National Association of the Deaf

Submitted by NAD Conference on Sun, 07/08/2012 - 00:31 Blog:

• NAD Conference

Tonight, Friday July 7th, we witnessed the last-ever Miss Deaf America Ambassador Program Finals! The event started at seven o'clock but the line was already long at six with very eager fans of family, friends and attendees. The stage was beautifully lit up with colorful lights and had two large screens on both ends of the stage creating a very professional and exciting feel to the event.

At the start, the two emcees- Jennifer Ann "JAC" Cook and Mark Ramirez- came on stage welcoming everyone to the very last Miss Deaf America Ambassador Program and pumped excitement into the audience members. They opened up with a visual presentation that showed the journey of every one of the fourteen female candidates. They then announced the best of the preliminaries and the final 6 of 14 that would be running for the title. After the final 6 left the stage, they showed a slideshow of former Miss Deaf America winners- many of whom were present at the Miss Deaf America Finals- and the program book from each one. 

The journey to the final selection and announcement began with the platform presentations of the top six contenders, of which all of them did extremely well and covered some of the important topics of which NAD and the deaf community are experiencing. After the platform presentations concluded, Miss Deaf America 2010-2012 Rachel Mazique came on stage and performed her original artistic expression which set the stage for the final six. But first they invited some of the former Miss Deaf America winners that came on stage and introduced themselves and told a little bit about what they do now- including but not limited to: Ann Billington Cassell ('72 - '74), Margo Cienik ('84 - '86), Jennifer Yost Ortiz ('95 - '96), Tyese Wright ('02 - '04), Chelsea Tobin ('06 - '08), and Michelle Lapides ('08 - '10). 

After everyone cheered for all of the former MDA winners ranging from 1972-2010, a dazzling song performance done by the Miss Deaf Arizona runner up, Sophia Stone, who impressed the audience and set the stage for the final contestants. The final six then came on stage and each did their artistic expression. After the last of the final six contestants performed, intermission then came featuring a live auction run by Dwight and Beth Benedict that sold artwork made by famous deaf artists and several featured travel packages and raised $22,000 for the National Association of the Deaf! They then showed another slideshow of the Miss Deaf Ambassador Retreat, showcasing all of the fourteen candidates working together, practicing, and participating in workshops as well as dress/make-up rehearsals. 

Next came the final event of the pageant which was the presentation and poise category where each contestant came out in a beautiful variety of colorful, sparkly dresses- all the women comandeered the stage very gracefully. After the last contestant presented, the interviews of each one began to which every one of them answered very well. The questions were:

What are the advantages and disadvantages of being deaf?

If you had to give a presentation to a group of 16 year olds, what topic would you pick?

If you had an opportunity to meet Alexander Graham Bell, what would you say?

Jennifer Ann Cook, the co-emcee of the Miss Deaf America Ambassador Program, after watching all the presentations: "Wow, whoever the judges picks will represent the NAD well." Soon after the presentations, Allie Rice, Arlene Gunderson and the Pageant Committee were invited onstage. Arlene introduced each committee member and a special thanks to one member, Patty Wolfangle for her continuous involvement with MDA- for over 20 years. They then introduced the new vision for the Youth Ambassador Program- we'll reveal more about that as details come out! 

Rachel Mazique, Miss Deaf America 2010-2012, came onstage and gave her farewell speech- very moving- and shared her experiences with the Program. She emphasized that being Miss Deaf America made her a stronger person, and that she will continue to fight after handing down her crown. Soon after Rachel's speech, the judges have made their decisions, all 14 contestants come back onstage for the announcement!

Miss Congeniality goes to Miss Deaf Oklahoma - Mary Rios.

2nd Runner-up: Miss Deaf Texas - Sericia Jackerson.

1st Runner-up: Miss Deaf Kansas - Trisha Leigh Waddell.

And the honor of being the final Miss Deaf America Ambassador goes to Miss Deaf Maryland - Chanel Mandeville Gleicher!

The crowd went nuts shortly after the announcement, hands waving and feet stomping everywhere. We congratulate Ms. Gleicher on her achievement, and look forward to working closely with her as she fulfills the duties of Miss Deaf America, 2012 - 2014! 

Special thanks go to Joann Benfield and Katie Murch for their hard work during the Miss Deaf America Ambassador Program, Preliminaries, and Finals!