You know that strange phenomenon of how over time, humans begin looking like their pets? Or how couples who spend a lot of time together, somehow begin to morph into the same person? Or how every Taylor Swift album released somehow chronicles the exact stages of your own life?

Yeah – Well, no offense to TayTay (I’m a bit more of a Kelly Clarkson fan), but I never imagined my love of the Miss American Organization meant we’d both be going through a substantial transformation at the same time. Frankly, it’s kinda crazy how MAO’s recent changes seem to mirror my own sudden whiplash, attempts at re-centering, confusion, and the occasional feeling of being on a crazy-wild roller coaster ride that just won’t stop. Watching the Miss America Organization “march on” in the midst of massive turmoil, has been an interesting experience, given my own personal metamorphosis over the last 12 months.

You see, like Miss America, I moved on from a poor leader and gained a new one. Myself.

In addition, I found myself searching for a new group of people to steady me – to provide support – and to give me the ugly truth, even when I wasn’t able to see it on my own.

Further, I decided I hated the direction of my professional life – and I needed a new job description/ambition ASAP!

Finally, I drew a line in the sand and declared who I wanted to be. Unfortunately, drawing boundaries often means losing some friendships – but it also means I was back in the driver’s seat of my own life. I was no longer a passenger waiting for the vehicle to meander off in a undesirable direction without my consent.

Now – Unlike Miss America, none of these decisions regarding my own life have anything to do with wearing a bathing suit in public (I say, if you got it, flaunt it)… But, it has been extremely interesting to see how my personal decisions have impacted those around me. As it turns out, “being transparent” about your life (or about an organization you’re leading), isn’t as easy as you might think. Timing is everything. And too much change too soon is awfully hard to navigate. Not to mention the need to remain honest with your most loyal supporters.

Therefore, it’s my turn to announce something that’s been brewing inside of me for a long time…

I’m launching a new movement beyond pageantry.

It’s female focused – and it’s birthed out of a desire to watch what women can accomplish, when they decide to take control over their own lives.

It’s my contention that women struggle with their identity a great deal… that many women don’t know the difference between their “pageant-stage-persona” and their ability to know who they are, and what they want, at a core level. That underlying uncertainly often leads to a lack of real, life-changing, transformational relationships, which could positively shape the course of their future.

And let’s just say – If I had a dime for every time I heard a young woman say, “Now that I’m not competing in pageants anymore, I don’t really know what I should be working towards,” – I’d be rich (thanks Maren Morris).

Change is hard. Transitions stink. Break-ups, divorce, death, getting fired, moving to a new location, personal emotional trauma, finding new friends, and discovering what you really want in your own life – these are all difficulties which define us, and more often than enough, are super painful to walk through. Which is why I’m excited to announce my new venture… It’s called…

Feminine Revolutionz

And I’m happy to say, we’re going to be about the business of revolutionizing women’s lives. In short, at FRZ, we believe your life works best when you lean into exactly what you want. Further – we believe smart, capable women can still be lovely, and dare I say, attractive. In fact, we believe your life comes into greater alignment when you pursue both! You don’t have to settle – and you certainly don’t have to choose between being known as someone with brains, or someone with beauty.

We also believe personal development is the springboard to professional success – and that leadership is about serving others who are brilliant in their own right. That reframing your life, gives you the opportunity to re-claim your life, and so much more…

If you’d like to learn more, you’re welcome to join any of our social media pages (facebook, twitter, instagram)… This week, we’re going to be offering some introductions regarding the deeper reasons behind Feminine Revolutionz and the core values of our organization as we move forward.

It’s clear to me that the audience at Pageant Junkies is more than just a bunch of pretty people with a somewhat perplexing love of pageantry… More often than not, I’ve met Junkies from across the nation who are successful, quality human beings, who are loyal to the core, and interested in positive motivation with a dash of humor… And while Pageant Junkies has provided a great platform for me to deliver all those things – I was unsatisfied. Mainly, because my calling in life is more than just posting pictures and providing commentary on the Miss America program. I believe my calling is to launch a global movement for women.

Therefore, I see Feminine Revolutionz as a platform of service, which will allow me to connect with other women whose core values are similar to my own. I firmly believe you can’t reach the height of your professional success, unless you’re willing to “go deep” and work extensively on your own personal development – And that, is the heartbeat of this movement.

Oh Hey – Don’t worry about Pageant Junkies… We’re not going anywhere! We’re still going to offer our insights and commentary on this year’s Miss America COMPETITION, coming up in just a matter of weeks!!!

