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On Saturday, June 17, Maya Schuhknecht was crowned Miss Michigan 2023 at the Frauenthal Theatre in downtown Muskegon, beating 23 others at the week-long pageant. The 22-year-old hailing from Buchanan was already the reigning Miss Spirit of the State before she earned the recent accolade.
Following her winning moment, Schuhknecht expressed how grateful she was:
“I love the state of Michigan so much. It’s my home and always will be my home and I’m so grateful to represent this year.”
A passionate art student, Miss Michigan 2023 recently graduated with a degree in graphic design from Michigan State University.
Miss Michigan 2023 can now compete for the 2023 Miss America Scholarship Pageant
Maya Schuhknecht was donning an emerald green evening gown when she earned the crown, the sash, and the Miss Michigan 2023 title.
She also received 10000 US dollars worth of scholarships. However, one of the biggest rewards of the win was getting the chance to compete in the upcoming 2023 Miss America Scholarship pageant. In fact, Maya said that she was already excited “to be in the running for Miss America.”
“It feels like a dream, it doesn’t feel real. I’m just very grateful. The whole night, I just let it fall into destiny’s hand and I just trusted whatever was going to happen. I’m very humbled and excited,” she said.
Interestingly, this was Schuknecht’s second time competing in the Miss Michigan pageant. Last year, as part of the contest, she speed-painted a portrait of Michael Jackson live, the video of which later became viral on TikTok and earned more than 3 million views.
Similarly, this year, she impressed the judges’ panel during the talent round when she speed-painted the portrait of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, upside-down, that too within 90 seconds.
Her flair for art goes beyond herself, as she plans to share her “love of the arts” with everyone, using her social impact initiative “Art for All," as per MLive.
Maya Schuhknecht attended Buchanan High School and she aims to use her degree in fine arts and graphic design to become an art director and work for the sports industry, where she hopes to empower women to join the field.
Maya's personal life has beenn laced with tragedy. Her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer a few years back, and she suddenly lost her father only two months ago. Unfortunately, she was present on scene during the mass shooting incident that happened at the Michigan State University campus earlier this year.
“I really had to think about the arts being a useful tool and I’m looking forward to helping other people go through and express their emotions through the arts.”
After being crowned, Miss Michigan 2023 further shared her winning emotions, saying that she felt her father’s presence throughout the competition and it was “the most magical feeling.”
Who were the other winners at the pageant?
There were four runners-up in the contest, starting with the first runner-up Izzy Wallace (Miss St. Clair Shores) who won 4000 dollars.
She was followed by second runner-up Cecilia Petrush (Miss Washtenaw County), third runner-up Katie Shleis (Miss South Central), and Breckyn Bussey (Miss Southwest), who won 3000 dollars, 2000 dollars, and 1500 dollars, respectively. All seven semi-finalists were also rewarded with 1000 dollars each.
Miss Michigan’s Teen 2023 was also crowned on June 16. The winner was Kylie D’Andrea.
