A Daughter's Dream 
~ by James Banzer

   Dads and moms who have pretty daughters, your
attention please. There are many of you out there, and
certainly you want your offspring to excel. Encourage
them! Don't push them too hard, but whisper nary a
word of discouragement should they be inclined to
participate in a beauty pageant.
   This coming March will see the crowning of a new Miss
USA. Thousands of girls will have tried for that
honor, but only one will make it. Then she will go on
to compete in the Miss Universe contest. It's quite an
honor, and gives some lucky girl a lot of fame and
certain opportunities for magazine cover exposure,
broadcast interviews, and the like. Apologies are
extended to those of the feminist mentality, but they
are still called girls in the world of pageantry even
though some are well into their 20s.
   Miss USA pageants have been going on since the early
1950s. They began when there was a split from the Miss
America organization. That was because Yolande
Betbeze, who was the Miss America for 1951, had
decided not to pose in a swimsuit as long as she wore
the crown. The Miss America board of directors backed
her up. One of the major Miss America sponsors was
Catalina Swimwear. That firm dropped its sponsorship,
and started the planning for the Miss USA and Miss
Universe pageants.
   Pardon me for being a bit personal in this column.
Call it a dad's pride, if you will. Some 21 years ago,
I held my firstborn in my arms in an Oklahoma City
hospital. The birthing process was painful for my
wife. After hours of labor, a decision was made by the
medical staff to perform a caesarian section.
   As the baby was handed to me, I was concerned about a
cut on her face which the doctor had accidentally made
during delivery. Although the cut turned into a tiny
scar, it is not noticeable today except to anyone who
knows it is there.
   We named her Michelle. In intervening years, she has
been an outstanding student in both the public school
system and in college. She also turned into a gorgeous
young lady.
   Time passed. We eventually moved to Wisconsin, then
Kentucky. During her teens at one of Kentucky's
top-rated public high schools, Michelle for a short
time was part of the cheerleader girls, although she
did not stay with that endeavor long enough to make
the varsity squad. Then thoughts turned to modeling.
She signed up with a reputable agency, and for several
years landed nice jobs in television ads and
commercial promotions.
   In the meantime, the owner of the agency died after a
bout with breast cancer. Hopes and fortunes of
modeling were somewhat dashed. All was not lost
though. Michelle had met another beautiful model named
Pratima Yarlagadda, a girl of Indian heritage who had
won the Miss Indiana USA 1999 contest, and went on to
place sixth in the Miss USA 1999 contest.
   In early May of 2003, my daughter decided at Patrima's
urging that she wanted to become Miss Kentucky USA. It
turned into a dream that consumed a majority of her
thoughts during the ensuing seven months.
   On the last Sunday in November 2003, the Miss Kentucky
USA pageant was held in Somerset. Michelle was ready
and pumped up. Our 5'6" daughter placed in the top
ten, with the top spot going to a six-foot-tall beauty
named Lauren Stengel, who will represent Kentucky well
in the 2004 Miss USA pageant in March.
   Michelle has learned the lesson that losing is part of
life. She accepted defeat graciously, knowing that in
the long run it will turn into one of those barely
noticeable scars that are acquired between the cradle
and the grave.
   Dad and mom are proud of her. She has learned to never
stop trying to excel at pursuing whatever may be her
dreams. Whatever she decides to do now, she will do it
well. She hasn't quite yet decided whether to go for
it again, but if she does, she'll no doubt do well.
Many of the girls who compete for the Miss USA title
grapple for the honor for several years before being
selected to represent their home states.
   Dad and mom had always said we didn't want to see our
children subjected to the pressures of this kind of
contest. We were glad Michelle was a participant
though. We've literally seen her grow into a very
mature young lady over the last months.
   We'll be watching in March. The Miss USA event is
jointly sponsored by Donald Trump and the NBC
television network.

010104

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James Banzer has enjoyed a long career in broadcast
news and is now writing on his observations about the
world around us. He is currently residing in
Louisville, Kentucky. You may send an e-mail to him at
jamesbanzer@yahoo.com .