Today The Miss Utah Scholarship Organization announced the panel of judges who will select Miss Utah 2018. The new Miss Utah will receive over $10,000 in scholarships to the school of her choice and sponsorships from a variety of local businesses. She will also represent Utah at the Miss America pageant in Atlantic City, N.J. on Sunday, September 9, 2018, broadcast live from Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall on ABC.
Each judge comes with a specific background that will help select the woman who will best represent the Miss Utah Organization. Below is more information on what each judge brings to the 2018 Miss Utah judges panel.
A.J. Buddy Dees, Jr.
This year’s head judge is A. J. “Buddy” Dees, Jr., an attorney in the law firm of Ellis, Dees & Sadler, P.C., in Vicksburg, Mississippi. He was associated with The Miss Mississippi Pageant for a number of years and held a variety of positions, including Executive Director and Business Manager. He is currently President of the Mississippi Scholarship Fund, Inc., that awards scholarships to Miss Mississippi contestants. Since 1982, he has judged ten young ladies who finished in the Top Fifteen at the Miss America Pageant, including Susan Akin, Miss America 1986 and Caressa Cameron, Miss America 2010. Buddy has been a delegate to the Miss America Pageant for thirty-five years. He has judged thirty-four state pageants in the Miss America program. He is a past President of the Chamber of Commerce in Vicksburg as well as is currently serving on the Board of Directors of a Regional Mental Health Commission in Mississippi. He is a past President of the Warren County Bar Association, past President of the PTA of a Vicksburg elementary school, past President Regional Alumni Association of the University of Mississippi, and recently served a three-year term as a Bar Commissioner for the Mississippi Bar Association.
Amanda Moody Nixon
Amanda Moody Nixon was Miss Orem in 1994 and Miss Utah in 1995. Amanda is an accomplished pianist. At the Miss America Pageant, she won a Preliminary Talent Award, Non-Finalist Talent Award, and the prestigious Bernie Wayne scholarship for receiving the highest overall talent score. She has a Masters degree in Music from Brigham Young University, which she obtained on a full-ride performance scholarship. Ms. Nixon also maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout her studies there. Amanda has soloed on several occasions with both the Utah Symphony and Utah Valley Symphony. She has won state and national piano competitions, including 4th Place in Utah’s own International Jr. Gina Bachauer Competition when she was 17. Recently, Ms. Nixon was President of Encore Music Teachers Association as well as Chairman of the UMTA Concerto Competition. She has a very successful piano studio in Orem and her students are frequent prizewinners; also, many have soloed with the Utah Valley Symphony, American Fork Symphony, Timpanogos Symphony Orchestra, and Utah Philharmonic Orchestra. Amanda loves weight lifting and running and is a full-time mother to five incredible children. Last year, Amanda emceed the Miss Utah pageant and is thrilled to be back as a judge!
Sierra Dawn Thomas
Sierra Dawn Thomas competes in professional rodeo allowing her to travel all across the U.S. and Canada but takes great pride in being able to represent the beautiful state of Utah as a local native. Based in Roy, she trains barrel horses and competes in rodeo professionally for a living. You may recognize her from CBS Survivor season 30 and 34 where she uses her western roots and cowgirl background to get far in both seasons. Sierra is also involved with many charities including Bambi Thomas Healing Hearts (organ donor awareness), Cheer4yourlife, Warriors of Purpose, and Give Kids The World Foundation. She is very passionate about building confidence in young girls in hopes that they will set high goals and chase their dreams. Recently, Sierra graduated from The Training Division Fire Academy and hopes to continue her passion of becoming a firefighter in the near future.
