May 21, 2010
Hello everyone! I am your
new Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen, MaryKatherine Fechtel!
If I had to choose a word to describe my life recently, I would say it
has been exhilarating. I have been blessed beyond what I could imagine.
With the new experiences, new opportunities, and new people I have met,
I am already seeing how truly amazing the Miss Florida Organization is!
Mary Sullivan and the entire Miss Florida Board, along with the judges,
have been extremely welcoming and thoughtful to me. I promise I will
strive to make you proud!
Before I was crowned, I had a memorable weekend with my fellow Miss
Florida’s Outstanding Teen contestants! On Thursday we met each other at
orientation, and I was shocked at how heartwarming they all were! We had
a blast together on Friday, and to this day I have a plethora of amazing
memories from rehearsals. Thank all you girls for making me laugh the
entire time!
I am also thankful that I had to opportunity to spend time and learn
from former Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2009, Myrrhanda Jones. As
she took her last walk across the stage, I remember thinking to myself
what huge shoes the next winner was expected to fill! Who knew that it
was about to be me? In the coming weeks I’m looking forward to helping
my community formulate programs which tie in with my platform. Also, I
will be attending the Miss Florida orientation and speaking there.
I can’t wait to meet the contestants!
God Bless,
MaryKatherine Fechtel
February 8, 2010
Hello
Friends and Family,
Well it’s February already! This year has been zooming by a lot faster
than I want it to. I have two months left in this incredible journey but
a lifetime to use the opportunities that have been opened to me. I have
been going to as many local pageants as possible this spring. I have to
admit; it is a little strange being on the other side of everything.
Being in the audience and not competing is just strange. Although, I
love performing at locals and speaking to the audience and getting to
talk to all the girls backstage. Hopefully, I can give a little wisdom
and encouragement to them while they are competing. It is so crazy to
think that one of the teens that I have seen crowned might be the next
Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen! Actually, yesterday I went to the Miss
Gainesville pageant’s orientation and spoke about my year. I am excited
to give up my title as the inaugural Miss Gainesville’s Outstanding Teen
and crown a new winner. My mom and I sat in the car and were thinking
about how last year, going to that first meeting was the most intense
situation. I just quickly have to thank Merissa and Jason, the Miss
Gainesville pageant executive directors, for giving me a great year,
wonderful memories, and lifelong friendships. You guys are great!
Just an update on my normal, day-to-day life. Being dual enrolled at The
University of Florida has been the greatest thing for me! I am 100% dual
enrolled at UF, meaning all of my classes are at UF. It has been so
wonderful to be getting both my high school and college education done
at the same time. This semester I am enrolled in a Chemistry, Dance, and
English class. I am very proud to say that I received a 100% on my very
first English paper! Besides school, I teach and twirl baton 5 times
during the week. This past week, I had one of those, “WOW” moments. I
teach this little girl who is 10 years old and is the sweetest little
thing. This past week, while we were practicing, I had asked her how
school was going, and she looked at me and smiled really big and said
that her teacher asked each person in her class what they wanted to be
when they grow up. In response to this question, Elizabeth said she
wanted to grow up to be just like Miss Myrrhanda, and teach baton. In
that moment, I just broke down. To know that I am having that kind of
impact on a child, just hit me deep. I remember being that age and
thinking how I wanted to be a baton twirler and Miss America when I grew
up. God has a wonderful way of showing me that I can make a difference
in the world when I trust in Him.
