Huntley woman named Miss Illinois 2011

Submitted by Spencer Gualdoni

On July 2, Hannah Smith of Huntley was crowned Miss Illinois 2011 by outgoing Miss Illinois 2010 Whitney Thorpe-Klinsky at the Marion Cultural and Civic Center in Marion, Ill.

Smith will now spend her year of service touring the state of Illinois speaking at schools about “Distracted Driving … FOCUS.” Automobile crashes continue to be the leading cause of death and injury to teenage drivers, and teens are nearly 10 times more likely to be in an accident within their first year of driving.

State Farm Insurance and the Miss Illinois Scholarship Association are teaming up to combat these statistics and educate teens on safe driving habits. Through this newly created partnership, the reigning Miss Illinois will appear at events and high schools across the state, working collaboratively with State Farm to promote good decision making behind the wheel by teen drivers and warning against the many distractions while driving.

Smith will also compete with 53 other titleholders from across the United States for the title of Miss America at the 2012 Miss America Pageant, which will be Jan. 14 at Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nev.

Smith earned the award for Lifestyle & Fitness in Swimsuit, Talent, as well as best Evening Gown Award during Thursday night’s preliminary competition. For her talent, she performed a Ballet en Pointe to “Sugar Plum Fairies Variation.”

The Top Five consisted of Smith; 1st Runner-Up Miss Macomb, Megan Jo Ervin; 2nd Runner-Up Miss Illinois Valley, JaTuane Bosby; 3rd Runner-Up Miss Chicago, Erika Uhlig; and 4th Runner-Up Miss Cook County, April Strong.

For details, call Trish Williamson at (618) 910-0069, email businessmanager@missillinois.org or visit [URL]www.missillinois.org;http://www.missillinois.org[URL].[/URL]