Although to be honest, I have no idea how in the world I’m going to make any prelim predictions (ugh!)… Seriously – Given the whole revamping of the scores and the new pre-requisites for judging – I might be better off just throwing darts at the wall to determine this year’s prelim winners! Who knows? I might actually resort to such tactics if I get desperate enough… Guess you’ll just have to wait and see…

In the meantime, I’ll be the one taking the reigns of my own life again… believing the best is yet to come (“if it’s meant to be, it’ll be”) – and that those who fervently work towards the true desires of their hearts with passion and determination, will be rewarded with incredible opportunities beyond even their wildest imaginations.

If you’re with me, then let me encourage and motivate you on a new platform. Feminine Revolutionz is ready to awaken the deepest desires inside of you – and revolutionize your life. Any and all “revolutionariez” are welcome to join us.

With Revolutionary Love,

Carrie Cox

 

 

 

 

Ladies and Gentlemen… Welcome to the Greatest Show on Earth!!! – It’s a Train-Wreck of epic proportions, a Poop-Storm no one can fathom, an Utterly Cataclysmic tiraid of emotions, currently known as Miss America 2.0.

With deference to the great PT Barnum (and of course, the fabulous Hugh Jackman), I believe the current conversation throughout social media regarding the Miss America leadership, the state volunteers, and anyone who’s currently competing, has previously competed, or watched their daughter/granddaughter/sister/niece/bff/bae/boo/etc compete at any level of the Miss America Organization, can easily be classified as a Circus-Media-Frenzy which I would call, “The Greatest Show”.

And by the looks of things, scores of pageant fans “can’t look away” and are fully engrossed in this organic and astonishing spectacle –  madly shoving handful after handful of popcorn in their mouths, while the rest of us fuss and flutter about in our fake tiaras.

It’s a little outrageous, to say the least.

And while I know it’s really “the main event” to all of us in the deep end of the pageant pool… Truly… Very few people outside of our little world could give a rip about the internal struggle that’s going on right now. Which is what makes it so gosh-darn hilarious (seriously people – take a breath – shake your head and laugh… it’s just a pageant)!

But that’s where it all started… I CAN’T EVEN CALL IT A PAGEANT ANYMORE – it’s now a competition!!! And if that were the only change taking place – I’m more than certain we’d all be hunky-dory, wiping away our mascara-laden happy tears, and getting along just fine. Unfortunately, nobody’s happy! Mainly because one set of fans LOVES all the changes, the other set of fan HATES all the changes, and those in the middle are left begging from the back of their parade convertibles, “Can’t we all just get along and have WORLD PEACE???”

In order to summarize how we arrived in this inauspicious position, let me outline all of the changes which have been announced by MAO leadership in the last 34 days…

1. No longer a pageant, now a “competition”
2. An all female board of directors
3. #ByeByeBikini (no more swimsuit competition – see previous post here)
4. Evening Wear is now to reflect the “Red Carpet” instead of the usual pageant-stage-friendly types of dresses (but at least it still exists)
5. The scoring changes for the competition in September now reflect Talent weighed at 50% of your prelim score (the remaining prelim competition looks like this: Private Interview 20%, Onstage Question 15%, Evening Wear/Red Carpet Questions 15%)
6. The Finals Night scoring sees additional changes along with MAO bringing back the ever-controversial Final Ballot (Composite Score 25%, Talent 30%, OSQ 25%, Evening Wear 20%, then the judges rank the Top 5 finalists to determine the winner)
7. We’re now calling them “candidates” instead of contestants (like a political campaign for a job)
8. Preliminary Awards will now be given for Talent and On-Stage Interview
9. During OSQ (on-stage question), it appears the young women will be having a “discussion” – not simply answering a question about their personal platform.
10. I also see several places where the candidates are supposed to aptly express their aptitude for the job of Miss America (and I’m wondering if that’s going to be somewhat reflective of a morning talk-show? Or maybe more like a blend of Shark Tank and The Bachelor – but I digress…)

And to be honest – there are additional changes including a new set on the Miss America stage, the judges are going to be able to interact with the candidates from a new position (um yeah – I’m back to the feel of a morning talk show with numerous guests being interviewed at the same time), we’ll finally have a live parade of states for the first time in Lord knows how long (instead of previously filmed at different locations around Atlantic City), and this one is the most interesting of all… The show will provide, and I quote…

“A more intimate execution that is highly energetic, fun, entertaining and allows the candidates to showcase their personality and intelligence.”

