Prayers

Please keep our state director Julie Harris and her family in your prayers.

As many of you have heard there is a HUGE wild fire going on in Herriman and Julie's house is right in the area where the fire is at.

Has Been News

• Meredith Gaufin, our own 2010 Utah’s Junior Miss is at BYU and busy, busy.
• Shae Hunsaker is going to BYU and got accepted in musical dance theater.
• Kayla Christensen is going to SUU and has graduated from cosmetology.
• Sonnett Davis is attending SUU and going into nursing.
• Megan Chournos is at Weber State and just got married on Aug 14th.
• Chloe Hyde is at BYU rooming with Jourden DeWitt and she was 1st runner up in South Jordan Pageant and Jourden is Miss Herriman!
• Haley Anderson is at BYU Hawaii.
• Megan McKay at BYU and Rachel Smith is at BYU too.
• Ashley Bracey is still at BYU Idaho and getting ready to transfer to main campus in Provo next semester. If you would like to help be a princess for Make A Wish, let us know cause she still needs help with that.
• Lindsey Brinton is still at Harvard.
• Stacey Hansen has received her mission call to Arizona.
• Stephanie Brinton Parker has transfered to Boston University.
• Utah's Junior Miss 2003 Lindsey Smith will be dancing with the Rockettes who are going to be here around Thanksgiving. This would be a great opportunity to see this amazing group perform!

Upcoming Local Program Dates

Here are the dates of the scheduled programs that will be happening the next few months.

• ALPINE: July 22nd @ Timberline Middle School
• HIGHLAND: August 5th @ Lonepeak High School
• OREM: August 28th @ Canyon View
• SOUTHERN UTAH: November 6th @ Hurricane High School

If anyone knows of dates of any other programs please feel free to contact me.

Idaho wins: Madison Leonard named 1st Distinguished Young Woman

Meredith won first runner up in tonight's competition to Idaho's Madison Leonard. Meredith won a total of $29,000 in scholarships.

The top ten finalists were:

•Kristen Celeste Mosley of Alabama
•Paige Nicole Wagner of California
•Natali Saova Gavanarova of Georgia
•Madison Denise Leonard of Idaho
•Kristi Ann Snyder of Maryland
•Meagan Elise Fuller of Massachusetts
•Ashley Gochoco of Pennsylvania
•Anna Bryce Flowe of South Carolina
•Meredith Gaufin of Utah
•Mattie Bergeson of Washington

You can watch as they announce the winners here:

Congratulations to Meredith, we are so proud of you!

America's Junior Miss gets new name

Organizers of America's Junior Miss announced tonight the national scholarship program based in Mobile has a new name: Distinguished Young Woman.

AJM Presents Preliminary Awards

Over the course of the past two nights Meredith along with 49 other outstanding young women have been competing for the title of America's Junior Miss. Last night the preliminary awards were given out and Meredith was awarded three different ones.

She received the following:

• Bel Air Mall Community Service Essay award for $1,500
• Fitness Award for $1,000
• Self Expression Award for $1,000

If you would like to see the full list of winners go to the AJM website.

Oil spill not far from Junior Misses' minds during Dauphin Island trip

Press Register
Daniela Werner

The America's Junior Miss class of 2010 and host families spent Sunday afternoon under a blistering sun, enjoying the sand, a dip in the Gulf of Mexico and boiled shrimp at the Holiday Isle luxury condominium on Dauphin Island's west end.

While there wasn't a smidgen of oil in sight, thanks to some beach clean-ups crews brought in by the Holiday Isle, the disaster still weighed on the minds of some Junior Misses.

"I'm taking an environmental science class, and we talk so much about the oil spill," said Mattie Bergeson, Washington's Junior Miss. "It's heartbreaking to see how many years into the future this is going to affect us.

"It's our job as citizens that live in this world to help it along," she said, adding that she hopes a speedy solution to the spreading oil slick is found soon.

"I'm really shocked that they haven't done anything to prevent future oil spills," said Alaska's Junior Miss, Roisin Nakada. "It's really shocking to come down here and seeing how badly it's affecting everybody."

Their oil-free day of beach fun was put on by the Dauphin Island Chamber of Commerce, which has hosted the AJM beach party for four years. This was Holiday Isle's first time bringing an AJM event to its beachfront property.

"We're very pleased to have this wonderful facility for AJM's event," said Kathryn Carver, the chamber's vice president.

"The girls get the best of both worlds here," said AJM's finals Chairman Pam Patterson. "They have a cool place with a pool to relax, and the beach is pristine."

Patterson added that it's nice of Dauphin Island organizations to host AJM events "in the wake of all that's going on" with the oil spill.

