Josie Pearce Visits Section 36!

Section 36 has another visitor! Josie Pearce is a pianist, the current Miss Berlin-Gorham, and (despite being a native Californian) a

Red Sox fan. After wrapping up her semester at Dartmouth, I wondered if she'd be willing to visit with us to discuss those topics, and a few more. Luckily she agreed. I hope you’ll be glad she did.

So, let’s see what happens when Josie Pearce visits Section 36!

What made you decide to compete for the Miss Berlin-Gorham title?

I competed as a teen, and I wanted to compete as a Miss when I went to college. Now that I’ve been at Dartmouth for over a year, I thought it was time to get involved in the pageant community in New Hampshire. Not to mention, I was excited about the potential for scholarships! 

How did you celebrate winning your crown?

I got chicken nuggets! Chicken nuggets are my favorite food, and I was not eating them for a while leading up to pageant. It was a nice treat! 

Your talent is classical piano. How do you decide which piece you’ll perform at Miss NH?

Deciding a piece for Miss New Hampshire is a big task because you have to see what is possible to learn within a few months and find something that the audience will think is entertaining. The piece also has to show off your skill level, but still be the right amount of “pageant flashy.”

How did you select your platform, “Lupis Foundation of America”?

I was diagnosed with Lupus when I was 15. Since my very first pageant, the Lupus Foundation of America has been my platform because they support researchers who are finding a cure for Lupus. The foundation also provides support groups for patients and puts on events where you can meet other people suffering from Lupus. 

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

I am most nervous about making sure everything is prepared on time. I only have 5 months or so left to prepare talent, swimsuit, interview, etc. 

Is there a specific goal you’d like to accomplish during your time as Miss Berlin-Gorham?

My overall goal as Miss Berlin-Gorham is to bring awareness to invisible illnesses. I think it is so important for young girls to have positive role models who embody strength, despite living with a chronic illness. I know when I was first diagnosed, Venus Williams was an influential person to me. She has Sjogren’s, which is another autoimmune disease. Knowing that she was still able to pursue a professional tennis career gave me hope that I could be successful, as well. 

Who is your favorite current Red Sox player? Why?

I do not know much about baseball, but my favorite player is Dustin Pedroia. I think it is cool that he has been on the team for so long and that he is such a great player. He is also originally from California, like me! 

You were able to make it to Fenway for a game this season. What was that experience like?

Being at Fenway was super fun! It was my first time at a Red Sox game. I’m pretty sure it was pouring rain, but the energy from the crowd was tangible! 

What is your favorite memory from the 2017 Red Sox season?My favorite memory from this season was when Pedroia made a bare-handed throw at a game in Texas, which eventually resulted in Carlos Gomez getting tagged out. 

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I'm sure we all remember that play!

As always, I want to give a huge thank you to Josie for finding time in her busy schedule to visit with us. It's always so much fun! Another thank you to her for providing the  pictures to go along with the interview. I'm glad she was able to find one from her visit to Fenway.

As Josie continues her time as Miss Berlin-Gorham, be sure to keep track of her on all the official Miss Berlin-Gorham Facebook and Instagram accounts! You can also follow along with her adventures on her personal Instagram account. That way you won't miss a thing.

I also want to wish Josie luck at the upcoming Miss New Hampshire competition. It would be so fantastic to have a member of the Section 36 family bring home that crown!

Thanks again for the visit Josie!

Reagan Murphy Visits Section 36!

Section 36 has another visitor! Reagan Murphy comes to us from Northern NH. She's a ukulele player, a Red Sox fan, and both the current Miss Littleton Area and Miss Berlin-Gorham! She was nice enough to visit with us to discuss those topics, and more. I’m awfully glad she did.

So, let’s see what happens when Reagan Murphy visits Section 36!

How did you celebrate being crowned Miss Littleton Area?

The very next day after I won I went to Whales Tale Water Park in Lincoln, NH with my roommate from college then we drove up to Stewartstown near Canada for the best Poutine in the state! I’m so proud to be from the North Country so I couldn’t have celebrated winning any other way other than supporting some of my favorite locally owned businesses!

