OLATHE, Kan. — As a child, there’s an indescribable feeling when you got a brand-new Barbie Doll.
"These are my dolls I wanted when I was a little girl," Sonya Larson said.
Often times, Larson would only see a certain type. Sometimes it took a little extra work to find a Barbie that looked like her.
"[I] Couldn’t find a Black Barbie hardly ever, so [my mom] did not get me one," Larson said. "I said when I was 16, I wanted my daughter to feel how I felt without an array of barbies to choose from, so when I got my first job, I started buying Barbies."
Now, she's almost 50 years old in her own Barbie world.
"It’s a lifestyle," she said.
Whether you want her to have pin curls, an updo, an afro — you can look no further than Larson’s basement. It's really her mini Barbie museum.
"It’s for the love of the doll, I didn’t realize how much I love this doll," Larson said. "My mom called me earlier today. She said, 'I’m at the store, they have this doll.' And I said, does she speak to you?"
Larson's room holds only a fraction of at least 1,000 barbie dolls. The collection speaks to Larson in a way she wished she had growing up.
She hopes little girls will be inspired when they walk in to see a wall of Black Barbie dolls.
"You are seen," she said. "You are seen."
The Barbie premiere is taking over theaters starting Thursday.
Larson will be hosting a Barbie movie event Friday and Saturday to raise money for the Barbie Dream Gap Project.
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