Before this year, I never would have dreamed that I would have gone to
THE Miss America pageant. That was a dream of mine since a child but I
never thought that it would be a reality. Well two weeks ago, my dream
came true! Both my parents and I hopped on a plane to Las Vegas and
arrived on Monday. On Tuesday, we drove out to the mesmerizing Hoover
Dam. I am still in complete amazement about the size and when they built
that great structure. Tuesday night was the first night of prelims. All
of the teens that I had competed with in August were there! It was so
exciting to see all of them again. It was like seeing all your family at
Christmas time. We sat together and watched the show. Rachael competed
in swimsuit and in evening gown. Rachael rocked the swimsuit! She
couldn’t have looked better! Then when she came out in her gown, I was
floored. She was absolutely beautiful. Then Wednesday, Rachael preformed
talent. A night that I looked forward to see for a while. I was in
complete shock! I had never seen Rachael dance like that! She really did
a wonderful job! I could definitely feel the emotion behind her
performance. Great energy! On Thursday, all the teen had rehearsals all
day, which felt just like we were back at MAOT. On Thursday night, we
preformed Miley Cyrus’ Hoedown Throwdown. It was just an honor to be at
the pageant, let alone be performing on THE Miss America stage! What an
adrenaline rush! I can’t wait to be back on that stage again one day ;)
I have to say congratulations to the new Miss America, Caressa Cameron.
I hope you have a blessed year! To Rachael, I just have to say that I am
so proud of you. This experience has opened my eyes to how passionate,
poised, and amazing you truly are. I am so blessed to have you as my
sister! You will always be our Miss Florida 2009 and my Miss America.
Until Next Time,
Myrrhanda Jones
Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2009
November 2, 2009
Hello to my Friends and
Pageant Family!
I have had a very busy past two months! Let me just say, it is an
amazing honor to represent the Florida’s Outstanding Teen Program. It
has given me so many wonderful opportunities in the last four months --
things I had never dreamed of doing and meeting amazing, influential
people. To start off with, on August 22, I volunteered at the Annual
Boys and Girls Club Auction. The theme was Passport To Rio. It was a
blast! There was a ton of auction items that I got to walk around with
-- Miss Gainesville, Laura Beard and Miss Alachua, Brittany Fornof were
also there. We all had a great time catching up and spent the night
laughing and selling raffle tickets! A couple days later I had the
privilege to help out at Shands Hospital in Gainesville for the CMN
Radiothon. I answered phones and took pledges all day! What an amazing
honor to be part of something that really makes a difference. I even
donated 62 monkeys and you could call-in and pledge $15 per month for a
year to send a monkey up to a child in the pediatric intensive care
unit. People pledged $1000 for 10 of my monkeys!! It was crazy to see
how people went bananas over my monkeys and I raised $15,260 for CMN!
That Saturday was CMN Art Day at Shands. They brought children down from
the Pediatric Unit and they got to paint all sorts of things-- cool
things that would be auctioned off! We had 8 local Miss America
titleholders there to help paint! The joy that came from those
children’s faces made getting paint all on my jeans worth it!!!
I rode a float in the UF Homecoming Parade with Laura, Brittany, and our
Sunshine Princesses and Prince. What fun to see the kids faces light up
and wave back at us! I had the chance to give a speech at the Executive
Directors meeting in October. It was fun to see Rob, Dana and all of the
Miss Florida Board again! I love all of you guys! I was able to spend
some time with Rachael -- I love hanging out with her! She is such an
amazing person and is so passionate about everything she’s involved in.
October 24 was the National Make a Difference Day. I woke up really
early and did an Alzheimer’s Memory Walk, and then I had a band
competition in Lake City, where I had a bake sale and picked up water
bottles for recycle. Go Green Florida!!! Newberry High School was 1 of 4
bands to get Superior! Go Panthers! Well when I got home I had a dog
wash but there wasn’t a really big turn out -- although I did have fun
with the dogs I got to wash! The next day, I brought PJ’s to a local
radio show that was having a PJ drive for the Homeless. I had a radio
interview and spoke about how important it is to get involved with our
community and really make a difference! This has been my month! I really
look forward to more appearances and would really like to travel over
the state. Any appearances you want me at, please contact Mary, Rob or
Dana. I love this job and feel so honored and blessed to be representing
such a great organization!
