Office

A look on the calendar will quickly tell us that it is March already – 2013 is moving very quickly.  We celebrated the New Year in January and attended the Miss America Pageant in Las Vegas to support Miss Florida Laura McKeeman.  Florida was well represented by Laura and it was no surprise to hear her name called as part of the Judges Top Fifteen!  While we all felt that she should have advanced to the next competition round, we were filled with pride in her representation of our state and organization!  Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen Jennifer Stehlin was in attendance to cheer for Laura as were former Miss Florida titleholders Allison Kreiger & Rachael Todd!
Preliminary pageants filled the months of January & February and by March, we had crowned 50 Miss & Teen contestants that would advance to our 2013 Miss Florida Pageant.  Our lineup of Miss Contestants will almost be complete by the end of March – the Sweeps Pageant will round out the field.  We have much to be thankful for in our organization – we are blessed with outstanding local executive directors, volunteers, and sponsors that work to support our Miss Florida Program.  We are grateful for our contestants and their families – there are none finer anywhere!

Important upcoming dates for your calendars are: 
Contestants Day (for Miss Contestants only), April 21, 2013
Orientation Weekend – Miss & Teen – June 1-2, 2013
Miss Florida & Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen Pageant – July 10-13, 2013.

What’s new for 2013?  The Miss America Pageant announces the return of the pageant to Atlantic City, New Jersey, where it all began in 1921.  The pageant will be held in September 2013 – can you imagine producing two Miss America Pageants in one year!  Miss Florida 2013 will be crowned on July 13, 2013, at the Mahaffey Theater in St. Petersburg, Florida.  The next few weeks will be a whirlwind of activities before she will be off to represent Florida in the 2014 Miss America Pageant!  Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen will also be crowned on July 13, 2013, and she will compete for Miss America’s Outstanding Teen 2014 in August 2013.  Stay tuned to see who will represent our organization in both competitions!

The Miss Florida Pageant is publishing its first cookbook, Miss Florida Can Cook, Too! We have been soliciting recipes from former Miss Florida titleholders, contestants, executive directors, parents, sponsors, volunteers, and anyone that has a connection to our State Organization.  We still need recipes and send a plea for your support!  If you like to cook or just like food – and who doesn’t – we would like to include your recipe in our cookbook!  Please contact Pamela Adams (floridafair@aol.com) or Norma Storms (nstorms@comcast.net) for information on how you can be included in our Cookbook!  But you must hurry; the deadline of June 2, 2013 is coming soon.
COMING SOON: Watch for innovative changes to our website at www.missflorida.org as we try to improve on ways to keep you informed!

We each have 86,400 seconds in a day.  How have you used yours to make a difference?

All best wishes,

Mary E. Sullivan, Executive Director

The holiday season is a wonderful time of year! It's a time for family and friends, a time of celebration and reflection, and a time when we create memories to last for years to come. The Miss Florida Pageant’s Board of Directors thanks each and every one of you for your love and support for the young women
of our state. Each year because of YOU opportunities are given to countless contestants to pursue their goals, dreams, and earn scholarship dollars for education.

Whether you participate in a local program, as a sponsor for our organization, or as one of our pageant friends, we value our relationship with you and look forward to partnering with you in the year to come.

We hope that whatever is beautiful, whatever is meaningful, whatever brings happiness is yours this Holiday Season and throughout the coming year.

As we head into the New Year, let’s remember how lucky we are to work in an organization so full of passion and joy. Have a wonderful holiday and we’ll see you in 2013!

With all best wishes,

Mary E. Sullivan, Executive Director
Miss Florida Scholarship Pageant, Inc.

Our 2012 Miss Florida Pageant was Red, Hot & Blue! What a great show for the 77^th Anniversary of a Florida tradition! We were thrilled to host this year’s pageant at the beautiful Mahaffey Theater in the fabulous city of St. Petersburg. Our Miss & Teen contestants are the most beautiful, talented, and intelligent young women this state has to offer. We thank all of the parents for sharing their daughters with us during the week and appreciate everyone that traveled to St. Petersburg to support our young women.

This has been a year of change for our organization in a very positive way. Our young ladies enter the pageant for many reasons – some for the lifetime skills that they will gain; others for the opportunity to perform; but most are seeking the scholarships that are made available to them. We made a commitment to raise the scholarships for this year to $50,000.00 and not only did we meet our goal, but we surpassed it!

