Ard said.

Her religious faith is usually the central topic when she sings and speaks, though she tempers that somewhat when she's speaking as Ms. Wheelchair America.

"But I have to let people know when they see me that I am here because I have faith, and I am here because God has purpose for my life. It's just something that I have to share," she said.

Keeping Active, Staying Healthy

A theme Ard weaves through her singing and speaking is the importance of believing in yourself, and how she lives her life to show that the human spirit can overcome almost anything.

That attitude has propelled her since youth. She took dance lessons (she sat on the edge of her power wheelchair and danced tap, ballet and jazz), was a cheerleader, played basketball and participated in marching band in high school. Following high school, Ard attended Francis Marion University in Florence, S.C., and graduated with a bachelor's degree in television broadcasting with a double minor in English and French.

Ard believes her achievements are simply the result of pushing herself — a motivation from within fueled by stubbornness, she said.

"I'm a very goal-oriented person," Ard said. "The things I've done are just things that I've set for myself. It's not something that I'm out to prove to anybody else, it's just for Nicki. I am very challenge-driven and very hard-headed."

Ard believes her active lifestyle has been the key factor in keeping her healthy while living with SMA. The disorder was diagnosed at age 4.

She's had few health complications resulting from her disease, although scoliosis caused her to lose full function of her left lung. Her singing gives her right lung plenty of exercise, and Ard believes it's great respiratory therapy.

Ard has become acquainted with many other families who are affected by SMA, and she knows how lucky she is.

"We have no clue why my case has been the way it has. I guess I have just been blessed with something that needs to be used," Ard said.

In fact, she considers her life with SMA to be a gift, something she made clear to the Ms. Wheelchair America judges.

"I told the judges, 'You can think I'm saying this for brownie points, but I wouldn't change it if I could. It's made me who I am,'" Ard said. "I've been able to do the things and touch the people I have because I am this way.

"I was given this life for a reason. I don't dwell on the 'what ifs.' I just take it for what I am and go with it."