WS Chronicle

The City of Winston-Salem literally rolled out the red carpet last Saturday afternoon as city officials and hundreds of residents came together to welcome Miss America Nia Franklin back to the Twin City. 

The festivities began with a parade that started at Bailey Park and ended at the Benton Convention Center. Along the parade route residents lined the sidewalks waving American flags eager to get a photo of Miss America on their smart phones.

Following the parade and a mini photo shoot on the red carpet outside the Convention Center, city officials led a ceremony to honor Franklin for her accomplishments. Mayor Tempore Vivian Burke said this day will be written well in history. 

“I want you to know that no one will be able to take the J out of joy that is in my heart today,” Burke said. 

Council member Derwin Montgomery, who is a co-owner of The Chronicle, said the entire city is honored that we can call Miss America one of our own. 

“Everywhere that Ms. Franklin goes, she will be able to let it have in her record that Winston-Salem will always be a part of who she is. We are so grateful to have her in our community and to be able to challenge in our heart of hearts, to be able to say that there is nothing that we cannot achieve, that we cannot have at our fingertips, if we truly dig our feet in and go after it,” Montgomery said. 

Franklin is a graduate of North Davidson High School. She attended college at East Carolina University (ECU), where she earned a bachelor’s degree in music composition. She then attended UNCSA. While at UNCSA, she was a Kenan Fellow at the Lincoln Center Education in New York City. 

While in New York, Franklin continued to participate in pageants, something she had been doing since her time at ECU when she competed for the title of Miss North Carolina in 2015 and 2016. In March of 2018 Franklin entered the Miss Five Burroughs contests and won; that victory secured her spot in the 2019 Miss America pageant and on Sept. 9 Franklin was crowned Miss America. 

When addressing the dozens of fans and supporters inside the Convention Center, including several young girls wearing tiaras to show their support for Miss America, Franklin encouraged the young ladies to be resilient and surround yourself with people who really care about your well-being.

“The key is surrounding yourself with people who have your best interest in mind and really love you. That comes with family, that comes with friends, and I have really important people in my life who have done that for me on so many levels,” said Franklin. “…My biggest advice would be to just surround yourself with people who care about you and who want the best for you, because it can be easy to not surround yourself with those people and so you have to remember that’s what counts and that’s who you need in your life.”