We have been blessed to have two incredible young ladies as our 2011 representatives. Kristina Janolo, Miss Florida 2011, has taken the job of Miss Florida to another level and has been a model titleholder for our state. She embarked on a journey last July 9, 2011, and has never slowed down…yet. She was a Top 12 Finalist at the Miss America Pageant and walked away with much pride in her performance and friendships that she will treasure for a lifetime. Kristina was a tireless advocate for the Miss Florida Organization, Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, her platform of protecting our
environment, and the Everglades Foundation. She traveled across the state (many times) making appearances and her ever-present smile, compassionate heart, and elegant grace left an indelible mark on the lives of all she touched. The contributions that she has made to our organization and our lives are immeasurable and we cannot wait to see the next chapter of her future unfold! She will forever be our Miss Florida 2011.

Rachel Strever, Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2011, had a mission to bring a heightened awareness of our Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen program to others in the Sunshine State and she has succeeded! We stress that education must come first in the life of our Outstanding Teen and learning that Rachel was inducted in to the National Honor Society for her high school was an exciting moment. Active in her school and community, Rachel seemed to always find time for appearances and to make the lives of some very special children so much better. She began as a Sunshine Princess
and was the first from that program to become an Outstanding Teen. Will she be the first to be a Miss Florida? We look forward to her return as a contestant in our Miss program and wish her much success as she continues her journey!

We are very proud of Miss America’s Outstanding Teen Elizabeth Fechtel. She has been a shining example of the ideal teenager as she has traveled the country inspiring people of all ages. As she nears the end of her year of service, she will start an exciting new endeavor as she officially becomes a Florida Gator! Elizabeth has all the qualities for success – she is truly unstoppable and we will standby and cheer as she continues to rise!

No Executive Director could ever ask for a better group of volunteers than those that serve on the Miss Florida Scholarship Pageant Board of Directors! I am blessed to be in the company of such dedicated and talented individuals with a common goal – to provide an outlet for our titleholders to display their beauty, intelligence and talents while earning scholarships to advance their education. We thank our Local Executive Directors and the countless number of volunteers that promote the program in their cities, communities, and colleges. We are truly grateful for all of our sponsors and patrons and thank them for their continued support of the Miss Florida Program.

Congratulations to Laura McKeeman, Miss Florida 2012! Laura resides in St. Petersburg and is in for an exciting year as she represents our organization and the Sunshine State! Laura will compete for Miss America in January 2013. Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2012 is Jennifer Stehlin. Jennifer is from Jacksonville and will be representing our organization at the upcoming Miss America’s Outstanding Teen Pageant in August.

We look ahead to a fabulous 2013 and hope that you will join us in another exciting journey!

All best wishes,

Mary E. Sullivan, Executive Director

I cannot believe that it has almost been two months since my last letter to you!  We offer our applause to Kristina Janolo, Miss Florida 2011, on her Top 12 placement at the 2012 Miss America Pageant.  Kristina was a standout in all competitions and we could not have been prouder of her poise, grace, and demeanor when she was eliminated on National Television before the Talent competition.  Although we regret that she was unable to sing ‘GOLD” for our television audience, those that were present in Las Vegas will confirm that her talent performance was one of the strongest at this year’s National Pageant!  Kristina feels very honored and blessed that she was in the Top 12 and has no regrets as to her personal performance!  We thank everyone that attended the Miss America Pageant and those that were unable to attend but reached out to Kristina through your cards, messages, and gifts.  Your encouragement meant so much to her!

Upon returning to Florida, Kristina had one day to unpack and pack for Tallahassee to attend the first ever Everglades Water Supply Summit hosted by NBC’s Chuck Todd.  Kristina attended the Summit, co-hosted the Jam Reception with Gavin DeGraw, and participated in the Capital Lobby Day to help raise awareness of the need for Everglades Restoration.  Since coming back from Miss America, Kristina has been on rigorous schedule of appearances throughout Florida.  Please visit Kristina’s blog to catch up and follow along with her as she represents our organization.

The Miss Florida Board of Directors recently held their annual election and we congratulate Kitty Potapow on being elected as Chairman of the Board for the Miss Florida Organization.  As we embark on our 2012 Miss Florida Pageant, we are focused on the necessity to raise scholarship dollars in our state and have set some very lofty goals for our Organization.  We remain committed to providing much needed scholarship dollars for the young women of Florida!

In the past seven weeks, we crowned 17 new titleholders and have crowned 25 to date toward our goal of 46 Miss Titleholders for the 2012 Miss Florida Pageant!  11 Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen titleholders have been crowned.  Our Pageant Season will continue through mid-April when we cease competition and prepare for Orientation Weekend, May 19 & 20, 2012.

As we look to the 2012 Miss Florida Pageant, we do so with much excitement and enthusiasm for our state’s program.  If you, or anyone that you know, would like to become a sponsor or volunteer with our organization, do not hesitate to contact a Board Member of the Miss Florida Scholarship Pageant, Inc.  We welcome all helping hands and hearts in addition to contributions and donations!

