Meet
Miss
Black USA 2007, Kalilah
Allen-Harris
"Over
the years, I have learned a lot about life. The most important
lesson I have learned is that anything I can imagine is possible."
—Kalilah Allen-Harris, Miss Black USA 2007
Kalilah Allen-Harris,
Miss Black Tennessee, was crowned Miss Black USA in The Gambia,
West Africa on Friday, June 1, 2007. A second-year medical
student at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee,
Kalilah is studying to be an orthopedic surgeon. As Miss Black
USA 2007, she received a cash award of $20,000 and a full scholarship
that will pay for her entire medical school education.
Kalilah's
life has changed dramatically since the night she was crowned.
In the past several weeks, she has...
- been interviewed
on the Tom Joyner Morning Show on BlackAmericaWeb.com
- participated
in the Montgomery Black Expo
- been
booked as Special Guest Speaker at the BET Summer Camp for Girls
- played
in the Allen Iverson Celebrity Softball Classic with Patti LaBelle,
Luke Perry, Felicia "Snoop" Pearson, and a host of
other entertainers and athletes
- spread
her message of juvenile diabetes awareness
Like Kalilah,
take the first step in making your dreams come true. Click
here for
a downloadable application form today.
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Kalilah
returned to The Gambia in July with several 2007 delegates,
founder Karen Arrington, and pageant staff. They were
all on hand to help celebrate His Excellency's
13th year in office. |
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The
Search is On for Miss Black USA 2008 delegates
Six delegates
were recently selected to compete in the 2008 national pageant,
which will be held in conjunction with the International Roots
Festival in The Gambia, West Africa, May 30 to June 14, 2008.
If your home
state has already held its pageant, you may be eligible to
compete in a different state where you work or attend school.
Contact info@missblackusa.org to
find out how you can enter, or click
here for a downloadable application form.
Congratulations
to these winners:
• Miss
Black Florida, Eunice Cofie. Eunice is a 2004 graduate
of Florida A&M University, where she majored in chemistry.
She founded the "Touch a Thousand Children" initiative
to raise school supplies and donations for 1,000 Ghanian children.
• Miss
Black Illinois, Melody Burns. Melody is a second-year student
at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine.
A saxophonist and pianist, she also performs monologues at
area schools to raise awareness about HIV-AIDS.
• Miss
Black Maryland, Alisha Lola Jones. An emerging soprano, Alisha
is a recent graduate of the Yale Institute of Sacred Music.
She earned her Master’s in Divinity from Yale University’s
School of Divinity and is currently pursuing doctoral study in
ethnomusicology.
• Miss
Black Michigan, Kyona Cook. Kyona is a sophomore at Saginaw
Valley State University, majoring in criminal justice. A dancer
and athlete, she is an all-state track-and-field scholarship
recipient.
• Miss
Black New York, Kristin Caesar. Kristen is a former
competitive gymnast and earned her BFA in Musical Theatre at
New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. A professional
actress, Kristen was cast as the lead in the national tour of
Corduroy.
• Miss
Black Virginia, Raynell Hall. Raynell is a marketing major
at Virginia Union University, where she recently was chosen
Miss Virginia Union University 07-08.
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Another dream comes true...
When Terysa Singleton was little, she drew pictures of her dream
house and planned furnishings for the home she would own someday.
Now this 23-year-old is living out her dream by buying her first
house, made possible by the financial awards she received through
the Miss Black USA Scholarship Pageant.
"Now that I don't have to worry about paying law school
tuition, I am able to use the $5,000 stipend along with money
I had previously saved to purchase my first home," she says.
Terysa, who
represented Louisiana in the 2007 pageant, is planning to start
law school at the University of Arizona in the fall of 2008.
By then she'll be settled into her new home, which will be
finished in a few months. "Walking through the house
for the first time will be an amazing feeling," she says.
Terysa credits
the pageant with making this investment in her future possible. "Thank you for allowing me to make another
dream come true."
|
Terysa
Singleton and her new home. |
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Thousands of books collected for The Gambia
It's been only a few weeks since delegates and pageant officials
returned from West Africa. But in that short time, they've collected
thousands of donated books for the library at New Yundum Lower
Basic School in The Gambia.
"Our delegates and pageant directors have started book
drives for the library, which was named the Miss Black USA Library," says
Karen Arrington, pageant founder.
In Wisconsin, a book drive led by Wisconsin state director Cheryl
Shelby (Miss Black Wisconsin 1995 and first runner-up in the
national pageant) brought in 2,000 books in the past month. And
in Colorado, efforts organized by state director Shelly Traylor
and team member Chandra Norris generated donations of almost
1,000 books in one week.
According
to Shelly, her team is receiving book donations from city libraries
in Denver and Aurora, Colorado, too. "These
books cover arithmetic, computers, cooking, fiction...whatever
you can think of, they're donating it!" she says.
Because the response has been so overwhelming, the Miss Black
USA Pageant has appointed Vera Littlejohn, a retired educator,
as librarian. She will be responsible for inventorying the books
and shipping them to The Gambia. Rutha Thompson has been appointed
assistant librarian.
"These books will make it possible for New Yundum's students
to improve their English and academic skills," Karen Arrington
says. "They're a symbol of the commitment to education we
share with the people of The Gambia."
To donate funds or books for the book drive, contact Vera Littlejohn
at librarian@missblackusa.org.
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A
Royal Journey to
The Gambia
The 2007
Miss Black USA Scholarship Pageant was held in The Gambia,
where Alex Haley’s highly acclaimed miniseries Roots was
filmed. From the moment the 2007 Miss Black USA delegates stepped
off the plane in The Gambia and were greeted by hundreds of dignitaries,
musicians, dancers, and school-children, their visit to this
West African country changed their lives forever. For reactions
from some of the 2007 delegates, see their quotes and photographs
on this page. And for information about the 2008 pageant, go
to www.missblackusa.org.
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Congratulations to the American Inventor First Runner-Up!
Elaine Cato, the Tennessee
State Pageant Director, came in second in ABC’s American
Inventor reality show August 1. A former Miss Black Tennessee,
she invented a 6-in-1 backless brassiere, which she developed
for women with above average bust sizes. The bra allows women
to wear backless clothing with the same support offered by
other bras.
While Elaine
just missed the million-dollar top prize, she will be working
with Maidenform to further develop her product. It’s been a great year for Elaine. Not
only did her daughters and sisters get to see her win big on American Inventor,
but she helped lead Kalilah Allen-Harris, Miss Black Tennessee 2007, to become
this year’s Miss Black USA. Congratulations!
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