With Love,
Myrrhanda Jones
Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2009
August 21, 2009
Dear Miss Florida
Pageant Family & Friends:
It has been an amazing ride this past couple of weeks as Miss Florida’s
Outstanding Teen 2009. I have definitely been busy! On July 14th, I had
my first official interview as MFOT and I had a blast! Jason and Merissa
(my local pageant directors) came with me to the Interview. On July
17th, my dad showed me how much he really loves me. (LOL) . We woke up
at 2 o’clock in the morning and drove to Homestead to meet Mrs. Mary at
Ann Marie’s. I now can say I have some of the most beautiful, trendy
clothes I have ever owned. Miss Ann Marie is the most sophisticated
woman I’ve ever met. One day, I hope to grow up and be as collected and
poised as her. Within the following two days, my mother and I unpacked
from pageant week, did all our laundry and repacked for a trip to
Indiana. Every year since I was 8 years old, my family and I go up to
South Bend, IN for AYOP a.k.a. Baton Twirling Nationals. It’s always
been my dream to place top twenty in the Miss Majorette of America
pageant and finally this year I did! I was ecstatic when I finished
exactly 20th in the pageant. I also received 5th in two baton and 9th in
solo. Best year yet! On July 25th, I flew back home and woke up the next
morning with the mindset of getting “THE” dress. Mom and I drove to
Orlando and met Mrs. Mary, Mr. Rob, Rachael, and Mrs. Todd at Regalia.
With the help of Carry (and everyone else) I got “THE” gown for MAOT! I
really don’t think I quit smiling the whole way home J. Now this has
been the best appearance that I have made as MFOT. I was asked to be on
The Ilene Silverman Television Show! Yes, I got to be on a talk show!
Mrs. Ilene was a wonderful host and always kept me laughing. Especially
when Laura Beard (Miss Gainesville) and I had the chance to crown Mrs.
Ilene! The next few days I had band camp! Best way to get a base tan! My
band has been so supportive of my pageant accomplishments! They even
have one of my autograph cards in our band room. On August 5th, I
registered for my classes at the University of Florida. August 6th
started a journey that I will always remember. Miss America’s
Outstanding Teen 2010. WOW it is such a privilege to even say I am part
of the 2010 class of MAOT. I am so blessed with the way everything
played out. I won a preliminary evening gown award and finished 2nd
runner up! I am so grateful to everyone that came to the pageant to
support me! Congratulations to our new Miss America’s Outstanding Teen
2010, Jeanette Morlean. When I come home I had an interview with a local
magazine and with our local TV channel. I look forward to many
appearances in the upcoming weeks!
Most Humbled,
Myrrhanda Jones
Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2009
June 30, 2009
To My Pageant Family,
As I look at the calendar I see that my time as Miss Florida’s
Outstanding Teen 2008 is almost over but my memories will last a
lifetime. I want to again let everyone know what a wonderful honor this
has been for me. Having won the title at the age of 15 it has been a
dream come true. I have treasured each person I have met on my journey
and am so thankful to have been given this opportunity. I have grown so
much from this experience and will take this knowledge into my future
endeavors.
To all the contestants preparing for the Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen
2009 pageant in St. Petersburg next week, I want to wish each and every
one of you the best of luck. This is such a wonderful experience and I
look forward to seeing everyone at registration on Tuesday.
I want to again thank all the wonderful members of the Miss Florida
Board for all the encouragement and help in this great journey. You have
each touched my heart and I will always treasure your thoughtfulness. My
special thanks to Rob and Dana, you are so special to me and I
appreciate all that you have done to help me grow into the young lady I
am today. And a very special thank you goes to Mary Sullivan for without
your guidance I don’t know what this year would have been. You have been
such a support and role model for me. Thank you for all you do for this
organization.
Until we meet again, may God bless and keep you safe.
Courtney Sexton
Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2008
April 26, 2009
Hello Pageant
Family!
Spring is in the air, the Easter bunny has made his rounds and baseball
season has begun. On Easter Day, I had the privilege of attending the
Jacksonville Suns games as a guest of Reggie Dalton of Eggland’s Best
Eggs. Before the game began the baseball field was covered with eggs and
the children came with Easter baskets and bags. It was so much fun to
see all the children out there picking up eggs. I also had the honor of
meeting the owners of the Suns and the team manager. Then it was time
for the first pitch and yes I was one of the lucky people to throw out a
pitch. My dad said it would have been a strike if we were really
playing. Lynne Dalton and I walked around and met even more young people
out on such a beautiful spring day. Thank you again to Mr. & Mrs. Dalton
for the kind invitation. You are two of the sweetest and kindest people
I have ever met.
