My First Appearance as Miss North Carolina’s Teen
Annika Schneider - Miss North Carolina's Teen 2023
On January 28th, I was able to travel to Jonesborough, Tennessee for a local competition. When I was crowned and even prior to, I never thought about the opportunity to travel to other states for appearances. I put myself in a North Carolina box, only thinking about the important places to go in my state. When I was presented with the opportunity to go to Tennessee I was ecstatic. I knew I had to make it happen and thought that it was so cool to have the opportunity to appear in a different state so soon after my crowning.
The morning after I was crowned, my dad and I woke up early, I touched up my hair and makeup, put on my outfit from McKenzie Jade’s, made a pit stop at Walmart for eyelash glue, and then we headed to Tennessee. The bond that I have with my dad through pageantry has always been so special, to be able to share my first appearance with me made the day all the more memorable. My dad has been the ultimate pageant dad (I was actually able to talk about this in my state interview) he takes amazing pictures for Instagram, helps me pick out my outfits, and supports me every step of the way. I truly couldn’t think of anyone else that has been there for me in the way he has.
Everyone that I encountered at this competition showered me with so much love and kindness, I easily saw why Tennessee is called the Volunteer State.
When we arrived in Tennessee we immediately started taking pictures and videos to create content for my Instagram. I had so much fun promoting our different sponsors through content creation. I was able to meet Miss Tennessee’s Teen in the process, Anna Grace Parlapiano. I was so excited to meet her and she was very friendly. We were able to discuss her Miss America experience and college! After this, we entered the theatre to watch the competition. I was greeted by the state directors of the Miss Tennessee competition, Joe and Janie Albright. They were extremely kind and happy to have me in attendance. Everyone that I encountered at this competition showered me with so much love and kindness, I easily saw why Tennessee is called the Volunteer State.
At intermission I was able to interact with some of the local titleholders from Tennessee. They were all nice and I am grateful to have met each of them. During intermission, I also changed into another gown from McKenzie Jade’s and took more pictures of course. After this, I went back to the show and continued to watch all of the delegates compete. They were all amazing and very fun to watch.
The phases of competition completed and the crowning began. Now this may have been the most interesting part of my experience. Five out of the six girls had been crowned and just before the last crowning the power went out. It did not come back on. The whole theatre was completely dark, audience members started to turn on their flashlights and the final crowning was completed. I was able to interact with the new titleholders despite the power outage and even take a few pictures. I actually got my best photos because of the power outage. I also spoke with Brandy, one of the directors of the local competition. She thanked me for coming and made me feel special.
Then, I said my goodbyes to all of my new Tennessee friends, packed my bags, and headed back to NC. I truly believe that I could not have had a better first appearance. Tennessee made me feel so loved, appreciated, and special. I cannot wait to go back. Tennessee will always hold a special place in my heart because of this day. Thank you to the Miss Johnson City/State of Franklin/Historic Jonesborough committee, the Miss Tennessee committee, and Miss Tennessee’s Teen for making my first appearance so memorable. I will forever cherish the time I spent in Tennessee.
To learn more about Annika’s journey as Miss North Carolina’s Teen 2023, visit her profile page at missnc.org.
