Now I am really curious. It would help if we knew more about where the OP lived.
I found a link to a Miss Christian pageant in Georgia
gachristianpageants.com/, though I doubt it is something like that if she is likening it to a First Communion.
I know that there are very conservative Protestant sects who advocate women and girls wearing headcoverings–could it be a ceremony in which a girl receives something like that as a mark of womanhood? Not sure as many of those also practice headcoverings for little girls, but there might be something that signals a switch to womanhood.
I still think it’s more likely related to the quinceanera I mentioned before
http://www.epcc.edu/nwlibrary/borderlands/10_a_hispanic_girl’s.htm
"This mass is filled with symbolic meanings. During the offertory, the girl receives a sacred medal of her saint, a birthstone ring, a crown and flowers.
The sacred medal symbolizes her religious expression of faith. The Quinceañera is placed under the protection of the saint represented by the image on the medal. The ring represents the ties and the responsibility the young lady has to her community. These two pieces of jewelry are the girl’s first adult jewelry , constant reminders that she is a child no longer. The crown symbolizes her victory in trying to live a Christian life in spite of all the problems and challenges of her environment. The flowers represent the new commitment she makes to responsibility in her community. "
I had thought it was primarily a Catholic thing, but with the large number of Hispanics converting to Protestant Evangelical churches (if the immigrants in our area are anything to go by), the practice may well now be part of that tradition as well.
