Angela Witte, Mrs. Indiana, voted ‘Mrs. Congeniality’

I first met Angela Witte as she was cleaning my teeth two years ago at our dentist’s office. She was professional and friendly and gentle. At that time Angela had won a number of beauty pageants and was still competing at ever higher levels. Since then, Angela has been crowned Mrs. Indiana and is currently serving that position through July 2011 when the new Mrs. Indiana will be crowned.

In April 2011 Angela competed in her first national pageant — the Mrs. America pageant which took place with 50 other married women at a resort in West Virginia. While she did not win that crown, she was voted ‘Mrs. Congeniality’ by her peers, an honor she has received many times in her pageantry career. I love this photo of her in her gray dress. A lovely girl with a lovely heart.

If you know Angela, please leave a comment of support and I’ll be sure to tell her about them.

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Wells County may be a rural area but it has a prestigious claim to fame as the birthplace of the current Mrs. Indiana, Angela Micklitsch Witte.

Witte was born and raised in Wells County. After graduating from Norwell High School in 2004, she attended Indiana Purdue Fort Wayne as a student of the dental hygiene program. In 2006, Witte (who was still unmarried) entered the Miss Indiana Purdue Fort Wayne pageant. Witte did not win that competition, but discovered she loved the process of pageantry. Over the next few years she competed and placed in a number of pageants: Miss Wells County 2006 (first runner up); Miss Mideast Indiana 2006; Miss Fort Wayne 2007 (third runner up and Community Achievement Award); Miss Mideast Indiana 2007 (winner); Miss Indiana 2008 (voted Miss Congeniality, Jon Price Community Service Award, Miss Miracle Maker Award, Hoosier Leadership Memorial Scholarship); Salvation Army’s Fort Wayne Queen of Charities 2010 (winner, voted Miss Congeniality).

After marrying Norwell High School graduate Zach Witte in 2008, Angela was eligible to compete for Mrs. Indiana. In 2010 she entered for the first time. Although she did not receive the crown of Mrs. Indiana, she was voted Mrs. Congeniality.   

Witte was voted winner for congeniality in most of the pageants, a fact that thrilled her. “That honor means so much to me because making new friends and building relationships with my peers is an important part of pageantry,” she said.

On November 13, 2010, Witte competed again for Mrs. Indiana (2011) against eight competitors. This time she won. She also was awarded Mrs. Congeniality and the Physical Fitness Award.

On March 31, 2011, Witte and 50 other contestants from the nation (one from each state; Washington DC enters its own contestant) arrived at the Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia for the Mrs. America pageant. The competition runs April 2 through April 14 when Mrs. America 2011 will be crowned.

During the first week, the contestants are not judged but spend time getting to know each other and participating in volunteer activities with Habitat for Humanity and other charitable organizations. “Each day we’re doing something different,” said Angela in an email shortly after her arrival. “According to our itineraries, we’re expected to attend some events that require formal attire while others just need us to wear blue jeans,” she said.

On April 11, the contestants will begin the first day of competition with judged interviews. This area of competition in the Mrs. America pageant counts for 50 percent of the each contestant’s final score. Other areas to be judged will be Physical Fitness in Swimsuit (25%) and Evening Wear (25%). 

Preliminary competition will commence on April 12 with final judging to be announced on April 14. “No one knows until the last day who the top contestants will be,” said Witte in an interview a few weeks before leaving for the Mrs. America competition. The contestant voted Mrs. Congeniality by the other contestants will also be awarded on the final night. Winner of the Mrs. America pageant will then compete for Mrs. World later this year.

The Mrs. America event will be televised on My FamilyTV.tv and RRTV.com. Schedules are available on the Mrs. America website (http://www.mrsamerica.com/).

In the weeks leading up to her departure, Witte was feeling confident about her chances at being crowned the next Mrs. America, due to her Hoosier upbringing. “I am very proud of being a Hoosier,” she wrote in an email interview. “Being born and raised in Indiana has given me a strong direction of right and wrong, taught me the importance of community, and encouraged me to develop my faith in God with others. From a young age I was always encouraged to do my best and dream big. I am who I am today because of being raised in Indiana.”

She also found a welcoming omen upon her arrival which she described in an email: “The room I share with Mrs. Kentucky has big, fat, pink peony wallpaper — Indiana’s state flower!!

Competing for the national pageant is Witte’s last chance to win the title of Mrs. America. “Once a woman wins a state title, she is not allowed to compete again,” she said. “That allows other women the opportunity to win.”

Witte will remain Mrs. Indiana until July 30, 2011, when she will hand her crown to the next Mrs. Indiana at a pageant to be held in Westfield, Indiana.

Until then, Witte plans to continue promoting the Mrs. Indiana America pageant and focusing on community service. Besides working full-time at Dr. James Taylor and Sigler Associates in Bluffton, she will continue to volunteer throughout the state for charities. “If somebody needs my help in promoting a fundraiser, I will be glad to drive to their location and lend a hand,” she said.

Those wanting to contact Witte to schedule an appearance may do so at www.mrsindiana.com.

The End