Miss Dowagiac a big production

Published 4:09 am Tuesday, March 10, 2009

By Staff
To the editor:
It is necessary for us to take the time to thank the selfless volunteers who donated so much of their time to make the 2009 Miss Dowagiac pageant possible.
Our executive committee is at the top of this long list.
Patty Booth, Beth Cripe, Deb Cuthbert, Tracy Galbreath, Vickie Phillipson and Nancy Vylonis, your countless hours of support, dedication, encouragement and advice not only made the pageant possible, but a huge success.
Thank you for all the assistance you gave, not to mention your never-ending praise.
Without our scholarship committee, Deb Cuthbert and Abby Johnson, it would not be possible for the queen, first and second runners-up and our communication award winner to head off to their school of choice with such a generous gift of scholarship.
Thank-you for investing your time and effort into the educational dreams of these beautiful young women.
Patty Booth did such an exceptional job chaperoning the judges. Thank you for making our jobs a little less chaotic.
Our judges were such a blessing. Anita Harner, Pam Kublick and Wayne Prillwitz gave such a relaxed feeling for the girls.
They went into interviews nervous, but came out saying the time they spent talking was not long enough! Thank you for putting them at ease while judging with fairness.
Our master and mistress of ceremonies, Joe and Karol Krueger, not only did a phenomenal job but deserve a huge thank-you for your time and sense of humor.
There were so many moments you knew exactly how to lighten the mood while killing some time.
To Dowagiac Superintendent of Schools Peg Stowers, thank you for stressing the importance of the scholarship and contributing your time and effort into our final-five questions. You not only did an outstanding job, but did it soothingly at what could have been a very nerve-wracking time for our final five. Thanks to you it was "fun."
To Denny Ostyn, Greg Sedlar and Phyllis Valdes. They did an outstanding job as their pages. Thank you for your dedication to the pageant.
Andrew Seurynck and Art Springsteen Jr., thank you for the job well done and the many hours you put in during practice to make such fine escorts.
Dr. Matthew Cripe, Mark Dobberstein and Janet Nosich, thank you for your trustworthiness and promptness in tallying the points. Without your integrity we would truly not be able to have the speedy results we did.
Tasia Diaz, Mike Filley, Trent Fryman, Tanner Melvin and Emily Primley, your donation of time was greatly appreciated as you saw to getting our community sat in a timely and efficient manner. To Bob Barney and his "company," thank you for keeping us safe and sound!
Those of you who were on stage management, past chairs Tracy Galbreath, Kellie Prak and Beth Staley, thanks for all your help.
Now where do we even begin with our set-design crew? Patty, Doreen Boles, Mark Davis and Nancy, what a superb job you did! All your creative ideas and promptness on the amazing set really pulled everything together.
The beautiful stage seating was generously lent by Imperial Furniture. Thank you so much.
We would also like to thank Booth's Country Florist for the stage props they provided as well as delivering all the contestant flowers.
To our stage, light and sound guys, Lincoln, Ethan, Isaac and company, thank you for the spectacular job you did. Your time and dedication meant so much.
Abby Johnson, you are one of a kind! We were blown away by your special touches to make each and every one of the girls feel like queens. Your kind words and endless support meant so much. You are a blessing. Thank you for choosing such amazing and comforting women to assist you as backstage moms. Christine Barney, Amy (Sedlar) Berman, Tammy Brooks, Jessica Cuthbert, Vickie Dufour and Amy (Valdes) Schmidt, thank you for the confidence you gave our contestants.
Jimijune Fryman and Brittany Hess of the Mane Attraction, thank you for making our already gorgeous contestants absolutely stunning. They learned so much.
Lisa Bennett, thank you for all the long hours, hard work and dedication you put into making sure each and every one of the contestants felt special.
The gifts you collected from our wonderful businesses meant so much to each of them. You did such a selfless act and we thank you for having your heart into it. The numbers you made for all the contestants looked great as well!
Kellie Prak, thank you for making sure all our coronation gifts were in their spots and ready to go. Lisa Shank, once again the sashes for the court of honor looked amazing!
Dowagiac Cleaners, thank you for providing the tuxes to make our escorts look so handsome; your contribution was greatly appreciated.
Patty and Deb, the get-acquainted social was such a wonderful success. Thank you for the time and hard work well spent. Zeta Chi sorority, the afterglow was beautiful. What a great extension to the pageant from the snacks to the atmosphere you created. A job well done. Thanks so much.
Dr. Matthew Cripe, Brandon Franklin and John Vylonis, thank you for giving the girls the opportunity to practice their interview skills while making them feel comfortable with your great advice at the same time. They had a blast with you.
Patty, Beth Cripe, Nancy and Deb, our judges interview luncheon went so smoothly and was a great success thanks to you.
Karen Pugh, thank you for giving our girls the proper etiquette training they needed to look like and be ladies not only at this event, but throughout pageant activities. The skills you taught these young ladies will carry with them for a lifetime.
Audrey (Springsteen) Maxey, like we have always said we could not have done it without you. Thank you for being so amazing. Your choreography and your tips on stage presence helped in so many ways. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Thanks to the executive board and Julie Cook for smooth ticket sales. Preferred Printing and Vickie Phillipson, thank you for the outstanding job you did on the programs.
To our official pageant photographer Scott Rose, where do we even begin? Thank you for loving what you do and doing it so well. Words cannot even come close to describing the countless hours of your time you gave these girls to really portray the reality of their personalities inside and outside of the pageant. They had so much fun with you. We are truly blessed to have you, not only your time, but your heart.
John Eby, thank you for covering the pageant, as always. You are great.
Special thanks to the following business that made so many of our pre-pageant events attainable with your generous donations: Wolverine Mutual Insurance, Sandi of Baymont Inn and Suites, Matthew Cripe, DDS, Hannapel Home Center, Judd Lumber Co. and Rental, Sue Pobuda of Lindy's Restaurant, Manor Mini-Mart, St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Sears of Dowagiac and Wood Fire Italian Trattoria.
A huge thank you to Wolverine Mutual Insurance.
We greatly appreciate you opening the doors of your exquisite office to us.
Without your generosity so much that we did would truly have not been possible.
Thank you for providing such a perfect setting for so many pageant events.
To all the businesses that made such generous donations, without your support and faithfulness our pageant would be no where near what it is.
To the Chamber of Commerce, thank you for being the host of our pageant year after year. Without you there would be no pageant.
Dowagiac would like to say "thank you" and "good luck" to our 2008 queen, Lori and her court, Stephanie, Katie and Mandy, and we would like to welcome our 2009 queen, Shelby, and her court, Elizabeth and Olivia. It will be a fun and memorable year.
We would like to thank the 17 beautiful contestants who made our first-year experience unforgettable.
We are so proud of each and every one of you.
And lastly, but surely not least, thank you to the parents and families of our beautiful 17 contestants.
You made it possible for them to create yet another high school memory they will cherish for a lifetime.
The crowns have been placed on the winner's heads, the scholarships have been awarded and the curtain has closed on yet another Miss Dowagiac pageant.
As first-year directors we had no idea of the amazing contributions that went into such a wonderful Dowagiac tradition.
Our sincere gratitude,
Melissa Vylonis
Miss Dowagiac
2009 co-pageant directors