Joell Posey Grager
. Miss Texas Caroline Carothers performed a rousing baton twirling routine to Chicago’s “Hot Honey Rag,” while Miss Louisiana Justine Kerr wowed the audience with an excellent classic piano piece, but it was the peppy jazz dance routine to the hit showstopper, “They Just Keep Moving the Line” from Smash by Miss Arkansas Savvy Shields that took top honors for the evening with the judges highest score. Shields exclaimed how amazed she was to win in a field of such outstanding competitors. “One of my favorite parts about dance and about talent (competition) is the connection with the audience and the performer,” Shields said.
With laughter Hannah Brewer, Miss Maryland, and Shields jointly expressed shock and excitement as the reasons that Brewer walked in the wrong direction after being announced the winner in Life Style and Fitness competition. “Everything we learned in rehearsal went out the window!” Brewer won the award by presenting her confident walk on stage in an impeccable, chic black bikini and just being the real “Hannah.” After a lifetime of dreaming about being in Atlantic City according to Brewer, “Being able to walk down the Miss America runway is absolutely insane!”
Several other scholarships were awarded at the close of Wednesday night’s completion including the Jean Bartel Quality of Life Award $6,000 Scholarship – Miss Alabama, Hayley Barber (1st Runner-Up-Miss Kansas Kendall Schoenekase, 2nd Runner Up-Miss Maryland Hannah Brewer). The STEM award (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) winners were each awarded $5,000 scholarships – Miss Alabama Haley Barber, Miss Illinois Jaryn Franklin, and Miss Kansas Kendall Schoenekase. The Miss America Women in Business Award recipients were Miss Rhode Island Shruti Nagarajan and Miss Georgia Patricia Lin Ford. In addition to the above awards earned by Miss Alabama Haley Barber, she was also named the Miracle Maker Award Scholarship award winner for raising the most money for the Children’s Miracle Network at both a local and national level.
tn_Miss Arkansas Savvy Shields (Talent) and Miss America 2016 Betty Cantrell
tn_Miss Arkansas Savvy Shields (Talent) and Miss Maryland Hannah Brewer (Swim)
tn_Miss Maryland Hannah Brewer (Swim), Miss Arkansas Savvy Shields (Talent) and Miss America 2016 Betty Cantrell.
tn_Quality of Life Award – Winner Miss Alabama Hayley Barber –
tn_Savvy Shields (Talent) 1
tn_Savvy Shields (Talent) 2
tn_Savvy Shields (Talent) 3
tn_Savvy Shields (Talent) and Hannah Brewer (Swim)
tn_STEM Award Winners – Miss Illinois Jaryn Franklin, Miss Alabama Hayley Barber and Miss Kansas Kendall Schoenekase (with Miss America 2016 Betty Cantrell and Miss America Board Chairman Lynn Weidner)
tn_Women in Business Award Winners – Miss Georgia Patricia Lin Ford and Miss Rhode Island Shruti Nagarajan (with Miss America 2016 Betty Cantrell and Miss America Board Chairman Lynn Weidner
© 2016 Miss American Organization 2016