To keep you updated…on January 31st, I attended the Miss Suwannee
River/Miss Heart of Suwannee River pageant. It is always such fun to see
so many friends! I had a blast having my picture taken with the outgoing
teens, newly crowned winners and even Miss Florida 2007 Kylie Williams.
On Sunday, February 1, I co-emceed the Miss Central Florida Coast/Miss
Volusia Flagler County Pageant with Megan Clementi, a former MAO
contestant. This was my first time emceeing a pageant and I was a little
nervous but with the help of Katie (Mathews Johnson) Barrie and Megan it
all came together. Thank you ladies for your support and encouragement.
I am so thankful to Mary Ann Mathews Johnson for this opportunity to
emcee and crown the new winners.
On Monday night February 2nd, I attended the Miss UF/Florida Gator
pageant in Gainesville. One of my National Princesses Elizabeth was also
there. She is such a sweetie and I love seeing her and her family.
On Saturday, February 7th I had an opportunity to co-emcee and entertain
at the Miss Jacksonville/Miss River City pageant. I performed the dance
I did at the Miss America’s OT pageant and had a blast emceeing. I hope
to get better with each opportunity and want to thank Mrs. Ruth Sidbury
for extending this invitation.
Saturday, February 21st Mom and I got in the car for a road trip to the
Miss Largo/Miss Pinellas County and Miss St. Petersburg pageant. It was
great visiting with the many new teen contestants that attended the
pageant.
Saturday, March 7th I attended the Miss Gainesville/Miss Alachua County
pageant. I had the honor of helping on stage by drawing the winning
ticket and all in all it was an elegant evening put on by Merissa
Amkraut and Jason Curchy.
On Saturday, March 28th my sister Brittany and I headed down to the Miss
Lakeland/Miss Sunshine pageant where I got to co-emcee with David Lang
(my dear friend from Regalia) and also crown the new winners. I always
have a blast around David and this night was no exception. A special
thank you to the director Angela Harwell for this invitation. After the
pageant Brittany and I went to dinner with Mary Sullivan, Rob Loy (my
Teen co-executive director), Keith Williams & David Lang.
On April 1st I blew out candles marking my sixteenth birthday, but due
to the rain, I had to wait a day to get my driver’s license. The rain
passed and so did I!
And finally on April 4th I attended the Miss Clay County/Miss North
Florida pageant with Mom and my best friend. It was great seeing all the
familiar faces of both contestants and titleholders from the local area.
At each of these events I had the pleasure of representing our beautiful
state as Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2008. I can not express the
pride I have for this title, and I want to thank everyone for their warm
and caring greetings. Everywhere I go I feel like I am treated like
family. I look forward to seeing everyone at Orientation but I have to
say I am not ready to give up the wonderful honor of being Miss
Florida’s Outstanding Teen.
Until next time, may God watch over you and bless you with his grace and
love.
Courtney
January 29, 2009
Hello Pageant
Family!
Let me start by saying CONGRATULATIONS SIERRA!!!!!!!!! You made us
proud!
What an amazing week I had in Las Vegas. I was able to arrive late
Monday night so I had plenty of time to see the sights on Tuesday and
Wednesday before rehearsal and the workshop began. All of the MAOT 2008
contestants were invited to perform at the Thursday night Prelim. It was
great to see all of the girls and not having to compete certainly took
the stress off of me. We could just enjoy ourselves and have fun. I had
such a great time watching Sierra each night at prelims and can really
tell you how much she shines on stage. We also attended the visitations
each night.
Friday we attended the Miss America’s Outstanding Teen/Dolphin
Entertainment workshop and then it was off to lunch at Ocean One Grille
in the Miracle Mile Mall. Later that day we had an autograph signing at
the Trade Show at Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino. I want to thank
all the sponsors of these wonderful events. Friday night the teens
decided to get together at the Hard Rock Café for dinner. We had fun
spending time together and of course getting pictures.