The price of success is dedication, hard work, and an unremitting devotion to the things we want to see happen.  We wish to make the 2012 Miss Florida Pageant our finest ever!  Please follow along with us via our website for future updates and information about our State Pageant, July 4-7, 2012 at the Mahaffey Theatre in St. Petersburg!

Congratulations to Miss Florida 2006 Allison Kreiger Walsh & husband Brian on the birth of their very own princess, Madison.  We wish them a lifetime of happiness and blessings!

With all best wishes, Mary E. Sullivan, Executive Director/President
Miss Florida Scholarship Pageant, Inc.

Happy New Year!

Thanks to supporters like you, 2011 was a very successful year for the Miss Florida Organization. We thrived in part because of your incredible hard work, creativity, and dedication. We wish you a new year filled with abundance, joy, and treasured moments.

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Kristina will be leaving for the Miss America Pageant, January 4, 2012. The Finals of the Miss America Pageant are January 14, 2012 on ABC from 9:00 -11:00 p.m. Kristina is ready to join the class of 2012 in Las Vegas to compete for the title of Miss America!  If you would like to send a card to Kristina, the address is:

Planet Hollywood Resorts & Casino
Kristina Janolo, Miss Florida
(Miss America Contestant)
3667 Las Vegas Blvd South, Las Vegas, NV 89109

Shipping to Planet Hollywood
As a security measure, all gifts for contestants must go through Planet Hollywood’s Business Center. Organic packages of any kind are not accepted, especially flowers, fruit baskets, food, etc. If organic items are delivered, the hotel must receive the package, but it will be rejected and disposed and the attached card will be forwarded. There are no exceptions.
In order for the contestants to receive packages, gifts, cards, before Saturday, January 14, all shipments must be delivered to Planet Hollywood no later than 12:00 pm on Friday, January 13. Due to time constraints, nothing will be given to the contestants on Saturday, January 14, 2012.
PLEASE NOTE: Kristina will not be able to take your telephone calls once she has checked in to the Miss America Pageant. The best way to let her know you are thinking of her is through cards, letters, notes, etc. Just remember that you must allow for a window of at least 2-3 days delivery of any mail.

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Miss Florida Pageant Family News:
I received the very good news that Rachael Todd, Miss Florida 2009, has been accepted to the Graduate Business Program at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee. We are very proud of Rachael as she continues to pursue her higher education!

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We look forward to seeing you in 2012!

Christmas gift suggestions:  To your enemy, Forgiveness;  To an opponent, Tolerance;  To a friend, Your Heart:  To your family, Love;  To all, Charity;  To every child, A Good Example;  To yourself, Respect.  There is no time more fitting to say Thank You and to wish you a Happy Holiday Season and a New Year of Health, Happiness, and Prosperity.

We take this opportunity from the Miss Florida Organization to let our pageant family know how much you are appreciated.  During this season of gratitude, we are thankful for your dedication and support of our state’s young women and your commitment to the Miss Florida Pageant. We have many blessings for which we express our thanks.  This year has been the best year ever for our pageant, and we look toward the New Year with the confidence that we can continue to raise our own bar. 

Kristina Janolo has been a trail blazer as a Miss Florida titleholder.  She has reached out to audiences in Washington DC, Tallahassee, Miami, Orlando, Tampa, Jacksonville, St. Petersburg, and much more.  She has spoken with government officials, youth groups, school children, adults, her peers, yet she never meets a stranger. She has soaked up every experience along her magical journey as Miss Florida and is honored to be our state’s representative at the 2012 Miss America Pageant.  Kristina’s holiday message to the pageant family is as follows:

My Dearest Miss Florida Family and Friends,

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas filled with love and peace.
May the spirit and promise of the holidays be with you today and every day.
Love,
Kristina Janolo, Miss Florida 2011

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Rachel Strever, Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen, came into our lives and has etched a permanent home.  She has crisscrossed the state making appearances and stealing hearts from all that have met her.  She represented the Miss Florida Pageant in the St. Petersburg and Deland Christmas Parades; served breakfast at the Shriners Pancake Fest; performed at the Miss UCF Pageant; participated in the CMNH Torch Relay in addition to keeping up with her school and extracurricular duties.  Follow along with Rachel’s year through her blog: http://www.missflot2011.blogspot.com/.  Rachel’s holiday message is below:

To my wonderful Miss Florida Family and Friends,

As we reflect upon this joyful holiday season. I'm most thankful to have you all a part of my life.
 I wish everyone a very safe and Merry Christmas and blessed New Year.
Love,
Rachel Strever
Miss Florida's Outstanding Teen 2011

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We wish Elizabeth Fechtel, Miss America’s Outstanding Teen, continued success as she represents our national Teen Program.   Elizabeth is a shining example of today’s teenager and we watch with pride as she leaves footprints on the lives of those she meets.   

