Brittany Wiser, Bozeman, competed in her first pageant ever and came away as Miss Montana.
“I actually wasn’t going to try this year, but was going to wait until next year,” Wiser, 21, said during her time in Sidney Monday. She was told by friends, however, that it usually takes a couple of pageants for experience before a person wins the crown. “I was kind of coming for practice.”
 Bill Vander Weele | Sidney Herald Miss Montana Brittany Wiser enjoys ice cream at Nutt-N Better in Sidney Monday with pageant “little sisters” Chantel Wilcoxon, left, and Coutney Hecker. Miss Montana will take part in the Town and Country Festival Saturday. |
“It was really hard to get any criticism from them,” Wiser said of the judges. “They felt I did a real good job. I thought the judges were super nice.”
Prior to the pageant, Wiser did her homework by viewing DVDs of the last two Miss Montana pageant and last Miss America pageant. “I was fairly familiar with what will happen when I was there. That helped me feel more comfortable.”
She explains the first time she actually thought she could earn the crown was when a couple other contestants mentioned they hoped she would win.
Still, she really wasn’t prepared to have her name called as the new Miss Montana. “I can’t really remember much except I started crying,” Wiser, who shared the Miss Congeniality honor, said. “I was just in shock the rest of the night.”
She also won the most outstanding Academic and Children’s Miracle Maker awards.
Her platform deals with mental health and suicide prevention. Wiser said she decided on the topics because suicide has hit close to home and Montana always ranks in the top five for suicide rates.
“It’s hard to find help, and people think they can work it out themselves instead of having people help them,” Wiser said.
She is also on the board of directors for the Montana Chapter of American Federation for Suicide Prevention. During her school tour, she plans to show videos aimed at students to show how they can help others and themselves.
Wiser recently graduated with a major in communication and minors in chemistry and leadership from the University of Denver.
“I’ve really always wanted to be in the Miss Montana pageant,” Wiser said. “For me, it was a great time. I knew if I won, I could devote all my time to it.”
Instead of applying for medical school now, she will put those plans off for a year. Along with making stops to visit residents across Montana, Wiser’s plans now include preparing for the Miss America pageant to be held in Las Vegas during January.
editor@sidneyherald.com
Comments