April Nelson

April Nelson
Beauty pageant titleholder
Born April Lynn Nelson
(1991-12-22) December 22, 1991
Education Oklahoma City University
Hair color Blonde
Title(s) Miss Louisiana's Outstanding Teen 2008
Miss Slidell 2010
Miss Louisiana Watermelon Festival 2010
Miss Oklahoma City University 2012
Miss Eastern Oklahoma County 2013
Miss Crescent City New Orleans 2015
Miss Louisiana 2015
Major
competition(s)		 Miss America 2016

April Lynn Nelson (born December 22, 1991) is an American actress and beauty pageant titleholder from Mandeville, Louisiana, who was crowned Miss Louisiana's Outstanding Teen 2008 and Miss Louisiana 2015. She competed for the Miss America 2016 title in September 2015. She won a preliminary competition for her vocal performance of "Climb Every Mountain" and finished as 3rd runner-up in the nationally televised pageant.

Pageant career

Teen pageants

In 2006, Nelson vied for the Miss Louisiana Junior Teen 2006 title from North American Miss. She won the spokesmodel portion of the competition and was named third runner-up for the title.[1]

Entering the Miss America system in 2007, she vied for the title of Miss Louisiana's Outstanding Teen and placed second runner-up.[2] The next year, she was crowned Miss Louisiana's Outstanding Teen 2008 and competed for the Miss America's Outstanding Teen title.[3] Nelson served as grand marshal of the Alexandria Mardi Gras Association's 2009 Children's Parade.[4]

Vying for Miss Louisiana

On November 21, 2009, Nelson won the Miss Slidell 2010 title in a pageant held at Slidell High School.[5][6] She competed in the June 2010 Miss Louisiana pageant on a platform of "I.O.U. – Improving Others and U Through Volunteerism" and sang "O Mio Babbino Caro" during the talent portion of the competition.[7][8] She was a Top-10 finalist for the state title.[3]

On July 31, 2010, Nelson won the Miss Louisiana Watermelon Festival 2010 title.[3] She competed in the June 2011 Miss Louisiana pageant as one of 35 qualifiers on a platform of "Living the Golden Rule" and sang "Bridge Over Troubled Water" during the talent portion of the competition.[9][10] She was once again a Top-10 finalist for the state title.[2]

Vying for Miss Oklahoma

After graduating high school in 2010, Nelson moved to Oklahoma City to attend Oklahoma City University. OCU is known as a "pageant school", offering special scholarships to Miss Oklahoma competitors and celebrating their achievements.[11] Three Miss America winners are OCU alumni: Jane Anne Jayroe (1967), Susan Powell (1981), and Shawntel Smith (1996).[12]

In November 2011, Nelson won the Miss Oklahoma City University 2012 title.[11][12] She competed in the 2012 Miss Oklahoma pageant on a platform of "I.O.U.: Improving Others through U!" and a vocal performance of "At Last" during the talent portion.[13][14] She was a Top-11 finalist for the state title.[15]

On December 8, 2012, Nelson won the Miss Eastern Oklahoma County 2013 title.[2] She competed in the 2013 Miss Oklahoma pageant on a platform of "I.O.U.: Improving Others through U!" and a vocal performance of "Nessun Dorma", an aria from Giacomo Puccini's opera Turandot, during the talent portion.[16][17] She was not a finalist for the state title.[18]

Miss Louisiana 2015

After graduating from Oklahoma City University in 2014, Nelson returned to her native Louisiana. On February 7, 2015, Nelson was named Miss Crescent City New Orleans 2015 which made her eligible to compete at the 2015 Miss Louisiana pageant.[19] She entered the state pageant at the Monroe Civic Center in June 2015 as one of 35 finalists.[20][21] Nelson's competition talent was a vocal performance of "Climb Ev'ry Mountain" from the musical The Sound of Music.[19][21] Her platform is "IOU, Improving Others Through U".[22][23]

Nelson won the competition on Saturday, June 27, 2015, when she received her crown from outgoing Miss Louisiana titleholder Lacey Sanchez.[20] She earned more than $70,000 in scholarship money and prizes over the course of her pageant career.[20][24] As Miss Louisiana, her activities include public appearances across the state of Louisiana.[24]

Vying for Miss America

Nelson was Louisiana's representative at the Miss America 2016 pageant in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in September 2015.[22][25] She won a preliminary talent competition, earning a $2,000 scholarship award.[26][27] In the televised finale on September 13, 2015, she sang "Climb Ev'ry Mountain" from the musical The Sound of Music during the talent portion of the competition. In the interview portion, she was asked about the Black Lives Matter movement and answered that "every life matters". Nelson's personal platform is "I.O.U. - Improving Others through U!".[28] She was named third runner-up to Betty Cantrell and awarded a $15,000 scholarship prize.[26]

Early life and education

Nelson is a native of Mandeville, Louisiana, and the daughter of Mike and Cristi Nelson.[7] She attended the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts from 2006 through 2008 and is a 2010 graduate of Fontainebleau High School.[4][7]

