Bailey Pretak was born in Pennsylvania with lamellar ichthyosis, a genetic condition so rare that it affects one in every 200,000 people: her skin dries out, cracks, and constantly sheds, with no possible cure. As a child, you didn’t understand that; you only saw the nickname her classmates gave her: “Scaly Bailey”. They avoided her for fear of catching something that was never contagious.
She found refuge on stage. There, she says, “people see the characters I play; they don’t judge me by my skin color”. That childhood shyness turned into a career: today she is 30 years old, has three beauty titles to her name—including Miss Pennsylvania—and uses every crown as a microphone.
She travels to schools and conferences across the country alongside FIRST, the foundation that supports people with her condition, speaking about bullying and skin. She has paid for it all herself. “It’s incredible how far I’ve come”, she says, and now she is seeking sponsors so she can keep going.
