| Coon Rapids teen heads to nationals |
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| Wednesday, 08 July 2009 | ||
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Managing editor A Coon Rapids girl will be heading to Orlando, Fla., in August to compete for the Miss America’s Outstanding Teen title.
Katlyn Ziegler, Coon Rapids, was crowned the 2009 Miss Minnesota’s Outstanding Teen at the annual pageant at Eden Prairie High School June 18. Ziegler, who has just completed her freshman year at Coon Rapids High School, came home with a crown/sash, a $1,000 scholarship, free training in a gymnasium and the trip to the national pageant. Not only did Ziegler win the overall title, she also won the talent, interview and evening gown portions of the competition. Ziegler thought she had a good chance to win the crown because she knew she had won the evening gown category before the final winners were announced, she said. “I was very excited,” Ziegler said. Ziegler’s first task in preparing for the national pageant has been to wade through stacks of paperwork, she said. For the national competition itself, Ziegler is not planning any changes. But she will be getting two new evening gowns for national pageant and she plans to color her hair one color instead of having highlights, according to Ziegler. Competition at the state level was in scholastic achievement, active wear, interview/platform, talent and evening gown/on-stage question. The private interview counted for 35 percent of the total score, on-stage question 5 percent, talent 35 percent, evening wear 15 percent and fitness 10 percent. For scholastic achievement judging, Ziegler had to submit a transcript from school. She was a straight A student, both at Coon Rapids Middle School and in her ninth-grade year at Coon Rapids High School. For active wear, Ziegler had to show the judges how healthy and fit she is. “I go to the gym and work a lot,” she said. “I try to eat healthy, but I have my share of junk food.” The pre-pageant interview focused not so much on the candidates’ knowledge of current events, but rather a presentation on their platform and answer questions about teen issues and their community involvement. Ziegler’s platform is “Paws for Life.” She and George, her Pembroke Welsh Corgi, are involved in pet therapy, she said. For the last seven months they have been going 10 times a month to three different senior facilities to interact with the residents. George, who is six years old, has been with the Ziegler family since he was five weeks old. “He is very well trained,” Ziegler said. “We have seen the positive effects of pet therapy on seniors.” Indeed, now that she is Miss Minnesota’s Outstanding Teen, Ziegler’s goal is to expand her pet therapy visits statewide to raise awareness of and show others the benefits of pet therapy. “It brings a smile to the faces of the patients,” Ziegler said. For the last year, Ziegler has also involved in many community events with Miss Coon Rapids and the Coon Rapids Junior Royalty, although she would not have been recognized. That’s because she appears in costume as the Coon Rapids Snowflake Association mascot - Rockee the Raccoon. Ziegler’s talent presentation was a piano performance of “Sacro-Monte,” a Spanish tune by Turina Sacromonte. A student of Sandy Delmore of Coon Rapids, Ziegler has been playing the piano for six years, she said. “I was well prepared and it went well,” Ziegler said. In fact, the judges were full of praise for her talent presentation in their critique of Ziegler. “They really liked my piano performance and thought I showed a lot of energy on stage,” Ziegler said. “The judges also loved my platform because it was straightforward and I had a solid plan.” And the on-stage question Ziegler was given during the evening gown competition was a perfect fit for her. She was asked about the challenges of relating to the elderly, which prompted her to talk about her pet therapy project. When she has some free time, she bowls in a league with her brother - they finished third - and likes to hang out with friends, especially in the pool in the backyard of her home. This was not Ziegler’s first pageant. She was Coon Rapids Junior Royalty’s Teen Queen in 2007. The national pageant finals are Aug. 15, with preliminaries Aug. 11-13, at the Rosen Center in Orlando. But Ziegler will be arriving in Florida Aug. 7 for a series of activities leading up to the pageant The purpose of the Miss Minnesota’s and Miss America’s outstanding teen pageants is to “encourage positive achievement by helping to nurture and build the scholastic achievement, creative accomplishment, healthy living and community involvement of our nation’s youth,” according to the Miss Minnesota’s Outstanding Teen Web site. To be eligible, candidates must be between the ages of 13 and 17, be a U.S. citizen, meet residential requirements for competing in Minnesota and meet character criteria established by the Miss America’s Outstanding Teen Organization. Peter Bodley is at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it |
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