A southwest Iowa woman was crowned Miss Iowa U-S-A on Sunday in Ottumwa. Twenty-one-year-old Dani Reeves of Hamburg was chosen to represent Iowa in the national Miss U-S-A pageant next year. Reeves is a student at Western Iowa Tech in Sioux City where she’s studying radiology. She’s entered several pageants and this is her first big title.
Reeves says the pageant lifestyle is mostly social, for her. Reeves says “I met my best friend through Miss Teen Iowa my senior year and I’ve met several girls so I go back all the time to see those girls, since this is about the only time I get to see them since we are thrown all over Iowa.” She was selected as the winner following weekend competitions in swimwear, evening gown and interviews.
Reeves says she’s going to be wearing her sash and crown to events all over Iowa during the coming months. She says “I’m going to do a lot of charity work. I want to do a fashion show to raise money for breast cancer. I’m going to be really busy to make a difference in Iowa so you’ll be seeing me around a lot.” The date and location for next year’s Miss U-S-A pageant, which will be carried on N-B-C, has not yet been determined.
Reeves says wherever it is, she’s confident she’ll be able to place in the top 15, though she says she’s a bit nervous about the size of the audience and what she’ll be wearing. She laughs and says “I think everybody would a little scared to be walking around in a swimsuit on TV where millions of people are going to be checking you out, but I’m okay.” About 70 young women competed in the two-level competition this weekend. The winner of Miss Teen Iowa U-S-A is 17-year-old Dakota Crosswhite of Cedar Rapids. Crosswhite says she has a dual platform she’ll be promoting over the next year.
Crosswhite is promoting Best Buddies, an organization that pairs students with mentally-impaired students, sort of like Big Sisters. She’ll also help to promote breast cancer awareness. For more information, see the pageant’s website at “www.ThePageantAgency.com”.