INDEPENDENT SPIRIT WINNER

Time to reveal the winner of our Independent Spirit award. We've already cited a beauty queen who was told to not compete in the swimsuit competition by her government, but did so anyway; two fashionistas; a beauty queen who refused to pose in a swimsuit; and a man who founded an alternative beauty pageant. Our students overwhelming choice for this award was none other than the "Pistol Packing Mama" of pageantdom, Venus Ramey, Miss America 1944.

This truly independent spirit, whose heritage dates back to the American Revolutionary War, became the first red-haired winner at Miss America, sold lots of war bonds, and had her image painted on B-17 bombers in World War II. She was the first Miss America to run for public office, hosted her own radio show and published a political newspaper. She publicly disparaged Vanessa Williams, Miss America 1984, and Kate Shindle, Miss America 1998, with words we choose not to quote here (do a Google search for more on that), and she successfully campaigned to have an area in Ohio declared part of the U.S. National Registry of Historical Places. If that is not enough, how about making headlines 63 years after her reign by shooting out the tires of the truck of a couple of thieves? At 82, out on her walker, she pulled out a .38 caliber revolver and held the thieves at bay until the cops arrived. She was quoted as saying about the incident " I didn't ever think twice. I just went and did it. If they even dared to come close to me, They'd be six feet under by now." Talk about spirit and independence, this lady is one of a kind!