Cousino student strikes a pose during New York Fashion Week

WARREN — The fashion savvy gathered in New York City last month.

Designers, models, celebrities and journalists set trends in Manhattan Feb. 6-11 for New York Fashion Week. There were nonstop fashion shows, photo shoots, glitz and glamour, and offbeat styles.

Among those in attendance was Cousino High School student Savannah Lossia. The high school junior strutted from the classroom to the catwalk, participating in her first-ever New York Fashion Week.

The Warren resident walked in the “Ultimate Fashion Show” Feb. 8 at the Lavan building in midtown Manhattan. Lossia, who also attends the Macomb Mathematics Science Technology Center program in the Warren Consolidated Schools district, was invited to NYFW through her reign as Miss Michigan Ultimate USA Teen.

Lossia walked the runway with other pageant winners from across the country. Each participant was allowed to pick one of three outfits to wear. Lossia was en vogue in a scuba-styled dress designed by Good Time USA.

“It was a sleek, simple, black outfit,” said the high school junior, who got to keep the dress.

Before the fashion show, Lossia and her fellow models had a quick rehearsal with a modeling coach. Then, it was showtime.

“The venue was two times the size of a banquet hall. The runway felt long,” Lossia said. “We got to walk a very long distance, hit three poses and then go back up. I think it went really well.”

Cameras clicked while she was under the spotlight.

“It really made you feel like a celebrity,” Lossia said.

Lossia, who also holds the title of Miss Michigan Northern States Teen 2025, said one highlight was getting to know pageant title holders from the other states, including Ohio, Texas and Florida. They bonded over common interests and fashion.

“It was really cool,” she said. “It was a lot of fun.”

Lossia went to New York with her mom, Janet, for a three-day weekend Feb. 7-9. She and her mom attended some of the other fashion events to show their support. For a fee, Lossia also appeared on a billboard where her picture was displayed in Times Square.

“It was smack dab in the middle of Times Square,” Lossia said. “It felt so surreal. It was the most memorable moment. I was glad to be able to represent Michigan there.”

Along with the fashion events, the pair took in as much sightseeing as they could — one stop was Hershey’s Chocolate World, where, Lossia said, “I bought my brother some snacks.”

Lossia’s neighbor, Gina Cavaliere, described the student as “an all-around good kid.”

“Savannah is the most well-spoken young person I’ve ever known and also one of the kindest and most grateful,” Cavaliere said. “She is an advocate against childhood hunger, a leader on the WCS First Robotics Team.”

Lossia is the captain of the Steel Armadillos Robotics Team and also runs track. As a pageant title holder, Lossia started her own chapter of the charity Hungry to Help.   

“You use your crown for good,” she said. “We’re starting it from the ground up.”

For more information about Hungry to Help, visit hungry2help.myportfolio.com. The site will direct visitors to those in need of food donations and also to ways to help the nonprofit organization.

New York Fashion Week is held twice a year, once in February and once in September, to showcase the spring/summer and fall/winter collections. Michael Kors, Tory Burch, Thom Browne, Agbobly, Private Policy and Zoe Gustavia Anna Whalen were among the many designers at this winter’s Fashion Week.