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South Valley Riverton Journal

New Miss Herriman crowned during 2017–2018 pageant

Dec 01, 2017 08:00AM ● By Jennifer Gardiner

Former Miss Herriman McKenzie Jensen crowns the new Miss Herriman Abigail Chapman during this year’s Miss Herriman Pageant (Photo Courtesy Miss Herriman Scholarship Pageant)

The 2017–2018 Miss Herriman pageant was held Oct. 21 at Herriman High School, and after a fun-filled, entertaining and delightful program, a new Miss Herriman and two attendants were crowned.  

Eighteen-year-old Abigail Chapman never gave up on her dreams. This is the third time Chapman has competed in the pageant, and this time, she won the title of Miss Herriman, seeing all her hard work and dedication pay off.  

“I was absolutely thrilled to receive the title,” she said. “I have always been interested in pageants. I am also so excited to be receiving the scholarship for school, as I have a lot of years of school ahead of me.” 

 Chapman is studying political science and plans on getting a master’s in public administration. She said the scholarship will help her decrease her student debts. 

For her immediate plans, she said sharing her platform with the community is first on her list. 

“My platform is ‘You Have a Voice,’ and is all about empowering citizens of all ages to become involved in the political process and public service,” Chapman said. “I have started this by helping plan the Women in Politics event on my school campus and inviting students and members of the community to attend, visiting seventh-grade history classes and fifth-grade classes and teaching about voting and civic responsibility.”

Chapman said she picked her platform to increase community involvement and sense of place in the community. 

“I really hope that as I share my passion for politics and public service that the people living in Herriman will choose to become more involved in local government and realize the influence they can have on the world around them,” Chapman said. “We all individually have the ability to make the world a better place.”

Chapman has been in 20-plus theater productions and played the lead in Herriman High School’s “Kiss Me Kate last year.” She also participated in the school’s award-winning chamber choir for two years.

“I love anything to do with musical theater or just theater in general,” said Chapman. “I’ve been participating in Herriman Community shows since I moved to Herriman, and I served as Herriman High School’s Drama Club President last year.” 

Chapman is no stranger to being an upstanding part of the community and has taken her love for music education and turned it into helping others. 

“Two summers ago, I started a choir for low-income children at the YMCA and spent over 100 hours teaching children ages 5–12 about music and singing,” she said. “I also collected recorders for an orphanage in Mexico and taught a music lesson to the children there. I love to volunteer with Make-A-Wish Foundation as a princess; my favorite character to be is Ariel, because of her red hair, of course.”

Chapman is 18 years old and is a sophomore at Southern Utah University majoring in Political Science with a minor concentration in leadership and public administration. She is the oldest of three children born to Angela and Curtis Chapman. She has a 17-year-old brother, Niko, and a 12-year-old sister, Emma. She loves dogs and has a Lhasa Apso named Princess Buttercup. She also loves hiking, waterfalls and the red rocks of Southern Utah. She plays five different instruments including violin, cello, guitar, ukelele and the banjo. 

The pageant was also very memorable for Miss Herriman’s 1st attendant Bailey Smith.

“The Miss America pageant holds amazing potential to make a difference in individual’s lives. Not only does the Miss America Program provide an opportunity to improve character development, but it also grants amazing service opportunities that could ultimately alter someone’s life,” said Smith. “As excited as I am to submerse myself in opportunities available to me for my personal progression, I am even more eager to become a role model for young girls and to become an example of maximizing life’s potential.”

Smith said her dreams and aspirations are a direct result of opportunities that she has had and opportunities she has taken. 

“Luckily, I’ve been blessed with great parents who possess the ability to be shining examples of how to work hard and make goals, and who have given me support and opportunities that allow me to choose how I will portion out my time,” Smith said. “I have also been fortunate enough to have met a few incredible individuals who have shared their knowledge and values with me, and in the process, have shaped me into a stronger person.”