I have no idea what that means – but for me, it certainly sounds better than the same-ole, same-ole predictable broadcast we’ve been used to watching. Kinda like adding a bearded lady to the opening act – Lol! (… settle down… it’s a joke people… go rent the movie and you’ll see what I mean…).

Now… Interestingly enough, while all of those changes are taking place on “the main stage” – there’s been another Circus-Side-Show brewing in Ring Number Two…

Buckle up Junkies – We’re just getting started.

Four women recently stepped down (or rather, were asked to do so by MAO leadership) from the Miss America Board of Directors, including 2 former state titleholders and 2 former Miss America winners. Those four women released a statement regarding their departure from the Board (which you can read here), and then MAO leadership released their own response to their original communication (which you can read here).

That brings us to the third portion of this 3 Ring Circus – the “Vote of No Confidence” and request for EVERYONE on the Board of Trustees to RESIGN, from 22 State Directors (which you can see here). The main beef from these 22 State Directors is, and once again, I quote…

“We were promised transparency, competence and adherence to the best practices with good governance… In our opinion their leadership has demonstrated that “Miss America 2.0” is simply a new title for the same old tactics of obfuscation and fear-based governance.”

Subsequently (and by now, somewhat predictably), 29 former Miss America winners (plus 3 others formers who now sit on the board) issued their own statement of unification and support for the new leadership and current direction (which you can see here).

Like I said… It’s a social media fiasco.

SO!

As usual, I’m not here to offer my personal comments on the changes themselves – My job in the online blogging pageant/competition universe is to observe, take a few jabs at the wackos on all sides of the arguments, offer some rationalization, and try to provide a teeny bit of perspective to an otherwise inflammatory situation.

Wish me luck.

The Cast of Characters:
This is the Greatest Show

 

The Ring Leader – PT Barnum

The Miss America leadership represents Hugh Jackman – The Greatest Showman himself, with killer creativity and amazing ideas, pushing for change and daring to envision something greater than has ever been seen on the Miss America stage before. With a strong will to succeed and an exciting thrust of enthusiasm behind him/them, these ladies in leadership are daring to envision the kind of Miss America they believe the world will respect and is ready to receive. And it’s about time…

The Steady Rock on the Homefront – Charity

Conversely, PT Barnam’s wife Charity (Michelle Williams), who is sternly devoted to the MAO program (her husband’s dream), represents many of the state directors and THOUSANDS of volunteers across the country. She/they often seems to be asking the question, “Why is all of this necessary? Why we fixing things that aren’t broken? And why do you feel the need to mislead me, in order to get me to follow you? It’s too much – too soon – and I’m not convinced it’s even necessary.” And frankly, she’s got a point.

In addition, the State Directors claim the leadership lied by saying ABC was going to drop the telecast of Miss America this year if MAO didn’t dump swimsuit. And MAO leadership is saying they didn’t lie about it – but either get on board or get out of the way of progress. Miss America is on life-support, and we’re doing everything we can to keep her relevant in this new day and age! Meanwhile, the State Directors don’t mind progress, they just don’t want to be lied to about how to best achieve progress… it makes it feel like a personal agenda (not cool) rather than a necessary element of success (understandable, if accurate). Whew. Pass me a Margarita already.

The “Acts” within the Show (everyone’s got an act)

Meanwhile, you’ve got 51 state titleholders which were crowned using an entirely different set of criteria when they won their state competition – AND – Several state titleholders who were selected before the announcement of “no more swimsuits” was even made! For those of you competing for the title of Miss America 2019 later this September and you happen to be reading this post, please remember what my friend Leighton Jordan (Miss Georgia 2012) said in one of my favorite podcasts…

“God is going to bless 1 person with the job of Miss America, and He’s going to save 50 of us from it!”

For those of you doing your best to maintain homeostasis while this whole thing unfolds, keep that in your back pocket and pull it out when you need it. This too shall pass. *wink*

The Audience

Dear Lord… In this analogy, the audience consists of everyone debating every twist and turn of this improbable drama in front of God and everyone. You’ve got former Swimsuit Winners who are up in arms about Talent now being worth 50%. You’ve got MAO loyalists who remember when Talent was actually worth 50% back in the day and are thrilled to see it return. You’ve got current competitors who are re-thinking whether or not they even have a shot at becoming Miss State because their Talent is sub-par. You’ve got parents who feel guilty because they didn’t put their child in ballet classes at the age of 3 (how can they possibly compete now???) – or they feel defensive because their daughter is extremely articulate and has devoted her life to community service work, but it’s not fair that she doesn’t have a “stage talent”.