Jamie Smith Robinson
Jamie Smith Robinson was crowned Miss Lakeside in Atlanta, Georgia, resulting in modeling jobs and competition work. She now adjudicates/judges nationally in Los Angeles, Reno, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Sacramento, Las Vegas, Atlanta, Idaho, St. Louis, Dallas, Indianapolis and many more cities. She adjudicates hip hop, tap, ballet, musical theatre, modeling, pageants, dance, voice, auditions, folk dance, music, cheer, and gymnastics. She is an established choreographer, judge, artistic director, studio owner and dance educator. Her innovative choreography and effective teaching methods have been sought after by pre-professional, private, universities and conservatories nationally. Her students have earned honors such as BYU Cougarette National Champions, National “Miss Drill USA” in L.A, U of U Ballet honors, Expansion, MOSAIC (UVU), North Pacific Ballet Co., Center Stage Senior Co, Honored by the Governor of Utah, Top Hip Hop Award at Dance Awards 2016, San Antonio Arts Conservatory, and the Youth Grand Prix.
Danor Gerald
Danor Gerald is a professional actor, and model. Mr. Gerald will be seen this summer on the CW Network in the TV Series “The Outpost.” He plays Jobaan, a medieval knight who captain’s an army of soldiers fighting against tyranny. You may recognize him from popular shows such as High School Musical 2, Forever Strong, or Saints and Soldiers: The Void in which he stars as Sergeant Jesse Owens in the third film of that popular franchise. Gerald’s experience on stage has taken him to Disney World in Florida, as well as theatres in Arkansas, Texas, and Utah. Rounding out his talents as a film director and producer of corporate media, his company (I.C. Arts & Media) produces for a variety of international clients including Adobe, ESPN, and PayPal among others.
Gari Gayle Lewis
Gari Gayle Lewis is married to Don Lewis, who is a retired dentist. They have one son – the Nantucket Shark Wrestler – who is up for having his own shark fishing and tagging reality TV show. Gari is a professional model, actress, fashion designer, and seamstress. She was a professor of Fashion Design at the Univ. of CT. Gari has a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Fashion Design from Massachusetts College of Art and a Masters of Science in Educational Media from Central Connecticut State University. She is also a Certified Teacher for grades K-12 in Art/Home Ec. Gari has had several appearances on television and for commercial shoots. Some of which include fashion segments on CBS WINK, FOX 4 early morning show, and NBC 30 CONNECTICUT. She appeared on the Home Shopping Network (HSN) doing testimonials for Serious Skin Care, Oscar Bondi Hair products, and space heater. She also has an extensive resume in runway modeling and print work. She is a member of UFTA, Inc. (United Film and TV Artists) and ZONTA International- service for women. She is a Certified Yoga instructor, USTA 4.0 tennis player, Dressage riding competitor, studies ballet and is a Church leader to Sacred Dancers.
Alison Catherine White
Alison Catherine White has been performing since the age of five and was crowned Miss Delaware 1997 at the age of seventeen, the day after she graduated from high school. That year Alison represented her state in the Miss America Pageant, where she placed in the Top 15 and won the Bert Parks Talent Award. Alison has studied classical voice and musical theater, graduating with honors from The Hartt School of Music with a Bachelors of Music in Vocal Performance. She is also a graduate of the American Musical & Dramatic Academy in New York City. As a solo artist Alison has performed with The Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Boston Pops, The Delaware Symphony Orchestra, Hartford Symphony Orchestra and The Kennedy Center for Performing Arts. She has also performed at the Republican State and National Political Conventions, the Sprint Series Cup NASCAR Race, Madison Square Garden and Camden Yards for the Major League Baseball Team the Baltimore Orioles. Alison has remained active with the Miss America Organization as she served as the Executive Producer for the Miss Delaware Scholarship Pageant and Miss Delaware’s Outstanding Teen Pageant. She was honored to receive the Volunteer of the Year Award by the Miss Delaware Scholarship Organization. She has also served as the Director of Events and Board member of the Miss Illinois Scholarship Organization, as well as judging and performing at numerous local and state competitions. Alison is currently a Global Event Producer for The Walt Disney Company where she creates magical and innovative events. She and her Emmy Award Winning husband live in the Los Angeles area with their golden retrievers, Madison and Emmy!
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To learn more about the scoring process in the Miss America Organization and its affiliates, click HERE.
Don’t forget to vote your favorite contestant into the Top 12 for a chance at additional scholarships and the title of Miss Utah 2018 as Miss Utah’s People’s Choice! Voting closes on Thursday, June 14, 2018, at 7:00 p.m. MST.