Ashley Wheeler, a member of the class of 2008 at St. Michael’s, was crowned Miss Vermont 2008 on Saturday, April 26. The Lyndonville native competed against 13 other young women from around the state at the Barre Opera House to win the title.
Not a typical pageant
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(Photo by Wayne Tarr, courtesy of Ashley Wheeler) |
“It’s been chaos,” Wheeler says of her Miss Vermont experience. “I’ve loved every moment of it, but it’s been chaos.”
Wheeler competed in the pageant in both 2005 and 2006, she says. She didn’t participate in 2007 because she spent a semester abroad in Australia. Preparations for the pageant go on year-round for her.
“For me, it’s a 12-month endeavor,” she says. “In order to prepare for the interview I make it a goal to talk with people every day about the Miss America organization.”
The Miss America organization is the leading provider of scholarships for women in the world, according to Wheeler. They provided $40 million in scholarships in the last year. Wheeler herself received a $6,000 scholarship for winning Saturday night, she says.
“It’s unlike what people think of as a typical pageant,” she says.
Mary Branagon, a student at Smith College, has competed in the Miss Vermont pageant for the past three years, she says. Branagon placed second runner up this year.
"The fun, inspring, and supportive atmosphere created by the Miss Vermont team is truly unique," Branagon says. "Every year I find myself challenged in new and exciting ways."
“Seventy percent of our score is based on the interview and our talent,” Wheeler says. “The interview is a 10-minute rapid-fire press conference, and it’s really intense.”
Contestants also participate in evening gown, onstage questioning and swimsuit competitions, she says. For the talent portion of the competition, Wheeler relied on her experience as a singer.
“I’ve been singing my whole life,” she says. “I used to belt out Whitney Houston when I was 4.”
“They called the second runner up, and then the first runner up, and I thought, ‘OK, either I won or I’m not in the top three,’” Wheeler says. “I couldn’t get my hopes up, but when they called my name it was instant elation.”
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(Photo by Wayne Tarr, courtesy of Ashley Wheeler) |
“It’s been so fluky in the past that I couldn’t count my chickens before they hatched,” she says. “It all depends on how the judges feel and if you put up your best front. I’m very happy with how I performed.”
Rocking the vote
Wheeler’s platform is “political awareness among young voters.”
“I’ve always been involved in the political process,” Wheeler says. “It’s close to my heart and I’m passionate about it, but it’s also very accessible to the organization.”
Because Wheeler is a notary public, she will be able to bring applications to events and register voters, she says.
“In September and October I’ll be traveling around the state registering voters at high school and colleges, in those heated two months before the election,” she says.
Wheeler hopes to go on to graduate school for international relations, and believes that her experience winning Miss Vermont will help her in the future, she says.
“I’ve felt like the governor of Vermont,” she says. “I’ve felt like a politician when advocating for this organization. It’s been about meeting the people from small towns in Vermont, and reminding myself of what a great state Vermont is.”
Wheeler is a religious studies major at St. Michael’s, with minor concentrations in political science and gender studies. Although she had to present her senior thesis six days before the pageant occurred, she didn’t find it too difficult to manage the workload, she says.
“I think being busy and focused on something [other than the pageant] helped,” she says. “It allowed me to go into the pageant weekend knowing that I had a lot of other things going on…I knew I wouldn’t be crushed if it wasn’t the outcome I wanted.”
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(Photo by Wayne Tarr, courtesy of Ashley Wheeler) |
A different year
A few of the events and appearances Wheeler has scheduled in the near future include interviews at five local radio stations, an appearance at the Miss New Hampshire pageant, and singing at a March of Dimes event this weekend. She also hopes to sing the national anthem for a Red Sox game, on Vermont Day at Fenway Park.
“My e-mail is beeping with new messages every moment,” she says.
The next step for Miss Vermont is the Miss America pageant, which will be held on Jan. 24, 2009 in Las Vegas. Wheeler is confident about her chances, despite the fact that Vermont has never had a finalist in the top 15, she says.
“I will do absolutely everything in my power not only to be in the top 10, but to win,” she says. “I think this is a different year for this organization.”
"She's been trying for a long time and she deserves it," says Nydelis Ortiz Rivera, a Castleton State College student who also competed in the pageant,
Rivera believes that Wheeler's vocal talent will help her in the Miss America pageant, she says.
"She has an amazing voice," she says. "It will take her places."
The pageant will air on The Learning Channel (TLC) on cable television. The station will also broadcast eight hours worth of reality television about the Miss America contestants, Wheeler says. Although she will be involved, she doesn’t know any of the details yet.
“Miss Vermont was the first state pageant this year, so I am currently the only woman in the world who knows she is going to be in the Miss America pageant,” Wheeler says. “As far as I’m concerned, I am Miss America.”