If you’ve ever had the opportunity to watch a beauty pageant, you realize that there is a lot of sparkly sizzle taking place. There is some emphasis put on what is on the inside, but what is on the outside matters just as much.
At the preliminaries for the Miss America pageant in Atlantic City, something happened that took many people by surprise. Ms. Colorado, Kelly Johnson, stepped onto the stage but she wasn’t wearing what anybody would have expected.
When a Miss America pageant contestant steps out on the stage in Atlantic City, they will usually be wearing something sparkly and beautiful. What Kelly had on was also beautiful, but it was also powerful.
She was wearing her nurse’s scrubs.
Rather than singing a song or dancing for the audience, she decided to go with a speech that would leave everyone stunned. Wearing her nurse scrubs set the stage, as her monologue focused on the experience she has had as a nurse.
She talked about how an elderly Alzheimer’s patient needed her attention and the connection that she had with them. There were many emotional moments that were discussed during the monologue that focused on her humanity, and it touched the audience.
As the audience sat in silence, you could hear her words echoing as the story continued to unfold. The young woman, who could have dazzled us with beautiful dresses and fancy jewelry may just have dominated the competition by choosing to focus on what she was most passionate about.
It isn’t just the fact that Kelly is a nurse, she was the valedictorian of her graduating class at Grandview University in 2015. She has a bachelor of science in nursing and is still working as a registered nurse in real life.
It doesn’t matter if Kelly wins the Miss America pageant or not, she won the hearts of many people in attendance that night. You can hear her words and feel the impact in the following video:
