Best of Luck to Ohio's Sweetheart, Becky Minger!

This weekend in Hoopston, Illinois the gorgeous Becky Minger will represent Ohio in the National Sweetheart Pageant! Becky qualifies for this unofficial pageant by being Miss Ohio's 1st Runner-up this summer, where she competed as Miss Fallen Timbers. Miss America rules are followed, but the winner doesn't really have a reign or any duties. It's just notoriety and a great experience. Dating back to the 1940s, the pageant sponsored by the Hoopston Jaycees and is part of the Sweetcorn Festival. A press release from last year explains:

Being a 1st runner-up is a uniquely uncertain feeling, somewhere between pride and disappointment. Hoopeston, so far from the bright lights of Atlantic City, and now Las Vegas offers these accomplished young women more honors, more opportunities, and more scholarship money.

National Sweetheart is Miss America's charming country cousin, but the two pageants have no official connection.

Becky also represented Ohio at Sweetheart last year, having been 1st Runner-up at Miss Ohio as Miss Maumee Valley; last year in Hoopston she placed in the Top 11. In 2007 our reigning Miss Ohio, Erica Gelhaus, won the Sweetheart pageant! Unfortunately this year at Miss Ohio many online fans pitted these two specific women against each other. Indeed, they were the last two standing, but I was never able to figure out why supporting one of them seemed, for many people, to mean hating the other. Don't pretend like you don't know what I'm talking about! Those psychotic fans made it miserable for the rest of us! Both women have their strengths, weaknesses and should be supported. Some of the most pathetic, uninformed drivel I've ever read in my life was the idea that Becky's Top 5 placement three of four times at Miss Ohio was a bad thing. Excuse me?! If that's truly what you believe, I don't understand why you're even wasting your time being a pageant fan. Pageants define subjectivity! The judging criteria is vague; just like some professors refuse to give a 100%, one judges "7" could be the next judges "9." Any women in the Top 5 could be the winner and the current final ballot plays more on the judges whim than ever. Anyone who has had three different state panels deem them crown worthy by putting them in the Top 5 is unbelievably impressive to me!

In my opinion, Becky embodies todays Miss America. She's more than ready with a killer wardrobe and ability to give impromptu speeches or vocal presentations. I've seen her in action for the Children's Miracle Network twice and she definitely knows how to work a room. She is stunning, talented and committed; I'm sure she will represent Ohio well this weekend at Sweetheart!

According to the Jaycees website, preliminaries will be held Friday and Saturday nights with a parade Saturday morning and pageant finale Sunday at 7 p.m. Check Becky's blog for updates.

The following women are supposedly competing:1. ALABAMA – Susannah Higgins, Ballet “August’s Rhapsody”
2. ALASKA – Jessica Fulton, Traditional Yu'pik Eskimo Dance
3. ARIZONA — Melody Knudson, Monologue, “Les Miserables”
4. ARKANSAS – Allison Waldrip, Vocal “Listen”
5. CALIFORNIA – Jenna Harvey - Piano, “Revolutionary Etude”
6. COLORADO – Morgan Weaver – Middle Eastern Dance “Suerte”
7. CONNECTICUT – Candice Dodge, Lyrical Dance “If I Had My Way”
8. DELAWARE – Carly Economos, Opera “Sempre Libera”
9. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA – Randi Levendusky, Opera “Quando Men Vo ”
10. FLORIDA – Kristina Janolo, Vocal “I Am Changing”
11. GEORGIA – Courtney Herndon, Lyrical dance "If I Was a Boy."
12. ILLINOIS - Corina Harwood, Tap Dance, “Dr. Jazz”
13. INDIANA – Carolyn Holcombe, Jazz Dance
14. IOWA – Jennifer Neal, Piano
15. KANSAS – Alexandra Miller, Jazz Dance “Fever”
16. KENTUCKY – Janelle Blevins, Jazz Dance "It's What's Inside That Counts"
17. LOUISIANA — Hope Anderson, Ballet "Accentuate the positive"
18. MARYLAND – Mary King, Dance
19. MASSACHUSETTS – Kera Street, Jazz Dance “ Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’”
20. MICHIGAN — Katie LaRoche , Jazz Dance “ ”
21. MINNESOTA — Natalie Davis, Vocal “Unexpected Song”
22. MISSISSIPPI – Danielle Smith, Jazz Dance “Lion King Medley”
23. MISSOURI – Kari Gai, Tap Dance “This Joint is Jumpin’”
24. MONTANA – Holly Matz, Jump Rope Routine
25. NEBRASKA - Devon Howell, Piano “Cumana” “El Cumbanchero”
26. NEVADA – Cassandra Walker, Vocal
27. NEW HAMPSHIRE - Meghan Lamontange, Baton Twirling
28. NEW JERSEY — Katie Hope, Vocal “Don't Cry Out Loud”
29. NEW MEXICO – Sarina Turnbull, Ballet “Defying Gravity”
30. NEW YORK – Inga Schlingmann, Tap Dance “I Feel Good”
31. NORTH CAROLINA – Lisa Mace, Tap Dance
32. NORTH DAKOTA - Jaci Stofferahn, Vocal "Anything Goes"
33. OHIO – Becky Minger, Vocal "I Was Born to Love You"
34. OREGON – Cassandra Tolman, Opera “Nessun Dorma”
35. PENNSYLVANIA – Courtney Thomas, Fiddle
36. PUERTO RICO – Liam Rodriguez, Ballet
37. SOUTH DAKOTA — Aja Kessler, Ballet “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy”
38. TENNESSEE — Kayla Hockett, Vocal “Summertime”
39. UTAH — Allie Edgington, Dance
40. VIRGINIA – Shannon Beam, Vocal
41. WASHINGTON – Chandler Batiste, Drums