JACKSON, Wis. — Sara Dornbrook, a Jackson resident, won the Mrs. USA Worldwide 2025 title over the weekend in Nebraska. The mother, wife and business owner is already back at work in her salon while continuing her community service efforts.
"I feel like all of the things that have happened have lead me to right here," Dornbrook said. "The fire was a lot, but I really feel like it lead me to where I needed to be and gave me the strength to do the things that I'm doing even more."
The 40-year-old has been involved in pageants for years, finally winning the crown after facing significant challenges.
In October, her business Infinite Grace salon was destroyed in a fire. After moving locations and reopening in June, her pageant friends convinced her to try again for the crown.
"I was able to talk about all of the great things we've done because of my body of work with the community," she said. "They really stepped up and helped us after the fire."
She credits her pageant community with helping her through the difficult time.
"There is such a large misconception about pageantry," she said. "Nowadays it's about sisterhood and service."
Dornbrook dedicates every day to some form of service. Recently, she helped at Autumn's Closet in Fond du Lac, restocking their shop after the owner, also a pageant queen, unexpectedly had to move buildings.
Watch: Washington County woman crowned Mrs. USA 2025
Tylie McKenzie, Dornbrook's family friend who joined her for volunteer work, sees her as an inspiration.
"I think it's really inspiring to see how she gets through and still can be really positive about things," McKenzie said.
Dornbrook brings her children and their friends along to help volunteer their time.
"I think we're just blessed to have a support system. I think I cried more over the support than I did the actual fire," she said. "It's nice to be able to turn around, give back and do what other people have done for us."
Over the next year, she'll continue her community service, including hosting and speaking at PKD Walk Milwaukee to spread awareness about a genetic kidney disease she hopes to help find a cure for.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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