Nelson is a 2014 graduate of Oklahoma City University where she earned a Bachelor of Music degree.[20][29] While a student at OCU, Nelson became a member of the Alpha Phi international women's fraternity.[30] In 2014, she began working as an actress at Le Petit Théâtre du Vieux Carré in New Orleans.[24][29][31] She also works for as a "princess for hire" for parties and events.[24]

References

  1. ↑ "Results: 2006 Miss Louisiana Junior Teen". Houston, TX: National American Miss. 2006. Retrieved June 30, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 "Nelson crowned Miss EOC 2013". Mustang Times (Mustang, OK). December 9, 2012. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 Dison, Ashley (August 4, 2010). "Nelson takes crown: Teen wins Miss Watermelon; Durr named Miss Union Parish". The Gazette (Farmerville, LA). Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  4. 1 2 "2009 Grand Marshal Children's Parade April Lynn Nelson". Alexandria, LA: Alexandria Mardi Gras Association. 2009. Retrieved June 30, 2015.
  5. ↑ "MSSP Royalty". Miss Slidell Scholarship Program. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Miss Info/Forms". Miss Slidell Scholarship Program. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  7. 1 2 3 Wolfram, Carol (June 23, 2010). "Slidell well-represented at Miss Louisiana pageants". The Times-Picayune (New Orleans, LA: Advance Publications). Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  8. ↑ "State Contestants: Louisiana – 2010". Miss America. 2010. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  9. ↑ "State Contestants: Louisiana – 2011". Miss America. 2011. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  10. ↑ Eddington, Sarah (June 25, 2011). "Crowd ready for a crown; Preliminaries wrap up". The Town Talk (Alexandria, LA: Gannett). Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  11. 1 2 Waite, Susannah (November 17, 2012). "Pageant winner announced". Oklahoma City, OK: Oklahoma City University. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  12. 1 2 Boswell, Sarah (June 5, 2012). "Nine Oklahoma City University students to compete for Miss Oklahoma title". The Oklahoman (Oklahoma City, OK: OPUBCO). Archived from the original on June 5, 2012. Retrieved June 30, 2015.
  13. ↑ "State Contestants: Oklahoma – 2012". Miss America. 2012. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  14. ↑ "2012 Miss Oklahoma Contestants". Miss Oklahoma. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  15. ↑ "2012 Miss Oklahoma Results". Miss Oklahoma. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  16. ↑ "State Contestants: Oklahoma – 2013". Miss America. 2013. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  17. ↑ "2013 Miss Oklahoma Contestants". Miss Oklahoma. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  18. ↑ "Oklahoma City University Continues Winning Tradition at Miss Oklahoma Pageant" (Press release). Oklahoma City, OK: Oklahoma City University. June 10, 2013. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  19. 1 2 "Miss Crescent City takes the crown in Miss Louisiana pageant". Shreveport, LA: KSLA. Associated Press. June 27, 2015. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  20. 1 2 3 4 Bolden, Bonnie (June 27, 2015). "Nelson wins Miss Louisiana". The News-Star (Monroe, LA: Gannett). Archived from the original on July 21, 2015. Retrieved June 28, 2015.
  21. 1 2 "2015 Miss Louisiana is crowned". Shreveport, LA: KTBS-TV. July 28, 2015. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  22. 1 2 McCarty, Erin (June 28, 2015). "April Nelson Is Crowned Miss Louisiana 2015". Shreveport, LA: KEEL. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  23. ↑ Fryou, Matthew (June 27, 2015). "Miss Crescent City New Orleans wins 2015 Miss Louisiana Pageant". Baton Rouge, LA: WAFB. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  24. 1 2 3 4 Bolden, Bonnie (June 28, 2015). "Miss Louisiana is woman of many talents". The News-Star (Monroe, LA: Gannett). Archived from the original on July 21, 2015. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  25. ↑ "State Contestants: Louisiana – 2015". Miss America. 2015. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  26. 1 2 "Miss America Show Scholarships 2016". Miss America. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  27. ↑ "Louisiana, Florida win 2nd night Miss America preliminaries". Sheveport, LA: KTBS-TV. September 10, 2015. Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  28. ↑ "The 2016 Miss America Competition Scholarships & Awards" (Press release). Miss America. September 16, 2015. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
  29. 1 2 "April Nelson!". New Orleans, LA: Le Petit Théâtre du Vieux Carré. Retrieved June 30, 2015.
  30. ↑ Becque, Fran. "Sorority Women on the Road to Miss America 2016 (2015 State Winners)". Focus on Fraternity History. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  31. ↑ Pope, John (May 23, 2015). "Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carre's 'Merrily' is an intelligent, must-see musical". The Times Picayune (New Orleans, LA: Advance Publications). Retrieved June 30, 2015.

External links

Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Lacey Sanchez		 Miss Louisiana
2015 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by
Mary Jane Hobgood		 Miss Louisiana's Outstanding Teen
2008 		Succeeded by
Kelly Bernard
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