On September 11th, 2001, I was Miss Texas competing in the Miss America Pageant, Atlantic City, NJ. I had worked hard to become Miss Texas and my dream of competing in Miss America had finally come true....but the dream changed drastically when on that Tuesday morning while getting dressed for rehearsal, I saw on television a plane crashing into one of the World Trade Centers.
It was disbelief at first, confusion as to what was happening and then reality. We were being attacked by terrorists. Steve Ann and Jean, my two traveling companions rooming with me, ran in the room, and we all watched in horror as people jumped from the top of buildings plummeting to their death.
Later on at rehearsal, there was a discussion about whether Miss America would even continue.
In a world of pageantry, that gets a bad stereotype from the majority of the pubic, we all sat in a circle, holding hands and praying for our nation. It was an attack on us, on our states that we represented, on our nation that each one of us was competing to represent for a year. It was personal.
The pageant did go on. Later on that day, we saw smoke from New York City coming in over the harbor. Miss Oregan won Miss America that year. Katie, you did a great job.
Months later, all my sisters that competed in Miss America that year wrote a book about our experiences called "Under the Crown."
Here's my exerpt in the book:
The Heart Goes On...Stacy James, Miss Texas 2001
When I first became aware of what had happened on the morning of September 11, my immediate thought was family. Quite honestly, I wanted to go home and be with my parents. All of a sudden, pageants lost their importance, and I had no desire to be in a competitive setting.
As I prayed with the other girls on what to do, I began to realize, that while preparing a response to terrorism, America would not be cowed and would pursue its arts and culture. The pageant would go on. I have always tried to prioritize my life, with God being first, family second, and my particular job at the time third. That job was not only representing a state I love so much, but a country I love even more.
After the decsion was made to move ahead, the contestants acknowledged that the competitive nature of a pageant was still prevalent, but more importantly all of us together represented the United States of America. I will never forget the bond that developed between us all, a wall of determination never to give in.
We could see the smoke pouring into the sky over New York. We were horrified when one of the hostesses helping to make the week so special for us left crying, because she had been notified that one of her relatives was a pilot on the second plane that crashed in the World Trade Center.
My reign as Miss Texas started immediately after Miss America ended. I remember looking at the words to America the Beautiful prior the the NASCAR Race and noticing, as though for the first time, that as an American, I was not as familiar with the second verse as I should have been. From students throughout the state, from all ethnic backgrounds, I could not have missed the renewal in love of country and love of freedom. It is not put on, but very real. Like me, individuals who have never known war are more appreciative now than ever of the sacrifices that must be made in order to preserve our way of live.
Although my ulimate strength is my faith in God, I have been strengthened by the young people I met throughout Texas who I know as adults will typify the character and fortitude needed to preserve the freedom that is unique to the U.S.
I often reflect on my week at Miss America and remember the 50 other women who were there with me. I also remember the many delegates in Washington, DC, at the National Alzheimer's Forum, who were there from all over the nation as they held their lighted candles facing the Lincoln Memorial with the water from the Washington Monument glittering behind them. The song I sang from the movie, Titanic, My Heart Will Go On, was appropriate for those of us who have lost loved ones to this disease.
The heart does go on. This song is appropriate to celebrate the resolve that rose from the terror of 9/11. If I love to be 100, the events of that day will never dim in my mind. As I think of all the brave men and women in our country, especially in New York, who responded to the tragedy, the patriotic and heartfelt love I have for the Untied States of America will go on forever.
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That's my September 11th. What was yours?
God Bless America,
The Mayo's
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