Nancy Hillis, better known as Mandy Nichols from Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee. A beauty queen and winner of Miss Congeniality in almost every pageant she was in, she reigned as Miss Big Beautiful Woman of America, was a featured twirler for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, once led the parade at Disney World, and raised two sons. She was a partner and singer in the hot jazz club known as Sweet Georgia Browns in Savannah, Georgia with the infamous Joe Odom. She has authored articles on drug addiction in adolescents; helped start an adolescent drug and alcohol treatment center; served as Chairman of the Adolescent Drug and Alcohol Abuse Committee for the MAG Auxiliary; served as a delegate to the AMA Auxiliary in Chicago; she testified at the at the house of delegates hearing on drug abuse; was a consultant on Alcohol and Drug Abuse for the U.S. Army at Fort Stewart; was Southeast Coordinator for Governor George Busbee's Task Force on Drug and Alcohol Abuse; and was an advisor for Senator Culver Kidd's "Stop Drugs at the Source" campaign in Georgia. She served on committees with dignitaries including Nancy Reagan; received letters of commendation from myriad State agencies; including named one of the ten outstanding people in the country under age 30. She has been active in issues of mental health. Now diagnosed with ALS, she is speaking out about nursing home abuse and about coping with the disease.