Miss Plano crowned Saturday, receives new car Tuesday

Miss Plano crowned Saturday, receives new car Tuesday

By Kim Nguyen, Staff Writer
(Created: Wednesday, November 12, 2008 12:26 PM CST)

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Andrea Brown competed against a dozen women in five categories before being crowned Miss Plano this weekend.

“I am so elated!” the 23-year-old Plano resident said. “It was the golden opportunity and I am so glad that I took it.”

Brown had given up her title as 2005 Miss Plano after her reign ended. She stopped competing in pageants to take an opportunity to go into visual merchandising as a visual design manager for a local store. Brown remained close friends with the directors and executives of the Miss Plano Frisco Organization and often volunteered to help choreograph dance routines or conduct mock interviews.

Brown was coordinating pageant details with the MPFO board when she decided on a whim to participate in the 2009 Miss Plano Frisco pageant. By the time she decided, Brown had 12 days to prepare for the competition.

“Andrea had always loved pageanting,” said Fran McQuirter, Brown’s sister. “But I think this time was different because she was doing it for herself. Every step she took, all the hard work she put in, she had support from the family. And she did it.”

The Miss Plano Frisco Scholarship Competition was held at Plano West Senior High School and consisted of five categories: a private interview, talent, evening gown, lifestyle and fitness in swimsuit and an on-stage question.

“My favorite competition in the pageant is the private interview,” Brown said. “Because you are put on the spot and never know what’s coming. They could ask you questions from pop culture to government, from the economy to your stance on the Iraqi conflict.”

The contestant who receives the highest cumulative score from the five divisions earns the title and is crowned.

Brown is not sure of her score in each individual category but was confident enough to keep going.

Brown’s platform in this weekend’s competition was nutritional understanding for success.

An avid dancer, Brown had temporarily stopped dancing consistently to pursue other opportunities, but continued to eat the same diet.

“After a while, I realized how detrimental that was to my health,” Brown said. “Nutritional understanding is something that I have used to help my friends and family, so it was only natural that I use it as my platform to help other people too.”

Brown plans to use her Miss Plano title to spread the word and emphasize the importance of nutritional understanding.

“The ladies in the pageant are all very philanthropic and I want to follow in their footsteps,” Brown said. “I love to volunteer and I’d like to inspire some young girls in the Plano community.”

Also crowned during Saturday’s pageant were Kathryn Dunn as Miss Frisco 2009, Madison Fuller as Teen Plano 2009 and Taylor Lowery as Teen Frisco 2009.

As the newly crowned Misses, the four women will advance to compete for the title of Miss Texas 2009 and Miss Teen Texas 2009 this coming July. The organization already has an outstanding record in the Miss America system which includes Miss Teen Texas 2003, which happened in the first two years of the organization’s existence, said Cynthia Fennell, MPFO business director.

2005 Teen Frisco Chase Brown, is the sister of Andrea Brown, was first runner up in the Miss Teen Texas competition.

The Miss Plano Frisco Organization went on to have a Miss Texas winner just three years later when Plano resident Shilah Phillips became Miss Texas 2006 and was the first African-American woman ever to capture the crown. Phillips was so successful from the Miss Plano Frisco training she received that she went on to be awarded First Runner Up to Miss America 2007 and walked away with more than $40,000 in college scholarships, Fennel said.

The Miss Plano Frisco Scholarship Organization is a local franchise of the Miss Texas Organization and the Miss America Organization. The organization’s primary objectives are to help young women build confidence, cultivate skills, earn scholarships, showcase strengths and serve the community. To learn more about the Miss Plano Frisco Scholarship Organization or about becoming a contestant, visit www.mpfo.com.

Miss America is a not-for-profit corporation that has maintained a lasting positive effect for women over the last century. The Miss America Organization has been instrumental in shaping the concept of a strong, educated and independent woman and is the world’s largest provider of scholarships for young women. To learn more about the Miss America Organization, visit www.missamerica.org.

The Miss Texas Organization is headquartered in Fort Worth, becoming a statewide forum for young women to express their viewpoints, talents and accomplishments to Texas audiences since 1936. Eligibility for competition in the Miss Texas Organization begins by winning a local preliminary title, like Miss Plano or Miss Frisco. From the local preliminary, the winner moves forward to compete at state for the state title. A contestant may compete at the state level more than once, but only one time in the national pageant. More than 12,000 women participate in the state and local events each year.

For more information about the Miss Texas Organization, visit www.misstexas.org.

Contact Kim Nguyen at knguyen@acnpapers.com