Miss North Carolina Campaigns for Tumor Awareness and Research
brain tumor, campaigns, health care, miss north carolina, research, tumor awareness,
In June 2006‚ Brooke McLaurin’s two-year diet came to an end.
McLaurin‚ who was crowned Miss North Carolina in 2005‚ has been going nonstop since the tiara was placed on her head. The business-administration student and entrepreneur put her life – and her love of good country cooking – on hold during her one-year reign.
“Now I know why they only let you have the title for a year‚” McLaurin says. “A girl can’t handle much more than that. You have to go on hiatus from school and your other activities‚ because it’s a full-time job representing the state and promoting your platform.”
McLaurin chose brain tumor research and awareness as her platform for a very personal reason: She herself is a tumor survivor.
“I was very fortunate and blessed to survive two surgeries‚ and so being able to interact with other patients and their families has been very rewarding‚” she says. “I was able to go to Dallas to speak to the American Brain Tumor Association‚ and it’s been great being able to share hope and the fact that we can find a cure for tumors‚ that people are living with this diagnosis every day.”
Now that she’s hung up her sash‚ McLaurin is settling back into her old life as a cosmetologist‚ and is planning to open her own business.
“I’d love for it to be a franchise‚” she says‚ “but I want it to be based out of here. I’ve learned of so many cities‚ little communities‚ in North Carolina during my reign‚ and I want Fayetteville‚ my hometown‚ to be the home of my business. I want to help its economic growth.
I want to open a salon and start a makeup line‚ a hair product line‚ base it here and hopefully be known all over the world.”
Before embarking on global domination‚ however‚ McLaurin has a more immediate goal.
“The Miss America pageant was a lot of fun and I wouldn’t trade it for the world‚” she says‚ “but when you have to compete in swimsuits‚ you have to watch what you eat and work out. We’re known for good cooking in Fayetteville‚ so I’m ready to eat grandma’s homemade biscuits and not have to worry about it.”
Story by Joe Morris
Photo by Michael W. Bunch
