PENNSYLVANIA, USA — A young woman from Harrisburg was crowned the new Miss Pennsylvania over the weekend.
Miranda Moore, who previously won Miss Central Pennsylvania, received a $12,000 scholarship and will now compete in Miss America in January.
"It is just the most rewarding feeling; as you said, I've worked for this for years, and looking back at the transformation I've had into the woman I am today because of this organization, it is just the most exciting feeling to know that I'm going to get to serve the state of Pennsylvania for the next year," Moore gushed.
During her time as Miss Central Pennsylvania, Moore traveled the state and visited with many community organizations, promoting her community service initiative and introducing young people to music through her passion for the clarinet.
"As Miss Central Pennsylvania I already was so happy, I already was living a dream, and I feel like as Miss Pennsylvania now, knowing that I have that foundation to serve the state, I feel so prepared and so confident going into my year of service," Moore said.
Her community service initiative, "Take Action In Fashion," strives to educate people about the environmental and social impacts of the fashion industry. Moore is focused on developing strong partnerships with sustainable organizations and nonprofits to protect the environment.
The new Miss Pennsylvania also won the Bohler Women in STEM Award. A woman engineer, Moore strives to inspire young girls to be anything they want to be.
"You can do anything... I think sometimes when you see someone in this role as Miss Pennsylvania [you think] they just had it naturally or it came easy to them, and I am really not a natural when it comes to this," Moore said. "I have worked so hard and tried so hard to transform into the woman I am today and to feel confident and to feel empowered in serving our state, so I think to young girls I would say don't give up; there's going to be hard things that come your way and you may not win your first time—I certainly didn't—but if you stick with it, you can achieve whatever you believe you can."