Miss Michigan is a Survivor of the MSU Shooting

The Miss Michigan pageant is always a fun thing to follow. When I was a little girl, my mom and I used to watch all the big pageants: Miss America, Miss USA and Miss Universe. We always rooted for Miss Michigan to go all the way.

Now, a new Miss Michigan has been crowned: Maya Schuhknecht. She's a survivor of the mass shooting at Michigan State University, which took place earlier this year.

As for talent, during the competition, Schuhknecht showed off her art skills as a speed painter. I love this, since I'm a painter, too. She also said that art as helped her through adversity throughout her life. Her life story has some great adversity. Her mom had breast cancer when she was 13. Then, at MSU, she survived the mass shooting. A few weeks later, she lost her dad unexpectedly.

“Life just keeps throwing waves at you and you don’t know what’s going to come, but that’s just the cards you were given,” Schuhknect said. “Through that hard time, I have been using the arts and as Miss Michigan, I’m really excited to tell people that story and say, ‘Look at me. I’m successful. I still see all these great things in life despite all these bad things that have happened to me, and I’m actively using the arts to feel better each and every day.'" When crowned, she said that she hopes her story and win will inspire others to embrace unique talents. Now, she's going to represent Michigan in the next Miss America contest. Details on the Miss America 2024 show has yet to be announced.

Olivia Dunne is obviously someone who pretty much everyone knows as not only an athlete but also an influencer.

The junior on the LSU gymnastics team is the highest-paid female college athlete in America. She's a huge social media star and has plenty of endorsements.

Dunne is featured in the new Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. For this issue, she was photographed by Ben Watts in Puerto Rico. In the magazine, she tells SI that, "My most viral Instagram post is a picture of me about to mount the beam at practice." That post has garnered more than 877,000 likes on Instagram, and her videos on TikTok regularly exceed one million views.

Dunne, of course, looks incredible in her SI shoot. Goals, is what I have to say about that. Perhaps unrealistic goals, but goals! Check out some of Dunne's most viral posts below, plus a link to her SI photo shoot! Find more SI models here.

Olivia Dunne says it's a dream to be in Sports Illustrated's Swimsuit issue! She looks amazing. You can tell she's in killer shape. Check out one of her shots that she shared on Instagram below.

“It’s a dream come true. It’s an honor to be included because I love everything the magazine represents. It is all about supporting women from all different paths.”

More Olivia Dunne SI Swimsuit love! She is obviously thrilled to be in the magazine. They are likely thrilled to have her, too!

Remember this song? I'm not even a country music fan and I totally remember it. I hope I look that good on a horse when I go horseback riding this summer, lol!

Here's Olivia doing her thing in practice. Sometimes people forget she is a talent athlete, not just an Instagram star!

Olivia Dunne isn't just a great athlete. She's apparently a great dancer! I need to learn those moves!

Olivia Dunne was photographed by Ben Watts for the 2023 SI Swimsuit Issue in Puerto Rico. Check out more of her sizzling photos below!

https://swimsuit.si.com/swimsuit/model/olivia-dunne-2023-si-swimsuit-photos