I’m going to stay here for a little while because in my mind, these arguments are varied and interesting… After all, before American Idol, America’s Got Talent, So You Think You Can Dance, and The Voice – Miss America was the original reality show. And in case you weren’t around in the 80’s, the Talent was quite good when it was worth 50% of one’s score!

The problem is, because of the rise of numerous live talent shows over the last 15 years, young women with killer talent DON’T NEED to participate in Miss America anymore (they can just go to one of the reality shows mentioned above). Further – it’s nearly impossible for Miss America to compete with those reality shows because she gets ONE NIGHT on TV (and 90 seconds of Talent) compared to every one of the programs mentioned above, which gets up to 40 EPISODES of continual audience participation and momentum.

However – on the flip-side, if the television audience can no longer be captured by young women in swimsuits, then they’re certainly going to have to be captivated by something worth watching – and frankly, I’m fairly certain a stellar talent is going to grab more ratings than a superb interviewer on TV ever will (yes, yes, even though “the job” of Miss America is that of a spokesperson. I know, I know).

Like I said… The audience (like the elephant dung) is all over the freaking place. Most of us know it’s ridiculous to think everyone is going to somehow be happy with the new show – but the problem is, many people in the audience have been dutifully punching their tickets for DECADES, in hopes of one day seeing their favorite contestant win the main event in AC. They feel slighted. Ignored. Pushed aside by former winners who claim to know best, when in many cases, those in the audience have given 20, 30 or even 50+ years of their lives to this organization.

Trouble is (as PT Barnum knows), if the show is any good at all – You’ve got to have more people watching in the stands than directly participating in the show. Otherwise, you’ll never make a profit. Which brings us to where we are today…

Here’s the problem… We’re missing Zac Ephron (Phillip Carlyle)

Zac’s character in the movie “The Greatest Showman” is the bridge between the current leadership, the acts on stage, and those in the audience. Lots of people are trying to play this part on social media by responding to inflammatory posts, but the problem is – MAO needs to get 22 State Directors back on board for some positive PR and to help carry the water with their new vision. Now, perhaps that’s all taking place behind the scenes and this Junkie simply doesn’t know about it. But from where I’m sitting (albeit the cheap seats), without an intermediary, the poop has already hit the fan… It’s just a matter of time before the stink starts to permeate the building.

Therefore, at this point, instead of me continuing to babble on like a banshee – I’d like to turn this blog into an interactive post…

I’m curious… Let’s pretend YOU are the State Director for your respective state… Considering the fact that Miss America 2.0 is primed and ready for a new direction, I’d like you to give me 3 sentences regarding the Top 3 things YOU would do (things you’d change/keep/new ideas/etc) for Miss America 2.0 – and do you support a vote of No Confidence in the current leadership, or not?

Feel free to make your comments below or on any of the respective social media platforms where you originally found this post. You can also email me at ThePageantJunkies@gmail.com.

As for me and my house, I’m about to find me a big ‘ole bag of cotton candy and a blue-raspberry covered snow-cone, then glean some insight and tally the total of your responses…

After all – This is the Greatest Show…

#BigJunkieLove

Carrie Lakey

 

Carrie Lakey is kind of obsessed with Miss America…
So are 22,000 of her closest friends.

As an avid fan of the Miss America Organization, Carrie began
publicly predicting pageant winners over 10 years ago.
Now, she’s galvanizing an online movement of fans
known as “Pageant Junkies”.
Learn more about the Junkie Nation
by clicking here.

 

 

Well Hello Tuesday Morning! LOL!!!

The “big announcement” many of us in MAO-land have been waiting for is finally here…

Earlier this morning on Good Morning America, new Miss America Chairwoman and former Miss America 1989 Gretchen Carlson stated that Miss America is no longer a pageant – “We are a competition” – and that the Swimsuit Portion of the Miss America competition would be completely eliminated. Further, the Evening Gown phase of the competition was being revamped to include opportunities for contestants to wear the attire of their choice (see the official interview here).

Good Gollie Miss Molly… Nothing like a “little 97 year change” to send all of us in the deep-end of the pageant pool into a total tizzy… That’s the kind of announcement which stirs up ALL KINDS of thoughts and opinions from passionate pageant people (whoops! I mean, “competition” peeps)…

Based on what I can gather, Miss America will now represent a new generation of female leaders, focused on scholarship, social impact, talent and empowerment.

