Katie Ann Powell Visits Section 36!

Section 36 had a new visitor! Katie Ann Powell is eager to help women with financial success, a talented harpist, and the current Miss District of Columbia. I was so thrilled that she was willing to visit with us to discuss those topics, and a few more. 

So, let's see what happens when Katie Ann Powell visits Section 36! 

How did you celebrate winning the Miss District of Columbia crown?

Onstage I made a promise in my final question that if I were crowned Miss DC I would take the first 24 hours and write 10 thank you notes to people to help me get where I was onstage and 10 phone calls to people to start scheduling appearances. Right after the competition, I came home with friends, ate some take out and started writing those thank you notes right away. Gratitude was my perfect form of celebration because I haven’t made it here alone, I’ve had people who believed in me, volunteered time to me, encouraged me, so winning wasn’t about me. It was about celebrating every person who has been a cheerleader in my life. I couldn’t think of a better way to unwind, celebrate, and start my miracle of a year.

What part of the upcoming Miss America competition are you most nervous about?

I like to rephrase nervous to excited. I had a dance teacher that always told us nervous and excited were the same emotion just a different thought process so when we got butterflies in our stomach just let the butterflies fly in formation. With that in mind, I just the excited butterflies when I think about sharing my harp on stage. When I play music it’s an expression of my soul and what I am feeling at that moment. When I play it’s a raw and passionate experience and I hope the audience will be receptive to every note and engage right there with me. It’s a thrilling experience where both the musician and audience feel and connect through the music. I’m hoping to have that moment onstage.

What is something Jude Maboné did as Miss DC that you would like to duplicate or build upon?

Wow, can we just take a moment and recognize how amazing of a Miss DC and of a person Jude is! She is an asset to the Miss America organization and a builder of the community. There are many things that Jude excelled at. Jude was incredible about connecting with the Miss DC sponsors and growing their business. She was diligent with creating relationships and promoting them. I take it as my responsibility as I’m stepping into she shoes to continue to grow those sponsorship relationships like she did. I’m a host of the Full Confidence Ahead podcast and will offer the sponsors to be guest interviews to get them extra exposure and build on the unique ways Jude built up those relationships. 

How did you select your community Service Initiative, “Preparing Women for Financial Success”?

So glad you asked this one! I’m going to attach a video I did a few years ago that answers this question in addition to my answer below :) 

In college, I had no idea what managing money looked like. I had no idea what budgeting was and didn’t know how to plan with money. My second year of college I watched a friend go through a scary financial situation where they were facing overdraft fees and debt without realizing it. In that moment I realized I had no idea how to control my finances and I could be in the same situation as that friend at any moment. I started feeling that debt was going to get me and held my breath every time I swiped my card hoping I wouldn’t overdraw. 

  After years of living in the fear and unknown of finances, I wanted to turn my financial fear into freedom. I found a financial literacy class and signed up. On the first day of class, I felt overwhelmed like I was drinking from a firehose, but I didn’t want to quit. Classes were weekly, and I took the course seriously doing every assignment with care and taking time daily to review the financial principles I learned.

      The turning point happened half way through the 12-week course. The lesson taught was on zero-sum budgets. During the lesson, it clicked that a budget was giving myself permission to spend money, it was my plan to make sure I wouldn’t ever overdraw on my account. When class ended, I went to my mom craving help to organize my finances. She patiently sat by my side working out my first zero-sum budget for three hours. Once I had my budget and financial plan set, a wave of confidence washed over me.

      The confidence that I gained from creating my first budget carried into all aspects of my life. Budgeting taught me to turn dreams into goals, and goals into plans which transferred into my school work and personal life.  I started to feel that I could not only manage my money, but manage my time, resources, and prioritize based on my core values.

      When you have an event that shapes your life in a positive way, something clicks, sparks, and shines in you to the point you want to share it. I wanted everyone to feel that confidence that I was gaining from managing my money and I couldn’t stop talking about the things I had learned. In 2020, I partnered with Provo Channel 17 to create a 6-part budgeting TV series for young adults who had little to no experience with finances. I wanted to lower the entry barrier into financial discussions by teaching the basics of personal finance in a clear and non-intimidating way.

      From 2020 my financial journey has boomed. I became a financial counselor and financial educator, was awarded the Financial Educators Day National Award in 2022, started Full Confidence Ahead Podcast to continually teach financial literacy and other challenging topics, joined 3 different non-profits as a board member promoting financial literacy in the community, and finally became the president of Jump$tart Greater Washington DC where I volunteer here in DC improving our school system by empowering teachers by giving them the tools to teach financial literacy. My community service mission is my life mission, to empower women by teaching them how to be financially literate.

As a talented harpist, what do you enjoy most about performing on stage?

When I’m behind my harp on my bench I’m in a happy place. There’s a beautiful moment on stage that happens with my harp. I’ll feel all nervous, walk onstage, sit down, then once my hands hit the strings of the harp something happens to me. It’s a magical moment where I connect with my harp and everything clears. Some people describe it as “flow” or “in the zone” and it’s my favorite part of performing. My harp and I become one.

You host the podcast “Full Confidence Ahead”. What is that experience like?

I am the host and founder of Full Confidence Ahead podcast. That has been such a wonderful and fun journey! In college I was on a news team and had the opportunity to be a reporter and anchor while I was getting my degree in public relations. At that point in my life I felt like I had tackled every area of written and on camera media. The last area for me was spoken word either podcasting or radio. Starting my own podcast allowed me to maintain my broadcasting skills up and connect with people from all different industries. I started Full Confidence Ahead as a place from women to learn financial tips, but I realized that women are multifaceted and love to learn in multiple areas of life, so Full Confidence Ahead is about tackling the fears of life from finances, to family relationships from careers to community. I love being able to interview guests who are top in their industry. I feel like I am getting one on one advice every week on the show!

If you could be a Disney character for a week, who would you choose? Why?

Cinderella! I wanted to be Cinderella in DisneyLand so bad I looked up her official signature and practiced it for a year. I was crushed when I found out there is a height limit for the princesses in Disney and I was at least an inch taller. 

If you had an extra ticket to see the Red Sox play the Nationals, who would you take with you? Why?

Julie Andrews! That may not be realistic, but I’ve always hoped to meet her and I just feel like she would be so fun and classy at a Red Sox game. 

Is there a feature or activity during a baseball game that you’d especially like to experience?

I’ve always dreamed of singing the national anthem at a baseball game. Baseball is the classic all American activity so it’s been my dream to sing the national anthem, our patriotic song, at a baseball game, the all American sport.

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Hopefully she can fulfill that goal!

As always, I want to thank Katie Ann for visiting with us, and for sending along the pictures to go with the interview.

I also want to wish her luck when she competes for Miss America! It would be fantastic to have another Section 36 Forever wear that crown.

I'm sure you'd like to follow along with Katie Ann during her journey. You should be sure to check out her title's Instagram account and website. They're great ways to keep track of everything she has going on, and you'll be sure not to miss anything. And, of course, you should check out her podcast and website to see and hear everything she has to say there.

Here's that video clip she mentioned above. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Thanks again Katie Ann, and good luck!