Beauty queen Alzate: 'I feel so immensely grateful and honored to introduce myself as Miss Texas USA 2023'

Crowned the new Miss Texas USA in her hometown of Houston on July 15, Lluvia Alzate described her victory as something she will remember for the rest of her life, according to a July 18 post on the pageant’s Instagram (IG) page. Houston NBC affiliate Channel 2 reported that Alzate is slated to represent the Lone Star State at the upcoming Miss USA beauty competition.

“A moment that I’m going to forever cherish,” Alzate said, per Miss Texas USA’s IG post. “Wow, I feel so immensely grateful and honored to introduce myself as Miss Texas USA 2023 and have the opportunity to represent my amazing state of Texas this year and I don’t hold this lightly.”

Alzate immigrated to the U.S. from Colombia at a very young age and went on to earn a business finance degree from the University of Houston (UH), according to Channel 2. It is more than just the crown for her, as Alzate is using her title run to raise awareness for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). ALS, which is commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, is an illness that causes the nerve cells that make muscles work in both the lower and upper parts of the body to cease function and die, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) website.

The progressive neurodegenerative disease took its name after the famous New York Yankees slugger who retired following his diagnosis in the late 1930s, the CDC said. Alzate’s mother, Fanny, was stricken with ALS in 2019, thrusting Alzate into the role as primary caretaker; according to Channel 2. But tragedy struck last December when Fanny lost her battle with the disease.

“It has been a little bit hard, but I feel it has [inspired] me to speak out a lot more not just about this disease, but overcoming tragedies and difficult times,” Alzate said in an interview on Channel 2’s “Houston Life.”

Houston CBS affiliate Channel 11 reported that Alzate hopes to become the second Houstonian in less than three years to win Miss USA and, ultimately, Miss Universe. Friendswood resident R’Bonney Gabriel is the reigning Miss Universe.

The second time proved to be the charm for Alzate, who placed third behind Gabriel last year, according to Channel 11. The 2023 Miss Texas USA pageant was held at the Hilton Houston Post Oak.