January also included being invited to Sierra’s send off party. I can’t
tell you how wonderful it was to be a part of the excitement. Sierra has
such a wonderful family and support group around her. She shared how she
started in pageants and the road to Miss Florida. As you listen to her
you can see not only her outer beauty but her inner beauty as well.
December had so many wonderful appearances and allowed me to spend time
with Sierra. On December 12th we were invited by Lynne Dalton to a Wheel
of Fortune taping at Sea World in Orlando. It was cold but we had a
blast. On Saturday, December 13th Sierra and I went to the Midtown
Holiday Gala. We had our picture taken with many local children and a
few sports celebrities along with Mayor Baker. Sunday, December 14th we
met with the Board for a little Christmas cheer. It was so great to see
everyone for the holidays.
On November 8th, Mom and I headed down to Apopka for the Miss Apopka
Pageant. It was nice to see several board members and fellow pageant
friends. A big congratulation goes to Rikki Klaus for winning the first
local of the year. I’m really looking forward to going to as many local
pageants as I can, to support the wonderful and talented women and teens
of our great state.
The following weekend I was invited by pageant director Jennifer
Herrington to perform at the Miss Senior High Pageant. I ended up
performing the dance that I used at MAOT. I couldn’t believe how much I
missed performing. I also sat in the audience with Miss America’s
Outstanding Teen 2008, Caitlin Brunell. On November 22nd, I judged a
middle school pageant at Lake Shore Middle School in Jacksonville. I
ended up judging with a very experienced panel, including Norma Storms.
All of the girls were great and so very cute.
On Wednesday, October 15th my sister Brittany escorted me to Orlando for
the CMN and MAOT Making Miracles Happen Fundraiser in Orlando. I was
able to see some old friends like Carry O’Neal from Regalia and Allison
Kreiger Miss Florida 2006 and MAOT Director of Communications. I also
had the pleasure of seeing Jennifer McKenna Director of Development for
MAOT and Kim Parrish, President of MAOT.
Thanks to Merissa Amkraut, I was given several opportunities in October
to do some appearances in Gainesville. I judged a dance competition at
Cabana Beach apartments, which I have to say, was a fun experience. The
dancers were very entertaining and the Cabana Beach crew was very
welcoming.
That next week Miss Gainesville, Miss Alachua County, Merissa, Jason,
and I went to the Alachua County Fair. We had the best time riding rides
and announcing winners of several drawing that night.
I will be sharing pictures from these events on my blog at
www.courtneysexton.blogspot.com. So, be sure to check it out!
Wishing you and your family all the best,
Courtney
October 12, 2008
Hello Everyone,
I have been busy getting into my sophomore year at school. Cheering for
the JV team and working on writing skits for our class for our big pep
rally for homecoming is certainly keeping my hands full. While my week
days are filled with school and practices, the weekends have provided
the perfect opportunity to volunteer for several great organizations.
During the month of September, I was honored to work on the CMN
Radiothon at Shands Hospital in Gainesville. Sierra and I were allowed
to visit with patients in the hospital and that was so special and
meaningful to me. It really allowed me to understand why we are raising
money to help CMN. We also went to Art Day the following morning, along
with six Miss Contestants from the area. We all had such a great time
meeting and decorating projects. I would like to give a special thank
you to Merissa Amkraut for inviting me to be apart of this wonderful
event.
I also sent in an audition tape to Dolphin Entertainment, MAOT’s Talent
sponsor, for the casting of their first feature film. An invitation was
sent out to all state titleholders. I want to thank my sister Brittany
Hobbs for helping me with reading my lines and to Mrs. Kathy Hobbs for
filming my first audition CD. Wish me luck!! This was something I had
not thought about doing before but when such as wonderful opportunity
presents itself, I felt I should give it a try. Whatever happens I will
always appreciate the opportunity.