After the initial word came down and the impact was perceived, I took a few moments this morning to peruse the web, checking out people’s varied reactions to the news. Interestingly enough, I found an array of opinions – many of which I’ve attempted to summarize and encapsulate into the following post…

To that end, instead of the “Four Points of the Crown” – I’m about to give you the “Four Corners of the Room” so to speak, regarding today’s announcement from Miss America Chairwoman, Gretchen Carlson…

Settle in Junkies… Here we go…

Corner #1:

In this corner, we see the all-new, Miss America 2.0. An all-female leadership team, made up of former contestants, full of highly successful, well-accomplished, hard-working and dare I say, brilliant women. Many of you know Gretchen Carlson was a Stanford Grad, a violin virtuoso, and busted her tail for decades as she climbed the ladder of broadcast journalism to make it the big time (CBS, Fox, etc), only to sue her former employer for sexual harassment and kick off the #MeToo movement (yes – she’s pretty much been credited with initiating the whole thing). The new CEO Regina Hopper is a former Miss Arkansas who won an Emmy for her investigative reporting work on CBS, became a highly respected business executive and strategic lobbyist in DC, and was also a lawyer to boot. And that’s just the two ladies at the top!

This corner also includes many former Miss America winners who have gone on to accomplish some pretty amazing things in their lives… Winners like Debbye Turner, Leanza Cornett, Kirsten Haglund, and Mallory Hagan just to name a few… Winners who likely “tolerated” the swimsuit competition – seeing it as a means to an end. And the end, certainly justified the means because let’s face it – when it comes to their industry of choice, nobody cares how they looked in a swimsuit at the time.

I see this corner, as the corner of ACCOMPLISHMENT… Women who are driven, gifted communicators, and well-educated… Women who believe Miss America represents the kind of woman who should get the opportunity to make a serious impact and change our nation for the better. Because in many cases, she already has.

Corner #2

In this corner, we see die-hard pageant fans flailing and flapping their fabulously manicured fingers in disbelief. After all, Miss America STARTED AS A SWIMSUIT COMPETITION!!! This portion of the pageant is sooooooo ingrained in their minds as almost synonymous with Miss America – that to even TOUCH that phase of competition is unnecessary, unreasonable and dare I say, sacrilegious! Many of them believe it’s the “end of an era” (and they would be right) – but also that it’s the first nail in the coffin of the impeding doom of MAO. After all, who’s going to watch a competition on TV that only offers talent and a live interview? And what in the world are they going to WEAR for this live interview competition? Something other than an evening gown? Something that makes them feel empowered? What if a swimsuit makes me feel empowered? Can I wear my bikini during the live interview competition (lololol!)???

For this corner of the room – the questions just keep coming… Questions like, “So – does this mean we’re about to crown a size 10/12 and (gasp!) and potentially unattractive woman? Heck! Will we even put a crown on her head??? And will it fit??????? LOLOLOL!!!

I’m going to call this corner of the room the DIE-HARDS… Because let’s face it, these folks are going to their graves kicking and screaming that Miss America DIED the day they removed the swimsuit portion of the pageant… May she rest in peace…

Corner #3

Interestingly, in this corner, I see an awful lot of former contestants who have a full and robust appreciation for the swimsuit competition. Women who weren’t necessarily “naturally gifted” with a gorgeous and stunning body right out of the womb – but women who took the swimsuit portion of the competition as a challenge… Something that taught them discipline, something that incentivized them to “work harder and be better” than they ever thought they could be.

The word I keep seeing women in this corner use, is “empowered” – Which is interesting, because that’s the very word the new leadership is using regarding their reasons for dropping the swimsuit portion of the competition (ironic, ey?). These ladies say the swimsuit competition is what “empowered” them… That they never felt more “empowered” than they did when they walked on the Miss America stage in their swimsuit (and heels), showcasing all the hard work and confidence they gained while pushing their bodies to new limits. For many of them, “success” came when they realized they needed to prioritize the swimsuit competition – and all that hard work paid off. They’re proud of the way they looked when they were at the top of their game! And for many of them, it was truly a “lifestyle” that exuded positive changes which lasted years beyond the pageant stage.

