My Last Day as Miss Cotton Belle

On Saturday night, I gave up my crown to the new Miss Cotton Belle, Hannah Billingsley! It was great to be back with the Cotton Belle family and spend time with my teen queen, Madison Fuller. I attended interviews Saturday afternoon, dinner with the judges, and performed that night at the pageant. Busy day... but so much fun! We had a great group of contestants and I am so excited for the new Miss Cotton Belle. Hannah has worked hard to come this far and deserves every bit of her new title! Good luck to you in the future!

Madison Fuller, Miss Cotton Belle Outstanding Teen

The winning interview, Hannah Billingsley!

Congratulations to all of our winners!

As I was giving my farewell speech, I reminded the audience of my journey to Miss Arkansas. Before winning Miss Cotton Belle, I had competed in seven preliminary pageants over the course of two years. The first year, I compared losing a preliminary to getting kicked in the gut. It wasn't until the second year that I started to value the practice of preliminaries and enjoy the process. I believe that the practice and strengthening of character is what propelled me to finish as third-runner up to Miss Arkansas. I have experienced tremendous personal growth in interview skills, public speaking, passion for my platform, character, and identity. I also have recieved $8,000 in scholarship that has paid for my entire senior year at college and will pay for part of my first year in pharmacy school. This is what the Miss America organization is all about: providing scholarship and opportunities for young women to grow into incredible young women!