Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Miss Deaf America Pageant

There are a total of 22 contestants participating in this year's MDA competition. Contestants are divided into three groups: Mu, Delta, and Alpha. The competitions determine which contestants will compete for three consecutive afternoons on stage in the following categories: Platform Presentation, Artistic Expression and Presence & Poise.

MU:
Miss Deaf Alabama, Robyn Parker
Miss Deaf Colorado, Kathy Ronci
Miss Deaf Maryland, Michelle Lapides
Miss Deaf Missouri, JoAnn Benfield
Miss Deaf North Carolina, Carole Edwards
Miss Deaf Oregon, Ashley Beghtel
Miss Deaf Wisconsin, Wendy Arendt

DELTA:
Miss Deaf Arkansas, Brittney Caldwell
Miss Deaf California, Amanda Folendorf
Miss Deaf District of Columbia, Shanna Grossinger
Miss Deaf Georgia, Meleah Miller
Miss Deaf Illinois, Sarah Miller
Miss Deaf Minnesota, Katy Kelley
Miss Deaf Nebraska, Kristina Lorenzo
Miss Deaf New York, Alexandria Pucciarelli

ALPHA:
Miss Deaf Florida, Kimberly Wright
Miss Deaf Iowa, Laura Stefl
Miss Deaf Kansas, Tanna Jo Kolb
Miss Deaf Michigan, Jillian Gruetzner
Miss Deaf New Jersey, Jessica Malone
Miss Deaf Texas, Katherine Murich
Miss Deaf Virginia, Christy Bowers

Six Semi-Finalists:
1. Miss Deaf New York, Alexandria Pucciarelli
2. Miss Deaf Missouri, JoAnn Benfield
3. Miss Deaf Nebraska, Kristina Lorenzo
4. Miss Deaf Maryland, Michelle Lapides
5. Miss Deaf Texas, Katherine Murich
6. Miss Deaf District of Columbia, Shanna Grossinger

Official Results:

Platform Presentation Winners:
Preliminary 1: Miss Deaf Texas, Katherine Murich
Preliminary 2: Miss Deaf Maryland, Michelle Lapides
Preliminary 3: Miss Deaf New York, Alexandria Pucciarelli

Artistic Expression Winners:
Preliminary 1: Miss Deaf Arkansas, Britteny Caldwell
Preliminary 2: Miss Deaf Michigian, Jillian Gruetzner
Preliminary 3: Miss Deaf Maryland, Michelle Lapides

Miss Congeniality Winner:
Miss Congeniality: Miss Deaf Wisconsin, Wendy Arendt

Second Runner-up: Miss Deaf Missouri, JoAnn Benfield
First Runner-up: Miss Deaf Texas, Katherine Murich
Miss Deaf America 2008-2010: Miss Deaf Maryland, Michelle Lapides

The NAD Conference itself was amazing with the time I got to go to events and see SOME exhibits. I met amazing girls and deaf people from all over! I will always cherish my experience in New Orleans for the Miss Deaf America Pageant! I wish Michelle the best of luck as she continues her reign through 2010!

There is so much I can say about the experience that it just isn't worth putting down in words! You have to experience it yourself! To those of you who want to try for Miss Deaf (STATE) I encourage you to do so! It's a rewarding experience and opens many doors for you!

God Bless and I'm so sorry for a long time since my last update :-( It's been a hectic summer and hectic beginning of school year! I'm hoping to complete my last year (I'm a senior at GWU now) smoothly! I will not be updating as often now but hopefully after the 100th anniversary party for NCAD I will inform you of how it went! If you want to go check out www.ncadeaf.org for more information!

No comments: