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What Was It Like To Be Miss America?
Written by Kimberly Aiken Cockerham, Miss America 1994
It has been nine years since I walked the runway as the newly crowned Miss America. However, I remember the day and the feelings that I felt as if it were yesterday. On September 18, 1993, I was an eighteen year old from South Carolina that had barely been out of my hometown. There I was on the stage in Atlantic City about to embark upon a year that would change my life forever.
I remembered watching the Miss America Pageant as a child and practicing the runway walk as the new Miss America was crowned. Just like every little girl, I thought it was a fairytale. Little did I know that the actual job of Miss America was very different than I expected. It is a job. Fortunately, it is a very rewarding job, but nonetheless it is a job.
Within minutes of being crowned the new Miss America I was whisked away to a huge press conference where I was asked questions about the competition, how I felt (I was petrified), and about my platform. I was then taken to have numerous pictures taken with family, pageant officials, and pageant sponsors. Next I attended the network party before I hosted a party in my suite for my family and friends. Finally, after being briefed about the next morning's events I was able to go to bed. That was probably at about three in the morning. Then it finally hit me. I am Miss America! Then the questions came. Am I ready for this? Can I do this? Will I do a good job? Will I miss home too much? The morning brought more of the same as the night before had in store. My traveling companion kept telling me that the first week of being Miss America was the hardest. She was right.
Just as with most life experiences, the year of Miss America is filled with emotional highs and lows. You are an ambassador of goodwill. You have the opportunity to touch the lives of countless people just with a simple encouraging word, an autograph signed, or a speech that strikes a cord. However, it's extremely difficult when you visit a homeless shelter or hospital of sick children. You feel like you get to know the families and come to understand their stories. You leave and go on to the next city and leave them with their broken lives. That is the most difficult part of the job.
On days when most 18- 24 year olds are hanging out on campus with their friends I was on a plane trying to get a power nap before giving a speech at the next stop. Many times this happened as many as three times in one day. Miss America takes advantage of time changes. Instead of a twenty-four hour day she may have a twenty-seven hour day or more!
So what was it like? Being Miss America was one of the most wonderful experiences of my life. It gave me the chance to meet people and have experiences that would mold me into the person that I am today. The irony is that Miss America afforded me the opportunity to finish my college education, but it taught me more about life and myself than any degree ever could have. It taught me how to be flexible, and how to perform under stress and how to appreciate all of the gifts and curve balls that life sends your way.
Kimberly Aiken is president of Kimberly Aiken, Inc. She is a motivational speaker and image consultant specializing in pageant interview preparation. For more information call 513-721-0168 or email
kimberlyaikeninc@aol.com.
I learned something new today.
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