Claire Dunnigan Is Merit Finalist at Miss Teen of Michigan Pageant
By Eric Fish

Claire Dunnigan (right) with 2007 Miss Teen of Michigan Erica Richardson Sunday, July 22, at Warriner Auditorium at Central Michigan University. Miss Dunnigan placed in the top eight of 64 girls at the competition, which is held every two years and based on academics and community service. (Photograph provided by the Dunnigan family)

Claire Dunnigan didn't really know what to expect when she arrived on the Central Michigan University campus Friday, July 20, for the 2007 Miss Teen of Michigan Pageant.

"What did I get myself into?" she thought. "It's going to be a beauty pageant, they're all going to be stuck up.'"

Miss Dunnigan, 15, ended up finishing fifth among 64 contestants between the ages of 13 and 18 who competed for the title. The pageant stresses academics and community service, rather than beauty, and while Miss Dunnigan was originally hesitant to compete, she now cherishes the experience.

"It was really fun, probably the most fun experience I've had," she said. "I got along with everybody and experienced college life."

Together, contestants ordered pizza and stayed up late in the dorms swapping stories.

"Out of all those girls, there wasn't one that I didn't get along with," Miss Dunnigan said. "Everybody was nice."

The Miss Teen of Michigan pageant is judged on scholastic record, achievement and service to school and community, personal development of talent and skills, general awareness test, personality projection in formal wear, and an interview with the judges. The winner of the pageant has a two-year reign.

"It's not like they're going to pick you because you look great in a swimsuit," Miss Dunnigan said. "You have to have the brains. You have to present yourself and look intelligent and look the part."

The most challenging aspect of the competition for Miss Dunnigan was the general awareness test, which had 60 multiple choice questions.

"They asked you everything from who was the first female astronaut to what two animals describe the stock market," she said. "It was intense."

The pageant finals were Sunday, July 22, in Warriner Auditorium, attended by Nicole Hinchman, who won the title in 2005. Miss Hinchman is from Clinton Township and has been on the Island the past two summers to help crown the Lilac Queen.

"She said, 'Be yourself and that's what's going to get you far,'" Miss Dunnigan said.

The 2007 Miss Teen of Michigan crown was awarded to 16-year-old Erica Richardson of Algonac. Miss Dunnigan, however, was not disappointed with her fifthplace finish.

"They called eight girls up on stage based on our tests, our forms that we sent in, our interviews, and our personality and poise," she said. "Of those 64 girls, they called up eight and I was one of them."

She was awarded a plaque for her achievement, but hasn't decided whether to keep it at her family's seasonal home on Mackinac Island or year-around home in Grass Lake.

She has two years to decide whether to compete again in 2009.

"It depends on my schedule, pretty much," she said. "I'd love to do it again; it was so fun. It made me step outside my box and meet new people."