Caressa Cameron described her past year as Miss America as a whirlwind.
The 23-year-old from Spotsylvania, Va., handed over the title to 17-year-old Teresa Scanlan of Nebraska in January. Cameron told the Free Lance-Star that she cheered on the contestants during competition in Las Vegas.
When it was time to crown the next Miss America, she even made sure her tiara wasn’t crooked.
"I didn't want to be responsible for her pictures not looking right," said Cameron, who practiced on a production assistant ahead of time.
Cameron has strong roots in the Fredericksburg area. She took classes at Germanna Community College after graduating in 2005 from Massaponax High School.
As Miss America, Cameron told the Free Lance-Star she traveled about 20,000 miles each month during her reign, including trips to Germany and Hawaii. She said she wasn't sad to see her stint end.
She still makes weekly public appearances locally, telling children to pursue their dreams and promoting her personal platform, AIDS awareness.
Cameron said she looks forward to returning to Virginia Commonwealth University in the fall to finish her communications degree.
Cameron said that even though she may have a face for television, she’d actually like to pursue a career in radio.She begins an internship next week with The Star Radio Group, which is owned by The Free Lance-Star Publishing Cos.
Cameron won $50,000 in scholarship money from the Miss America Pageant.
