The 2024 Irish Parade Princess
Layla Dudley
Meet Layla Dudley, parade princess
Some of her family members struggle with breathing issues, so she helps lead a team taking part in Hustle Up the Hancock, the yearly Chicago event that raises funds for respiratory health. With a cousin who is on the autism spectrum, she has for five years taken part in the Polar Plunge, which supports the Special Olympics. For Layla Dudley, it’s all in a day’s work.
An eighth-grader at Timber Ridge Middle School, Layla will ride in the Plainfield Hometown Irish Parade after being selected as this year’s event princess.
“I like helping people,” said Layla, 14. “I want to make a difference.”
Layla, a member of her school’s marching band, a dancer and a track athlete, has been inducted into the National Junior Honor Society chapter at Timber Ridge. She regularly earns straight A’s and especially likes math.
“She’s a very good kid,” said Jill Brown, Layla’s mom. “She’s remarkable.”
Layla said she envisions studying engineering when she gets to college. In the meantime, she’s also learning sign language.
“She’s very kind and caring,” said Nicole Brown, Jill’s sister, who nominated Layla for the parade title.
Nicole’s 15-year-old son, Nicholas Fandl, is on the autism spectrum and shares a home with his mom and Layla and her mom in southeast Plainfield.
“She’s been around special needs all her life,” Nicole said, noting that her niece typically reaches out to new kids at school and others who might not have an easy time making friends. “She’s just a great, caring person.”
Although she doesn’t claim a direct connection to the Emerald Isle, Layla has a grandfather who was raised in an Irish household after he was adopted, Jill said, and she’s fond of the Irish ways.
She also likes her home town, from her friends to the community at large.
“Everybody’s really nice,” she said.
Nicole is confident that her niece will reach her goal of making the world a better place.
“I mean, I know I’m her aunt,” she said. “But she amazes me every day.”