WOW.. wow is all I can say as I reflect upon this past weekend. Over the last year I have tirelessly worked hard towards my goal of becoming Miss Illinois. There were times of tears, happiness, excitement, stress, and amazement and I in the midst of not winning the local pageants I was competing in, even almost gave up. I am sure glad that I didn't.
This past weekend as I competed for the title of Miss Illinois I realized that with hard work, dedication, and a dream.. anything is possible. Being called in the top five on Saturday evening was one of the most amazing moments of my life. I had given my all, and felt so proud and honored to be standing next to the beautiful, talented and intelligent women next to me. As I was called 3rd runner up and having received prelim swimsuit award winner, I felt so blessed and kept relating the experience to a quote I have heard many times "Shoot for the moon.. even if you miss you'll still land amongst the stars!" I shot for the moon this time and I am so happy to have landed amongst the "stars." I will never give up my dream of becoming Miss Illinois, and although this year was not my time, I believe that someday my dream will come true.
I owe thank yous to SO many people who have helped me make it this far. God, thank you for the strength you have given me. Mom, thank you for being my biggest fan and supporter. I will never forget hearing Babia Majora at the end of the runway, love you! Grandma, thank you for all that you do for me and always believing in me, love you! Jeffery, you always know what to do to make us all laugh, thank you for always doing our infamous pageant announcements and making us smile love you! Brad- you are my best friend, I love you with all my heart! Thank you for putting up with me and supporting me in everything I do! My director Troy thank you for supporting me and encouraging me, I will never forget your cheers and smile from the stage!!
To the beautiful Mollie Ramsey, Jenn Carr, and my roommate Sherri Gearheart, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for all the help, pumping up, encouragement and support you have given me, I am so thankful for all your help this week.
To the beautiful Rachel Brock, I loved every second of being backstage buddies again this year! You inspire me, always make me laugh ( cough Patrice cough ) I will miss you next year! Congrats on 2nd runner up girl!!! I'm looking forward to Miss Central Diamond! :)
To the new Miss Illinois Erin O'Connor- Congratulations!! From the bottom of my heart I wish you the best this year! You are a beautiful, talented and eloquent queen, and I know you will represent Illinois well!!
To all the other contestants, I had so much fun this week with all of you! I wish the best to you all in whatever the future brings you! I hope we all will compete again together next year!
As Miss Illinois has past, I am still 110% devoted to being the best Miss Central Illinois I can be. Please check back often for updates on my journey!
Thank you and God Bless!
Jamie Johnson
Miss Central Illinois 2009
Miss Central Illinois 2009
Hello all! Wow, have these past few weeks been busy! The weekend of May 22-24 all of the Miss Illinois contestants met in Springfield for our Spring Forum. The weekend began with turning in paperwork, and that night 10 of us girls and our very own Miss Illinois Katie Lorenz went out for dinner! We had a great time getting to know each other as well as learning from Katie! Saturday we spent the day learning our opening number, attending meetings, as well as listening to 3 wonderful speakers. Carl Chu, Staci Boyer, and Jojo Sayson all helped motivate, and give us tips. Saturday night we attended the Illinois Got Talent Competition, and I was so impressed! All of the performers did a fantastic job. Congrats to Kole Bossong for winning!
