MISS FLORIDA USA PRELIMINARY REPORTS

» MISS POLK COUNTY USA

The show is next Sunday January 16 and starts at 6:30 at the Embassy Suites I-Drive South in Orlando. The address is 8978 International Drive. We have a GREAT group of contestants and can't wait! We hope to see you there! – Julie & Shannon

» MISS SOUTH FLORIDA USA SEMINAR THIS FRIDAY! Miss South Florida USA will be having an Orientation Day on Friday January 7th, 2005 at the Ransom Everglades Auditorium at 4pm. We will be going over not only of what to expect at the pageant, but also a training in the following areas: Interview Competition - On Stage Presentation - Make Up and Hair – Apparel – Fitness - Do's and Don'ts of Pageantry and Many more topics! Please bring with you: Completed application / Registration fee of $400.00 / Prepared program book ad / Head shot photo / 2 forms of proof of residency / Parental Consent Form (Under 18 Only)- you may have your parent sign in front of one of our Pageant Committee Members when you attend the Pageant Seminar. Your headshot for the program book will be taken at this meeting, please come prepared. The address for the Orientation is:

Ransom Everglades School
3575 Main Highway
Coconut Grove, FL 33133
(305) 460-8800

For any questions or if you are not able to attend, please call (305) 785-1000.

Look forward to seeing you on Friday! Daphne

» MISS GAINESVILLE USA

We're very excited about the upcoming Miss Gainesville USA / Teen USA pageant on February 4-5 at the PK Yonge Performing Arts Center. Miss Florida USA Melissa Witek will be co-hosting and the theme will be "Put a Little LOVE in Your Heart!" in honor of Valentine's day.

APPLICATION DEADLINE / ORIENTATION: January 22
We'll be hosting a Leading Lady Workshop Day from 2:30 - 5:30 PM at Gainesville Health & Fitness, so if you're interested in the pageant and want to know more about how to become the "Leading Lady" of GatorTown, then stop by and see us. We'll also be hosting a workshop on public speaking, wardrobe, stage presence and more! RSVP to Kristin Laneri at Kristin@LeadingLadyMagazine.com.

For more info, check out www.MissGainesvilleUSA.com or email Kristin@LeadingLadyMagazine.com.

LOTS OF *LOVE* TO ALL! **LEADING LADIES

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STATE PAGEANT ELIGIBILITY STATS

Miss Florida USA 2006

Delegates Entered: 12

Delegates Eligible: 45

Miss Florida Teen USA

Delegates Entered: 12

Delegates Eligible: 32

Every week more delegates become eligible to compete at state.

The season started with qualifiers from the past year. All of each pageants top15 qualify

along with Miss Amity & Miss Photogenic. Each preliminary pageant qualifies delegates

as “at large” status with their finalist, amity, photogenic and peoples choice awards.

Next Pageant January 15 – Miss Polk County USA & Miss Polk County Teen USA.

THE ROAD TO MISS USA

Do You Believe?

By Matt Schepeler

In a scene in the movie "Miracle", Herb Brooks, the coach of the 1980 United States Men's Hockey team, walks into the locker room as the team is preparing to take on the mighty U.S.S.R. Hockey machine. The Russians had not been beaten for years, and the American team had been assembled mere months before the Olympics.

Brooks slowly looked around at his young men as they waited to hear words that would inspire them to battle the Goliaths of the hockey world, and uttered the famous words "Great moments are born from great opportunities."

Brooklyn native Aleah Scheick likes to quote Brooks' famous line, which is fitting. Like the young team, she has set her sights high. She also loves sports, particularly hockey, and is not afraid to take advantage of opportunities as they are presented.

Scheick's first "great opportunity" came in the form of an adventure. The 2001 Columbia Central graduate took a chance and passed up the security of going to a local college, opting instead to head north - north-by-northwest, in fact - to the land of the Midnight Sun. While classmates were going off to MSU or JCC, Scheick headed thousands of miles away from home to the University of Alaska, Anchorage, to study journalism.

While choosing Alaska to major in journalism may seem an odd combination, so far the move has proven shrewd, if not downright golden. Scheick is interested in broadcast journalism, and sports broadcasting in particular. Since her arrival on campus she has hosted her own hockey program, has worked pregame shows for the Great Alaska Shootout (an early season college basketball tournament that is viewed throughout the country) and recently toured the ESPN studio in Connecticut, sitting in on a taping of NFL Prime Time as part of a job shadow program.

And, speaking of grabbing opportunities, the student also spent last summer break as a nanny - in Italy. "I visited a Web site last January and signed up and got the job," she said. "I just figured 'why not give it a try'." She has accomplished all this while completing her studies and enjoying the mountains of the Pacific Northwest and activities that college life affords. Oh, yes - and she was also recently named Miss Alaska, USA.

Aleah is the daughter of Mark and Diane Scheick of Brooklyn. "We are so proud of her," said Diane, who sponsored her entry into the Miss Alaska U.S.A Pageant.
Aleah did not win the crown the first time through. She placed in the top five in 2003, but was better prepared the second time around. The contest features three primary events: an interview, a swimsuit contest and the evening gown portion.

As far as being better prepared her second time in the pageant, she said that she helped herself by choosing the subject matter for her interview, "I talked hockey," she said. Rather than simply letting the judges choose a random topic, she let them know of her affinity for the sport and "they were happy to ask about it."

"They are nervous, too, so they are glad to have a subject [provided]," she said. Winning the contest was "a huge relief". You either have it all or you have nothing," she noted. As one might suspect, being named Miss Alaska has provided Scheick with even more opportunities. She has shot a McDonald's commercial, talked with the governor, met celebrities from the sports world, been awarded scholarship money, and will participate in the Miss USA contest April 11, which is slated to be aired on NBC.

Life has changed for the new Miss Alaska. She is now utilizing a personal trainer to assist her in her workouts, and is looking forward to the possibility of being on "Fear Factor" in a special show leading into the Miss USA contest. Of course, the movie "Miracle" wasn't really about a miracle at all, but about fulfilling a dream through hard work and being ready when opportunity presented itself, and Scheick appears to be doing just that. She is currently working on a project for the Hurst Foundation that features Scottie Gomez of the New Jersey Devils. Gomez opted to return home to Alaska during the current player's strike rather than accepting a lucrative offer to play overseas, making him a cult hero in his hometown.

She also continues with her studies and conducts intermission reports for the Sea Wolves, the school's Division I hockey team. With all this on her plate, the future not only looks bright, but it is coming fast. Her studies will be completed in December, having been moved back a bit because of all the extracurricular activity. She will then be hiring an agent (she would like to get one that represents some of the sportscasters on ESPN), then, who knows?

Miss Alaska, naturally, has come to consider Alaska home. She loves the mountains ("I am amazed at how flat it is here in Michigan," she notes) and is quick to tell people who ask that yes, it is cold in Alaska, but it does not feel as cold as Michigan. While she is not yet sure where she will end up, the sky appears to be the limit. One thing she has learned is that opportunity will present itself. So far, she has proven that when it does, she will be ready.