October started with an appearance on Saturday the 4th in Gainesville
with the AKtion Club sponsored by Kiwanis International. I along with
Katie Crews, Miss Alachua County and Diana Kelley, Miss Gainesville had
the honor of meeting members of the AKtion clubs from around Florida.
This was an awards day for participation in community service projects
for AKtion Club members.
On Sunday, October 5th, I had the honor of being invited to the
Jacksonville Home and Patio Show at the Prime Osborn Convention Center.
I had such a fun day meeting and talking with the different people at
the show, including Pat Simpson from HGTV’s Before & After. I am so
thankful to Mrs. Karen Miller for setting this up for me, for walking me
around and introducing me to everyone.
Thanks to everyone for all your support and encouragement as I make my
journey as Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen. My platform is volunteerism
and I am hoping to do as much as I can during my year and one week. I
have several other things lined up for October and will keep you posted.
Be sure to check out my blog for more updates.
All the best,
Courtney
August 20, 2008
Hi
Florida Family,
It feels like I won a year pass to cloud nine! This is truly a dream
come true. When I went to St. Petersburg for the pageant, I was just
excited to see the girls and perform. The other contestants and I had
tons of fun back stage and at rehearsals laughing, having a memorable
time. I can’t believe all of the wonderful friendships made during the
week.
Since being crowned a month ago, I feel like I have been around the
world!
It all started with a conference call from the board to pick my
placement for the Miss America’s Outstanding Teen pageant. I picked my
luck number 16 and my favorite color BLUE, hopefully it will bring me
some Good Luck. The icing on the cake came when I talked to Caitlyn
Brunell, Miss America’s Outstanding Teen 2007.
The very next day we went down to Orlando for my Miss Florida
Outstanding Teen headshots. J
Deanna Meredith and
Evelisse are the best photographer and hair
and make up duo ever. With Miley Cyrus blasting in the background and
their spunky personalities, they made me feel like a ROCK STAR.
Then it was time to board the plane for the Big Apple (New York City).
Since my music was already being used by another contestant, Shea
Sullivan had to work her magic to put together a song and talent routine
in one week. While I was there Rob pulled some strings and got me
backstage at Legally Blonde the Musical with Kate Shindle, Miss America
1998. I would really like to thank the Kreiger family for all their
support and for their help in making this trip possible.
After
getting back from NYC we took
a trip to Orlando and Miami. In Orlando we
visited Carry and David at Regalia to find a fabulous dress. Thank you
so much for all of your support and guidance. You guys are amazing!
After leaving Regalia we went to see Becky Bangert, who made my talent
costume. She is so sweet and the costume is incredible. Thank you for
everything Becky!
Then we were off to Miami! Well…we were actually in Homestead to visit
Ann Marie’s. Mrs. Ann, thank you so much for helping me to put together
my appearance wardrobe from the week of Miss America’s Outstanding Teen.
Once we left Ann Marie’s we headed to Miami for lunch and shopping at
Maruchi with Miss Florida, Sierra Minott, and Mary Sullivan. We had a
blast!
To the 2008 Contestants-Thank you for making my experience at MFLOT so
memorable. I cherish all of our friendships and each memory we made
throughout the week. Florida really does have an amazing group of
intelligent, talented, and beautiful girls.
To Alexandra Milbrath, Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2007- I wanted to
say thank you for representing Florida so well. You have been an
amazing role model for all Florida teens.
To the Sponsors-Thank you so much for your generosity and support of the
Miss Florida Organization. Your contributions made the pageant such a
success.
To ALL the Executive Directors-Thank you for all you do for this
organization. You all are truly the backbone of this program and your
support for the teen pageant is greatly appreciated.
To the Miss Florida Board Members-Thank you for your kind and warm
welcome into the Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen family. It is going to
be an incredible year.
To my family, friends, and supporters-Thank you for always believing in
me. Your constant support, encouragement, and prayers have helped me to
get where I am today. I’m so grateful to each and every one of you.
I am so proud and humbled to be your Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen
2008.
Best wishes,
Courtney Sexton
Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2008
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