As a previous Miss Littleton Area's Outstanding Teen, how does it feel to be representing the Littleton Area again?

I’m so proud that I get to represent the Littleton Area again! There are so many fun events up here that I get to attend and the community is so welcoming. Not only that, but I’ve built such a strong relationship with my director that she’s like a second mom to me. She has helped me through some really tough times in my life as her teen titleholder, and now I couldn’t be happier to get to spend so much time with her again after having a couple years away. She is honestly one of my role models.

You still hold the Miss Berlin-Gorham title. Is there something you'd like to accomplish before the end of that term?

I’m so sad I have to give away the Berlin-Gorham title! One thing I did want to do before I was no longer Miss Berlin-Gorham was host a big event to support the LGBTQ+ community in the North Country, and on October 21st that’s going to become a reality with the first ever North Country Drag Show held at the medallion opera house in Gorham!

Your talent includes playing the ukulele. What do you like most about that instrument?

Well, I started off playing the drums in middle school and was in a few bands in high school, but I really wanted something I could bring to a fire and jam out and you can’t really bring an entire drum set out to a backyard. The summer after I graduated high school I volunteered at the New Hampshire Teen Institute Summer leadership program summer camp and someone brought a bunch of ukuleles and was teaching people how to play, so I joined and fell in love! It’s such a unique instrument and I feel like it fits my personality.

What drew you to your platform “Gender, Sexual and Romantic Minority Advocacy"?

From a young age I knew that there was something different about me but it took a very long time to figure out what it was. Even when I knew that I experienced attraction for men and women, it was a very long journey to becoming comfortable with that. I needed a role model and someone to help me figure out what my identity was but no one like that existed, so I became the person that I needed when I was younger. Now I spend a lot of my time educating the youth about the gender, sexual, and romantic minority and the many identities that fall under that category, planning events to show pride in the community, and just being a friend to so many LGBTQ+ youth.

If you can't sit in Section 36, where do you, or would you, like to sit to watch a Red Sox game?

This is going to sound really lame, but my favorite place to watch a Red Sox game is on the couch in my living room next to my dad eating Cool Ranch Doritos. Actually going to the game itself would be exciting and I would honestly enjoy sitting anywhere, but nothing beats getting comfy and spending time with my family at home.

Who was/is your favorite Red Sox player growing up? Why?

This one is easy, Big Papi! I got my first and only build a bear when I was 7 and named it Papi after him, and I still have it! The T-Shirt says “World Series Champion 2004” because I got it before they won again in 2007. It’s a little piece of history to me and a huge part of my childhood.

This is the first Red Sox season in a while without David Ortiz. What’s your favorite Ortiz memory?

I remember when I was 12 I went to a summer camp and during the week was the annual home run derby, which my dad and I used to love watching together and placing bets on who would win. Since I was a die-hard Big Papi fan, I told all my friends at camp he was going to win and we even placed bets using the quarters our parents gave us for vending machines for the week. We weren’t allowed to stay up late enough to see who won, but one of the camp counselors told me the next day that the winner was David Ortiz and I won $5 in quarters! I was so happy, especially since one of the boys who bet against me was convinced that Alex Rodriguez had it that year. I got to rub it in his face!

How will the Red Sox finish up the 2017 season?

Well, I don’t want to jinx anything, but it has been a good year for Boston so I’m feeling confident!

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I can definitely agree with that sentiment.

As always, I want to give huge thanks to Reagan for doing this interview. I thought she did a fantastic job. I also want to thank her for providing the pictures to accompany the interview. Especially the one of "Papi"!

As Reagan finishes her time as Miss Berlin-Gorham, I encourage you to follow her on the official Facebook page. Also, be sure to catch up with her as she begins her time as Miss Littleton Area by checking out that Facebook page. You can even be sure to catch the entire crossover by following Reagan's personal Instagram account. That way you won't miss a thing!

And, of course, I want to wish Reagan luck when she competes again for the Miss New Hampshire crown. 

Thanks again Reagan, and good luck!