For many reasons, I see this corner as the BEAUTY AND BRAINS corner of the room… Folks here are saying that a woman can be brilliant AND drop dead gorgeous at the same time. They’re saying that just because I look freaking fabulous in a killer bikini, I’m no dummy! These women are challenging the notion that as a young girl, you have to choose… Do you want to be known as smart? Or do you want to be known as pretty? This corner of the room says – If you want to be, YOU CAN BE BOTH!  And by taking away the swimsuit competition – Miss America is actually taking away the notion that those two things CAN go together.

Corner #4

Finally, in this corner, I see the competition HOPEFULS. These are the women who are looking for scholarship dollars, but can’t fathom the idea of putting on a swimsuit – even for 15 seconds – just to pay for school. They’ve trained in their craft (or talent) for years and years – They’ve worked hard academically and advanced in school. But because of the astronomical cost of college these days, they’re still falling short regarding how in the world they’re going to pay for their education.

These are the women Miss America wants to bring into the fold. Women who have the self-discipline gained from honing a talent to its strongest point… Women who are already articulate, grounded in their personal beliefs, sharp, and aren’t afraid of talking to the press about their passions and platforms. Women who care deeply about social and societal impact – who are volunteering and championing their favorite causes in their communities. Women who believe people shouldn’t be judged on how they look – but on who they are. As CEO Regina Hopper put it, “Miss America’s new mission statement is to prepare great women for the world, and to prepare the world for great women.” And in truth – if that’s the mission statement, the bikinis seem a little outdated…

So Miss Molly… Where do we go from here…?

In my opinion, the line of the day includes the following sentence from Gretchen Carlson during her interview on GMA…

“We will no longer judge our candidates on their outward physical appearance. That’s huge. And that means we will no longer have a swimsuit competition.”

Here’s what I love about leadership. The leader gets to decide where the organization is going to go – and then they state their case regarding why they’re passionate about this new direction. Then, all the previous followers make their own choice as to whether or not they’re going to continue following (even after some venting and clarifying about how the change is a little painful). Therefore – I’m not about to give an opinion on whether or not I think the leadership is “spot on” or “way off”… Rather, I’m going to finish this post in a different manner…

As we all know, Junkie Predictions are kinda my thing…  Therefore – After seeing these 4 corners of the room, here’s my 4 predictions for the future of Miss America…

1. My guess is, rapid and extensive organizational change is about to take place within the State and Local leadership of MAO… And in some cases, I think many of us would say, that’s a good thing! In other cases, there are likely a good number of directors who are simply not supportive of the new mission and they’ll quietly retire. It’s a changing of the guard that many of us never thought we’d see happen. But trust me – it’s about here.
2. I’m also guessing that come September, we’re going to crown a crazy talented, super-dynamic, EXCEEDINGLY well spoken young woman as Miss America 2019. As far as the years after such? I have no idea what that looks like right now…
3. Miss America can SAY they are now inclusive and prepared to welcome women of all shapes and sizes into the fold – But until we SEE those types of women succeeding on the Miss America stage, nobody’s gonna know if they’re truly serious about this new direction or not. Miss America needs a “win” on national TV super soon… Meaning, it’s imperative that they crown a “new kind of winner” this year in order to get a “new kind of contestant” next year.
4. I hope the influx of new contestants out-weighs the exodus of current contestants. Let’s be honest – contestants who come back year after year attempting to win their state title are the foundation of a strong program. Ask any of the states with 40+ contestants and you’ll likely see a SUBSTANTIAL showing of ladies who’ve participated in a pageant before. Now that there’s a new mission in mind – I hope there’s enough “new blood” to outweigh the long-time pageant veterans who may no longer be interested in Miss America’s new direction (or who may be moving to Miss USA/Miss World/Miss Whoever).

Here’s the deal…

Regardless of your corner of the room, the Miss America Organization has placed a stake in the ground. They are declaring a new day for what Miss America stands for – and what she represents. Therefore, my question to you is…

Can you support the new mission statement of Miss America?

“To prepare great women for the world,
and to prepare the world for great women.”

If you can support that statement – here’s step #2…

Can you see yourself “preparing great women for the world” in ways other than, helping them look good in a bikini?

Because until I see otherwise, that’s what it means to be Miss America 2.0.

#BigJunkieLove

Carrie Lakey

 

Carrie Lakey is kind of obsessed with Miss America…
So are 22,000 of her closest friends.

As an avid fan of the Miss America Organization, Carrie began
publicly predicting pageant winners over 10 years ago.
Now, she’s galvanizing an online movement of fans
known as “Pageant Junkies”.
Learn more about the Junkie Nation
by clicking here.