Before they could finally hit the beach and work on their tans, the girls took a tour of historic Fort Gaines, where workers fired a cannon for them. It caused a few of the girls to jump.

"There were a few screams, maybe from me," admitted a grinning Meredith Gaufin, Utah's Junior Miss. "It was exciting."

"I've read about Fort Gaines in my textbooks, so it was really cool," said North Dakota's Junior Miss, Adeeti Katti. "Now I'm not going to forget it."

The girls relaxed poolside and on the beach before indulging in a generous shrimp dinner that the chamber provided.

But the sandy beaches remained the main attraction, especially for Junior Misses hailing from northern states.

As a Utah resident, Gaufin said, she doesn't get to play on many beaches.

"That feeling of sand between your toes -- there's nothing like it," she said. "We're so lucky today to be able to enjoy a beautiful beach without that oil."

America's Junior Miss to Update It's Name

Press Release
Contact: Pam Tate, Tucker & Associates (214) 252-0900, ext. 23
Cassidy Grimes, AJM (251) 622-5335

AMERICA’S JUNIOR MISS AIMS TO REMOVE MISCONCEPTIONS AND BARRIERS TO SUCCESS WITH NAME CHANGE AND PROGRAM UPDATES

Changes To Oldest And Largest National Scholarship Program For High School Girls To Be Unveiled At AJM National Finals, June 24 – 26, 2010

Mobile, ALABAMA (June 15, 2010) – What’s in a name? For America’s Junior Miss Scholarship Program (AJM), often times the wrong impression, misconceptions and barriers to success. For Michelle Rodgers of Kentucky, it meant a lot of explaining. When she introduced herself this past year to a variety of people as “America’s Junior Miss 2009,” she received such comments as, “Oh, like a beauty pageant?” or, “Is this like Junior Miss America?”

To continue its mission for another 50 years and beyond, AJM’s Board of Directors is taking a proactive approach and is in the process of repositioning the program, including a name change to better reflect the organization and its efforts to remain relevant and keep pace with the needs and interests of today’s young women. The name change and other program updates will be announced and highlighted at the AJM National Finals, June 24 – 26, 2010, in Mobile, Ala.

“We want to leverage the full potential and extraordinary value of the AJM experience,” said Becky Jo Peterson, Executive Director of America’s Junior Miss Scholarship Program. “There are no fees to enter the program because AJM strives to give every young woman the opportunity to further her education and prepare for a successful future. We provide opportunities for personal growth through team building activities, presentations by organizations like the League of Women Voters, interaction with prominent women who lead successful and service-oriented lives, and community service.”

To read the entire press release go here.

Hey there South Utah County Girls!

Hey there girls in South Utah County! Are you interested in competing in Junior Miss?

If you live in Provo, Springville, Mapleton, Spanish Fork, Salem and Santaquin and are going to be a senior next year then this is a great way for you to earn scholarship funds to help you in your college education.

The program is August 14th, so if you are interested contact Khristen Massic or Julie Harris.

Meredith Arrives in Mobile

Utah's Junior Miss 2010, Meredith Gaufin has arrived in Mobile, Alabama on Sunday, June 13th to start enjoying her experience at the America's Junior Miss Competition.

The Press Register did an article about the arrival ceremony and Meredith was interviewed upon her arrival.

Several of this year's contestants met on a connecting flight in Dallas, according to Utah's Junior Miss, Meredith Gaufin.

"It was fantastic," she said, noting that the girls almost missed their flight because of a changed airport terminal gate.

"We were running in our heels, hauling luggage," she said. "It was fantastic."

Gaufin said the event she looks most forward to in the busy AJM schedule is the oyster-eating contest at Wintzell's Oyster House on Dauphin Street next week.

"I've never tried an oyster before," she said.

18 High School Students Who Are Most Likely To Change the World

Utah's Junior Miss 2010, Meredith Gaufin was picked by Utah Valley magazine as one of the 18 High School Students who are most likely to change the world and is featured on the cover of their current issue.


Meredith Gaufin
Timpview High School
PARENTS Lynn and Cynthia Gaufin
• 4.0 GPA • Student Body Public Relations Officer • Utah’s Junior Miss 2010 • President of HOSA • Girls’ State Mayor • AP Scholar • Four Humanitarian Service Missions • Superior Rankings at Harp Festivals • A Cappella Choir Council Member • Varsity Cheerleader

How have you transformed as a person while in high school? I transformed from a shy freshman girl to the student body public relations officer. I’ve come to realize that I’m the happiest when I am serving others.

What do you do when you meet an obstacle? Tackle it.

Personal motto? “Shoot for the moon, and if you miss you will still be among the stars.” – Les Brown

In what are you “fully invested”? My scholastic ambitions. My dad always tells me “an investment in education always pays the greatest interest.”

