Warner Robins swells with pride over its own Miss America

WARNER ROBINS --

Mayor Randy Toms was at home with his wife watching the Miss America pageant on TV when Betty Cantrell of Warner Robins won the 2016 crown.

“It was really more exciting than any football game I’ve ever watched,” said Toms, who knows her parents and got to know Cantrell over the past few months. “She’s a delightful young lady, just a fine representative of not just our city and our state but now our entire nation. And that’s just overwhelming.”

Ernie Munson, a retiree and longtime Warner Robins resident, had stepped away from the living room and returned to find his wife jumping around and shouting, “She got it! She got it!”

“We’ve been on the map because of the softball and baseball teams that we have sent out of the state,” Munson said. “But now I think ... an individual person has really kind of given Warner Robins the ‘well, here we are’ attitude.”

April Bragg, president and chief executive officer of the Robins Regional Chamber of Commerce, posted about Cantrell on Facebook throughout Sunday night as she watched the pageant.

“We are all just so excited for Betty and her family and our entire community,” Bragg said. “Anytime that a community can have the national spotlight on them for something so positive, it’s just a tremendous opportunity for everybody in the community. ... I think it’s just going to elevate our exposure across the nation and provide a great platform for her to get her message out there.”

City and chamber leaders are planning for a homecoming, celebration or parade to honor Cantrell, but how and when that will take place is yet to be decided. Any events must be coordinated through the Miss America organization, Toms said.

“You are really on Miss America time as opposed to ours,” Toms said. “We have all of these ideas that we want to do. They’re coming to me left and right. Ideas of parades and celebrations and all that kind of stuff, and we want to do it up right.”

Once coordinated and established, the city will release information about an event, Toms said.

“I just want to make sure that this community has the opportunity to come out in masses and let her know how proud we are of her,” said the mayor, who added that the “community” means all of Middle Georgia and the state.

While many residents watched the pageant on TV, others like Jennifer Simpson kept up through social media.

“Facebook was full of it last night,” said Simpson, of Warner Robins. “I watched it through everybody’s posts on Facebook.”

Monday morning, Simpson said she and her 4-year-old daughter, Kady, talked excitedly about it.

“There are some students in her class that have the same last name,” Simpson said. “We don’t know if they are related or not but she says, ‘Do you think I could go play at their house and wear their tiara?’”

Simpson said she hopes Cantrell will bring her platform to the public schools.

Sharon Carroll of Bonaire, who was having lunch Monday with Simpson, agreed.

“It would be nice for her to go to the public schools and really shine that you can be anything that you want to be if you just set your mind to it and achieve your goals,” Carroll said.

Jennifer Chance, of Warner Robins, said Cantrell helps keep Warner Robins on the map.

“I think it’s awesome that a small town gal made it,” she said.

Lakeitha Hunter, a manager at Chick-fil-A on Ga. 96, said she woke up Monday morning to hear the winning news.

“I was just so happy for her. ... Just to have one of our own as Miss America is just amazing to me.”

Hunter offered a word of congratulations for Cantrell.

“I know this has been a long journey for you and it is well deserved,” Hunter said. “Congratulations and may God bless you.”

Munson offered congratulations not only to Cantrell but also to her parents.

“I think they raised a great gal, and she deserves everything she got,” he said.

This story was originally published September 14, 2015 at 10:29 PM with the headline "Warner Robins swells with pride over its own Miss America ."