Miss Michigan 2023 is Maya Schuhknecht of Buchanan. She won the title at the Miss Michigan competition in Muskegon this past weekend. She tells us she got her start competing in Miss Blossomtime. She was named Miss Spirit of Blossomtime in 2019, and through that, she met Miss Michigan 2019, who inspired her to seek the statewide title. She says her one obstacle was the talent competition.
“For a really long time, I was told I couldn’t compete in the organization because I couldn’t sing and I couldn’t dance,” Schuhknecht said. “So, one day I decided to take destiny into my own hands and not listen to what people told me and create a speed painting presentation.”
Schuhknecht did a speed painting of Michael Jackson in last year’s competition, the video of which went viral. For this year, she painted Ruth Bader Ginsburg, helping her win the title of Miss Michigan. She says the arts are her passion, and she’ll make that her cause if she goes on to be Miss America.
“The one thing I heard from a past Miss America was that no matter what you do, always bring it home. So, I think the first thing I would do as Miss America is bring that home to Buchanan. That’s really important for me. I would spend my year advocating for the program, advocating for the arts.”
For now, Schuhknecht will make appearances all over Michigan, telling us she’s excited to see the Upper Peninsula. The Miss America competition will be in the fall. Schuhknecht is a recent MSU graduate who studied graphic design. She tells us she’s proud to be Buchanan born and raised and hopes to inspire girls from her hometown.
