Lauren Hunter, a multimedia reporter at Jacobs Media Corp. who grew up in Gwinnett County, is launching a new blog on AccessWDUN about her journey to the 2021 Miss Georgia Scholarship Competition.
The first blog post launches Friday and Hunter’s blogs will cover topics such as her social impact initiative and her experiences preparing to compete on the 2021 Miss Georgia stage.
Hunter is competing in Miss Georgia for the first time under the title Miss Greater Atlanta. Her social impact initiative is “From Shelter to Forever,” which focuses on finding permanent homes for rescue animals.
“The Miss America organization for 100 years has worked to provide women with a voice, and they can do the same thing for dogs, for cats, for animals that need a forever home,” Hunter said.
Hunter has been competing in pageants since she was in high school, but the road to becoming a Miss Georgia candidate has not been an easy one.
“When I was younger, I was bullied because I was overweight, and I wanted to prove to myself and to everyone else that I didn’t have to be that person,” Hunter said.
Hunter said she did not win any pageants over her first year competing, but she wanted to continue trying even after receiving comments from people suggesting that the pageant life was not for her.
“I’m like, no, I’m not going to walk away because one of my greatest fears in life is regret,” Hunter said. “Here I am now, I get the chance to compete on the Miss Georgia stage. It’s also a way to prove to that 11-year-old girl who was bullied for being overweight, that you can overcome that, and you can overcome any challenge.”
Preparing for the Miss Georgia stage takes a lot of time and effort, Hunter said.
“I do something every day to prepare … I just submitted my paperwork, I had to work on that for several weeks, I practice my talent daily,” Hunter said.
Hunter said she has a desire to win the Miss Georgia competition because she believes in the Miss Georgia Scholarship Competition organization, she wants to spread the word of her social impact initiative and she wants to represent Jacobs Media.
“Jacobs Media has been a huge supporter from everyone from Jay, to the newsroom, to Bill Maine, to other people in sales, office staff, everybody has been so supportive here at work,” Hunter said.
When it comes to Hunter’s other supporters, Hunter said she’s thankful for her mom, the staff and volunteers at the Humane Society of Northeast Georgia, Hunter’s field director Kay Cagle, Hunter’s local director Michelle McClure, and Pam Acord, who is helping Hunter with her Broadway vocal talent.