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May the spirit of love gently fill your hearts and homes and in this loveliest of seasons, we hope you find many reasons for happiness.  I leave you with a beautiful heartfelt story of our Miss Florida 2005 Mari Wilensky.  She wrote to tell me she was engaged and I asked her to give me the details so that I could share them with each of you.  Please see the story below:

Miss Florida 2005 Mari Wilensky

Travis and I met at the University of Florida in 2005. He was getting his masters in Adaptive Physical Education and I was getting my undergraduate degree in Exercise and Sport Sciences. We officially met while I was interning for a school and he was teaching his physically impaired class at the University of Florida pool. He mistook me for a different girl he saw at a wheelchair tennis event the evening before, which my best friend swears was just a ploy to say "hello". A few months later, we met again while assisting our professor, Dr. Stopka, during a weeklong workshop. Our professor unexpectedly introduced me to the class as "Miss University of Florida", which I had won a few months prior. Of course, Travis gave me a hard time about the whole thing during our long week. Our teacher also made it a point to have Travis and I run errands for the class together. I was in awe during that week of getting to know Travis and wanted to spend all of my time with him. I was extremely busy preparing for Miss Florida though, but Travis was extremely supportive. He would hang out with me while I watched Lou Dobbs on CNN. In September, my journey began after becoming Miss Florida, and I knew how difficult it would be to have a relationship. Knowing the risk, Travis and I took the crazy journey together.

On November 23rd 2011, Travis popped the question. A few months prior, Travis was explaining to me that Dr. Stopka had e-mailed him telling him there was a huge picture of all of the students from the Adaptive Physical Education Program up at the University of Florida Pool (the program had since been discontinued so they put up an "Honor Wall"). I immediately said that we HAD to go there to check it out! Although we had kept in touch with Dr. Stopka, we still really wanted to see her. Once we arrived to the University of Florida, we spent some time with Dr. Stopka and headed to the Florida Pool. We had to rush because the pool was going to be opening to the public in 30 minutes and a lady working on the pool was going to let us in. Once we arrived, Travis and I started walking to the Honor Wall, and I noticed that no one was following behind us. Not thinking anything of it at first, we continued walking. I turned around again and noticed that it was still just me and Travis. At that point, I asked Travis what was going on. He explained that there was no "Honor Wall" and there was no picture. The whole thing was made up. Still confused, we continued walking, and he took a memoir out of his pocket from two years ago at a New Year's Eve party. My sister said that if it landed on a certain side, he would have to ask me to marry him within the next year. He explained how he had kept it, and then we continued walking. He walked me to the "exact spot" where we first "met" or mistook me for someone else. He explained that he had all of these great things to say and how they had just disappeared from his mind. He told me he thought this spot was significant because it was the first time he ever saw me and would feel so lucky to spend the rest of his life with me. He got on one knee, opened the box, and asked the question, which I still don't remember him asking!!! I was in shock, but of course, said YES!  Travis and I are planning to tie the knot in the spring of 2013.

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Don’t forget to watch the Miss America Pageant, January 14, 2012 on

Dear Miss Florida Family and Friends:

During this special season as we reflect on the things for which we are most grateful, it seems appropriate to take time and thank our volunteers, sponsors, friends and supporters for their dedication, generosity and tireless devotion to the Miss Florida Program.  The young women of Florida are materially and positively affected by your mental, physical and financial contributions. We cannot express enough gratitude for your efforts in making a difference in the innumerable young women's lives that compete in the Miss Florida Pageant. Together we can dream grand dreams, embrace great principles, renew our hope, open our hearts and realize that we have much for which we all can be thankful.

The past two months have been busy ones for our pageant family - we have crowned 10 Miss Titleholders and 5 Teen Titleholders for the 2012 Pageant Season. We congratulate both new and returning young women to our program.   Our Board of Directors hosted a Homecoming Celebration for Miss America’s Outstanding Teen Elizabeth Fechtel, and crowned Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2011 Rachel Strever. 

Miss Florida 2011 Kristina Janolo continues to blaze a trail in Florida as she promotes her environmental platform.  She made 45 appearances to date in October and November in addition to working on her Miss America preparation.  You can read about Kristina’s appearances at http://missflorida2011.blogspot.com/.  Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen Rachel Strever invites you to view her Blog at http://www.missflot2011.blogspot.com/.  Rachel has been extremely diligent promoting her platform and Florida’s Outstanding Teen Program.  We are truly blessed in Florida to have such exceptional and dedicated representatives for our pageant system.

