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Kenya Moore Takes Us Back to Her First Pageant Win to Honor Her Late Grandmother

"She was the only person in the world who truly was my ride or die," the #RHOA entrepreneur shared.

By Laura Rosenfeld
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Kenya Moore shared a very special #TBT post to pay tribute to her late grandmother. 

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The Real Housewives of Atlanta entrepreneur shared a photo from the first beauty pageant she ever won, where she had her grandmother Doris right by her side. "She was the only person in the world who truly was my ride or die. My inspiration and my role model," Kenya captioned the photo on Instagram. "I love u momma and I miss you dearly."

 

Of course, Kenya would go on to reign supreme in one of the biggest pageants of them all when she won the Miss USA pageant in 1993. Kenya's grandmother was also there to watch her take home that coveted title, as you can see in the below Instagram post.

Today I lost the only woman in the world who has ever loved me unconditionally. My grandmother who raised me from 3 days old passed away. Thank you Jehovah for sending me your Angel who taught me everything I know about love, compassion, strength, kindness, selflessness, forgiveness, family, education, brains over beauty, inner beauty, strength, respect for your elders, being true to myself....she has helped mold me into the woman I am. She truly was my best friend. She finally lost her battle with Alzheimer's disease but her heart and spirit never failed her. Thank you Jehovah for allowing my last moment with her last month to be her having met my loving husband. I truly believe she waited until she knew that I finally found someone to love and cherish me the way she did. She could not rest until she knew I would be taken care of by someone who deserved me. She didn't recognize me at first but when I introduced them but she lit up with so much joy that my heart became overwhelmed. She approved and it was the happiest day of my life. Thank you momma for being the best woman I have ever met in my life. Thank you for approving of me and thank you for letting the world know how proud you are of me. I thank you for my life. I owe the world to you. I know you will never leave my side in life or after. I am eternally grateful to you. Thank you for loving me. #unconditionallove #God #gonebutneverforgotten #family #myangel

A post shared by Kenya Moore (@thekenyamoore) on

 

Kenya shared the news of her grandmother's passing after a battle with Alzheimer's disease in July. "Today I lost the only woman in the world who has ever loved me unconditionally. My grandmother who raised me from 3 days old passed away. Thank you Jehovah for sending me your Angel who taught me everything I know about love, compassion, strength, kindness, selflessness, forgiveness, family, education, brains over beauty, inner beauty, strength, respect for your elders, being true to myself....she has helped mold me into the woman I am. She truly was my best friend," Kenya wrote in a post on Instagram. "Thank you momma for being the best woman I have ever met in my life. Thank you for approving of me and thank you for letting the world know how proud you are of me. I thank you for my life. I owe the world to you. I know you will never leave my side in life or after. I am eternally grateful to you. Thank you for loving me." 

Take a look at more photos of Kenya through the years, below.

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