Not all pageants are about glitz and glam. Samantha Stunkel, a sophomore at Junction City High School has qualified to partake in the National American Miss contest.

The National American Miss Pageant is dedicated to celebrating America’s greatness and encouraging its future leaders by helping young girls with confidence and self-esteem. Each year, the pageant awards thousands of dollars in scholarships and prizes to recognize and assist the development of young women nationwide.

The National American Miss Pageant is for “Today’s Girl and Tomorrow’s Leaders.” The pageant programs is based on inner beauty, as well as poise, presentation, and offers an “All American Spirit” of fun for family and friends. Emphasis is placed on the importance of gaining self-confidence, volunteer work, learning new skills, learning good attitudes about competition, and setting and achieving personal goals.

The pageant Samantha will be taking place will be July 18^th and 19^th at the Hyatt Regency-Wichita in Wichita, Kansas. “I am 90% nervous for the pageant but 100% ready.” s aid Samantha Stunkel

Samantha Stunkel , who wants to pursue an acting career after high school, is going to perform an acting portion at the pageant as her talent. This experience will also boost her confidence and give her an  opportunity to debut her acting career.

Stunkel plans to immediately attempt to become an actress after she graduates high school. However, she doesn’t have the desire to go to college for acting. If her career as an actress doesn’t go as hoped she plans to study law enforcement and become a detective crime investigator.

Leaving a lasting impact is important to Stunkel. “Man, I just wanna make a difference in the world, and you can do that with acting” said the aspiring actress.

“It’s always been my dream since I was a kid,” said Stunkel. “I like it because I can be someone else, I like to perform in front of people, I’m not afraid to be silly and acting gives me a purpose for that.”