What are your biggest blessings? I have served humanitarian missions in Haiti, Bolivia, the Philippines and Mexico, and I’ve realized the blessing it is to be an American.

What’s playing in your earbuds? Carrie Underwood, Deborah Henson-Conant (harpist) and various songs from Broadway musicals.

When life becomes difficult, how do you cope? I look to the future, set new goals, turn to my musical talents, eat a little chocolate and hit the ground running.

What is your view of the world? I’m a “glass half full” kind of girl. I’m optimistic and hopeful about today and look forward to building a better tomorrow.

Who or what do you love? Like any other busy teenager … I love sleep!

Plans after high school? I will attend BYU in the fall, and then my goal is to graduate from Weill Cornell Medical College in pursuit of becoming an anesthesiologist.

Favorite movies? I love movies where good triumphs evil … “Harry Potter,” the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, “Remember the Titans,” “Avatar” and “Blindside.”

Wardrobe philosophy? Shoes. It’s all about the shoes!

If you would like to read the entire article they have printed go here.

The Brinton Sisters Perform with the Bach Society Orchestra

Stephanie Brinton Parker (UJM 2006) & Lindsey Brinton (AJM & UJM 2008) performed with the The Bach Society Orchestra at Harvard University's Paine Hall earlier this month.

The Harvard Crimson published this about the performance:

This energy continued into Francis Poulenc’s Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra in D minor, which featured 2009-10 Concerto Competition Winners Stephanie J. Brinton Parker ’10 and Lindsey R. Brinton ’12, who are sisters. The challenge of piano four hands is daunting for even accomplished pianists, but the sisters complemented each other’s performances both in terms of technique and stylistic expression. The interplay between them was so precise that it was difficult to tell which pianist was playing which phrase, creating a truly seamless piano performance. Though Poulenc rose to fame in France as an avant-garde composer in the early 1900s, he was an artist before his time. A century later in Paine Hall, his piano concerto still sounds dashingly innovative.

Congratulations Meredith!

Congratulations to Meredith Gaufin, Utah's Junior Miss 2010.

Meredith is from Provo and attends Timpview High School. She will travel to Mobile, Alabama in June to compete for the title of America's Junior Miss.

Beauty contestants organize princess party for Make-A-Wish

Deseret News
by: Rebecca Palmer

Teen beauties and ailing kids get all dolled up for fun

MURRAY — Whitney Potter, 11, wears slippers everywhere she goes to protect the nerves in her bony feet from painful contact with the hard ground.

Weighing in at just 48 pounds, the Clearfield girl is the oldest living human diagnosed with a rare chromosomal disease that's slowly destroying her organs and nerve endings.

But Wednesday afternoon, the most notable part of the Whitney's appearance was a smile big enough to show all her teeth and a sparkling, sky blue princess dress.

The frail child was surrounded by beautiful young women competing to be Utah Junior Miss 2010. The 39 contestants were dressed to the nines and on their most gracious behavior, all to treat sick little girls to the princess party of their lives.

Charming princesses from tiny to teen wore shimmery dresses in every conceivable color, from blue and yellow pastel to deep burgundy and gold. Complete with glitter, curled ribbon and pink balloons, the meeting room at Make-A-Wish headquarters could have come straight out of a fairy tale.

The girls were greeted at the door by two "princes" from local high schools.

The teen contestants volunteered their time to be with the Make-A-Wish kids and brought more than $3,000 for the foundation. The funds will pay for a child and her family to visit Disney World to meet "real" princesses.

In between serving cookies and lemonade and posing for fancy photographs, contestant Janelle Petersen boogied with Sarah Loop, 6. The Magna girl has been diagnosed with aplastic anemia but is slowly starting to "get back to normal," according to her mother.

Petersen, 18, is herself a contemporary dancer and calls the activity her emotional outlet.

"It's kind of an overwhelming experience," she said. "It makes me realize how blessed I am."

Later, teen beauty Lexi Childs and the ailing but talkative child sang Disney love songs along with the stereo.

"It's been so good for me," said Childs, 17, a self-described "princess freak." "This is what I want to do. I want to work with kids."

Utah Junior Miss contestants are participating in a week's worth of activities. Saturday, a winner will be chosen and awarded scholarship money. She will then compete with high school students from across the country.

Welcome to the UJM Blog!

Welcome to Utah's Junior Miss's newest endeavor! A Blog!

This is a place for everyone to keep up-to-date on Utah's Junior Miss happenings. We will post the dates of local and state programs. Tell you who the winners are and what the current Utah's Junior Miss representative is up to.

Stay Tuned!