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Miss Illinois 2006 at local fundraiser
Published: 12/18/06 | Read More...
St. Charles is new home to Miss Illinois pageant
The Miss
Illinois Scholarship Association is making St. Charles its new home for its annual
pageant. Amalia Schwerdtmann, the association's executive director, announced the group
will now hold its yearly state competition at the Dellora A. Norris Cultural Arts Center,
1040 Dunham Road. The event is affiliated with the Miss America Organization. In previous
years, Schwerdtmann said the program was held at a high school in Schaumburg. "St.
Charles is our new home, and we have been so...
Published: 7/13/06 | Read More...
Miss Illinois pageant moves to St. Charles
Event
formerly in Schaumburg will be held in July
By Josh Stockinger
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Posted Wednesday, April 05, 2006
The next
Illinois woman to get a shot at the title of Miss America will be crowned in St. Charles.
This year’s Miss Illinois contest will be at the Dellora A. Norris Cultural Arts
Center on the campus of St. Charles East High School, organizers said Tuesday.
The location is a change from prior years, when the statewide event was in Schaumburg.
Promoters say they hope for a packed house at the competition, slated for July 27-29 at
the roughly 900-seat center. But they also want the event to return here in the future.
“As far as we’re concerned, we’re staying here,” said Amalia
Schwerdtmann of Lake in the Hills.
Schwerdtmann took over as executive director of the Miss Illinois Scholarship Association
after a legal battle that began with the former director’s contract not being
renewed.
A recent court order cleared the way for Schwerdtmann by giving the association the right
to change leadership. Miss Illinois is a nonprofit franchise of the Miss America
organization.
Schwerdtmann said she and others selected St. Charles as the pageant’s new location
for its charm and tourism.
They are looking for support from businesses, volunteers and the city to make the
contest’s first local appearance a success.
Twenty-three contestants between the ages of 18 and 24 will vie in the program for
scholarships, as well as a chance to compete in Las Vegas for the title of Miss America
— a program set to be the focus of a new reality television show.
In addition to participating in the national contest, the woman crowned Miss Illinois
generally travels the state, working with schools and lawmakers to address public service
issues. Lauren Allen of Batavia is the reigning Miss Illinois until July and has spent her
time promoting youth violence prevention.
To put on the contest, organizers rely entirely on donations of money and services to
cover everything from scholarships to the meals for competitors during the event.
Call (847) 997-0294 or go to www.missillinois.org for more information.
STC's Norris Center to host Miss Illinois
Kane
County Chronicle
April 04, 2006
By ROALD HAASE
ST.
CHARLES - The next Miss Illinois will complete her ceremonial walk on turf that's familiar
to Fox Valley residents.
She will celebrate her victory in festivities at the Dellora A. Norris Cultural Arts
Center, which is part of the St. Charles East High School complex. The event is scheduled
for July 29.
The decision to move the program to St. Charles was nailed down recently, said Patty
Thayer, director of marketing of the St. Charles Convention & Visitors Bureau.
"It's something we have been working on to coordinate for several months,"
Thayer said Monday.
The 900-seat theater, with its large performing arts stage, should serve well as a
backdrop for the competition, said Thayer and others close to the event. Annually, the
Miss Illinois contest winner represents the state in the Miss America pageant in Las
Vegas.
St. Charles resident, business leader and former major league pitcher Bob Miller hailed
the move. He serves on the board of the Miss Illinois Scholarship Association, which
sponsors the contest.
"It's a new board, and it's a new situation," Miller said. "We just felt
that St. Charles was ideally located, and they have the facility."
The competition is being moved from Schaumburg.
"Some of the other venues have conflicts," Miller said. "Norris doesn't
have too many conflicts, and that makes it easier to accommodate an event like this."
Coincidentally, the current Miss Illinois, Lauren Allen, is from Batavia.
Although news of the Norris Center's selection surfaced Monday, planning the shift to
St. Charles had been under way for more than a year, said Amalia Schwerdtmann, the
statewide program's new executive director.
Schwerdtmann said she was selected out of five people bidding for the competition
franchise, and the selection actually was made a year ago.
She praised the Convention & Visitors Bureau, Miller, city officials and Operations
Director Jo Anne Granquist of the Norris Center for cooperating to ensure that St. Charles
be chosen.
"They were my best cheerleaders," Schwerdtmann said.
Miller acknowledged that the time frame in which to organize the competition is
relatively short, with the event scheduled less than four months from now.
"I'm very excited to be a part of this," Miller said. "I am sure we are
going to get the support in the St. Charles community to make it a big success."
Miller said he hopes community support locally will help draw crowds to St. Charles.
Schwerdtmann emphasized that today's competitions are not primarily beauty contests or
pageants. Rather, the contestants are judged through interviews, talent performances and
their positions on their "platforms," she said, with winners receiving
scholarships.
The Illinois competition is paired with the Character Counts organization, Schwerdtmann
added.
Something else will be different, she said. Two $1,000 scholarships will be given to
two young men in Bob Miller's name.
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