I am pleased to report that Miss Florida 2007 Kylie Williams has just landed a dream job with General Electric from a highly competitive field of applicants.  Kylie attributes her accomplishments in the Interview process to the training that she received as Miss Florida and as a titleholder in the Miss Florida pageant.  We are very proud of Kylie and wish her not only good luck but many years of success and happiness in her new position.  More exciting news is that she will be moving to the South Florida area!

May your Holidays be filled with Peace, Love, and Harmony!

With warmest wishes,
Mary E. Sullivan, Executive Director/President
Miss Florida Scholarship Pageant, Inc.

Dear Pageant Family & Friends:

It seems just like yesterday (August) that we were congratulating Elizabeth Fechtel on her win as Miss America’s Outstanding Teen, and on October 16th, we celebrated her Homecoming!  We also congratulated Rachel Strever on her crowning as Miss Florida’s Outstanding Teen 2011.  It was an exciting day for both young ladies!  The event sponsored by the Miss Florida Board of Directors was held at The Red Rose Inn in Plant City, the perfect venue for the 100 guests that came to enjoy the day’s events.  Present to help us honor our two “outstanding teens” were Donna Bozarth, Kim Parrish, Kristin Black, Michael Hannah & Dianne Sarchet from the MAOTeen Pageant; Miss Florida’s OT 2010 MaryKatherine Fechtel, Samantha Janolo and Savannah Gribbins from the top 5 at the MFOTeen Pageant 2011; Miss Florida 2011 Kristina Janolo; Former Miss Florida titleholders – Jaclyn Raulerson, Allison Kreiger, Dana Judge; David Lang was the event host and provided additional entertainment for all!  Also attending were Miss Florida Pageant sponsors – Carry O’Neal, Regalia; Ann Marie Griffin, of Ann Marie’s; LaVoyce Porter; and pageant photographer Elizabeth Sanchez.  We thank everyone that came to honor Elizabeth and Rachel – they really epitomize the exceptional young ladies that compete in our Florida program!

Pageant season has begun and our first titleholder crowned is Miss Northeast Florida, Rachel Hart.  The Miss Broward County, Gold Coast, and Treasure Coast Pageants will be held October 29th.  Three Miss & Two Teen titles will be awarded.  If you are interested in attending any of our local pageants, please visit our website at www.missflorida.org and click onto Local Pageants for information on upcoming dates.

Miss Florida Kristina Janolo has been busy representing our Miss Florida program throughout the state.  At the end of this month, she will have made 28 October appearances and November is even busier.  Many of the bookings are related to her platform and she is bringing education and awareness about protecting our environment to all ages. In two short months she will be competing for Miss America 2012!   Follow along with Kristina by reading her Blog at ---- http://missflorida2011.blogspot.com.

Former Titleholder Watch!  

Miss Florida 2006 Allison Kreiger is having a girl!  We love new Princesses! 
Miss Florida 2003 Shauna Pender is now Mrs. Douglas Vetrano!  Congratulations Shauna & Doug! 
Miss Florida 2010 Jaclyn Raulerson has returned to school and is attending classes at the University of South Florida in Tampa.
Miss Florida 2009 Rachael Todd competed in Miss Tennessee USA and was third runner up. 
More updates next letter…..

The Miss Florida Board of Directors recently welcomed back two former board members - Kitty Potapow and Shannon Rees.  The Miss Florida Board of Directors are: 

Mary Sullivan, Executive Director & President	Keith Williams, CEO & Treasurer
Rob Loy, Vice President	David Gilbert, Vice President
Dana Judge, Secretary	Kitty Potapow, Director
Shannon Rees, Director	Mary Dymtrow, Director
Lynne Dalton, Field Director	Norma Storms, Field Director
Patti Bolding, Field Director	Raymond McLeod, Pageant Attorney
Wayne DeWitt, Pageant CPA Ray & Wayne are non-voting board members.

Mark your calendars:  The 2012 Miss Florida Pageant will be held July 1-7, 2012, at the Mahaffey Theater in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Halloween is the time of Ghosts, Goblins, Gravestones and Graveyards; of Spooks and Spirits and silly-fun tricks; of Witches and Warlocks and Scary Black Cats; and Candy Corn, Jelly Apples, Pumpkins and Bats.  Enjoy the holiday and be safe!

With many good wishes,

Mary E. Sullivan, Executive Director