02/11/2017
488 | 0
By Jamie Kelly editor@willistonherald.com 10 hrs ago
Miss America
Cara Mund, who was crowned Miss America in September, will be back in North Dakota Friday for a homecoming celebration at the Bakken Elementary auditorium at 6 p.m.
Matt Boyd Photography • Submitted photo
On Friday, Cara Mund will be back in Williston, and though she’s been visiting here for years, it will be different this time.
The biggest difference, of course, is that the last time Mund was in Williston, she wasn’t yet Miss America. As the first Miss North Dakota to win the Miss America crown, this visit to Williston won’t just be different for her, though.
“We’ve never done this before,” B. Michael Quale, who’s the producer of the Miss North Dakota Pageant.
He, Miss North Dakota Scholarship Organization Board President Debbie Richter and others have been working to make Mund’s return to where her Miss America journey started special.
Mund’s official introduction to her home state is scheduled for 6 p.m. Friday at Bakken Elementary, and a reception is going to be in the Phil Jackson Fieldhouse at 7:30 Friday evening.
Representatives of the Miss America organization will be on hand, as will a number of the runners-up, including Miss Minnesota, Miss South Dakota and Miss Montana. A number of Forever Miss North Dakotas — women who won the pageant in the past — will be there, as well.
One of them, Stephanie Ahlfeldt, Miss North Dakota 1996 and a Williston native, will be serving as the emcee.
“We have a really broad spectrum of people coming,” Richter said.
Another part of the event will be Lizzie Jensen being officially crowned as Miss North Dakota. After that, Jensen will perform, as will a number of other acts.
The reception is another chance to celebrate Mund’s achievement.
“It’ll have a whole different feel to it,” Quale said. “I liken it to a pep rally.”
Mund will make a red carpet entrance, with members of the Little Sisters program and the Princess program lining the carpet. There will be a Color Guard escort and more performances, including one by the Williston High School vocal jazz ensemble. A panel of six elementary school students will interview Mund during the reception, as well.
“It will be different,” Richter said. “It will be entertaining. It will be special, we think. Hopefully it will be a great honor for Cara.”
Tickets are available for the homecoming and the reception. The cost is $10 for adults and $5 for students. The tickets, which are good for both events, are available at the Williston Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, online at missnorthdakota.org and at the door.
On Saturday, Mund has several appearances scheduled in Bismarck, her hometown. A welcome-home party is set for 3 p.m. at the Bismarck Events Center. Tickets for that event are available online
at missnorthdakota.org.
Friday’s festivities are a celebration of Mund and Jensen, but they’re also a celebration of Williston, which has been home to the Miss North Dakota pageant for more than 30 years. The support of the community has been essential, Richter said.
“That’s why it’s here,” Quale said. “That’s why it’s stayed here for so long. You can’t put it on without support.”