Miss Goldsboro crowned
By Ty Johnson
Published in News on March 27, 2011 1:50 AM
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News-Argus/BOBBY WILLIAMS
Miss Goldsboro 2010 Ashlee Perkinson crowns Chelsea Guild, center, as Miss Goldsboro 2011 while Ms. Guild holds her 'Carolina Princess,' Hayden Pearson.
Using the same talent that has taken her as far away as Beijing for the 2008 Olympics, Chelsea Guild was named Miss Goldsboro 2011 on the strength of her lively performance of a jump-rope routine set to Harry Belafonte's "Jump In The Line."
The scholarship pageant, which was held Saturday night at Wayne Community College, was highlighted by a number of song and dance numbers, but Ms. Guild's jump-rope performance won over both the crowd and the judges, earning her the talent award. Ms. Guild has competed in international jump-rope competitions and also taught children jump-rope techniques in South Africa.
Ms. Guild, 20, won the evening gown and swimsuit portions of the competition, which she said left her unprepared for her name being called out as the winner.
Prior to Ms. Guild's coronation, Megan Anna Griffin was crowned Miss Goldsboro's Outstanding Teen 2011. Miss Griffin said she was shocked when she was announced as the winner.
"My initial reaction was surprise, of course," she said. "I was not expecting to hear that."
Ms. Guild said she also was surprised to hear her name called out.
"I was still kind of in a daze," she said afterward, adding that she was glad that her friend, Leslie LaVictoire, was named first runner-up.
"She's so genuine and just a nice girl," Ms. Guild said.
And Ms. LaVictoire wasn't Ms. Guild's only close friend on stage when she was announced as the winner. Miss Goldsboro 2010, Ashlee Perkinson, is another close friend.
Ms. Perkinson said what separates Ms. Guild from other pageant winners is her genuine dedication to her service platform.
"So many girls do this pageant just to compete at Miss North Carolina," she said. "But she's using Miss Goldsboro to really implement her platform."
And Ms. Perkinson can attest to that dedication personally. Ms. Guild's platform, Jump Rope for Heart, aims to promote fitness and health through jump roping in an attempt to curb childhood obesity. Though Ms. Perkinson admitted she wasn't much of a jump roper, despite Ms. Guild's instruction, she said she's seen her teach a 75-year old to jump rope, and is confident that her winning Miss Goldsboro 2011 will also be a win for the community she'll represent.
"I know that Chelsea's going to make a huge impact on Goldsboro and I'm really excited to see her as my successor," Ms. Perkinson said.
A junior at East Carolina University majoring in communications and hospitality management, Ms. Guild said she'd like to bring a double-Dutch jump rope team to Goldsboro Parks and Recreation so that children can learn to jump rope at an early age, the way she did. As an 8-year-old, she joined the Bouncing Bulldogs jump rope team and she has been jump roping ever since.
Ms. Guild said she also wants to broaden the use of jump ropes among adults as an alternative to costly workout equipment.
"It's portable and affordable," she said. "You don't need a Bowflex or a gym membership to get fit."
In the lead-up to the coronation, the other contestants were honored with accolades. Ashton Eakes won the public relations award, the ideals of Miss America award and the academic award for having the highest grade point average in the field.
Gabrielle Brown won the affection of her opponents and the crowd as she was named Miss Congeniality and was the people's choice award-winner after a vote by the audience during intermission. Hailey Best won the interview portion of the competition and the community service award.