Amanda Helen Pennekamp (born July 17, 1981) is an American model, television personality, and former beauty queen from

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is List of municipalities in South Carolina, the second-largest ...

who has competed in the

Miss USA Miss USA is an American beauty pageant that has been held annually since 1952 to select the entrant from United States in the Miss Universe pageant. The Miss Universe Organization operated both pageants, as well as Miss Teen USA, until 2020, ...

and Miss Earth pageants. Pennekamp won the

Miss South Carolina USA The Miss South Carolina USA competition, previously known as Miss South Carolina Universe, is the pageant that selects the representative for the state South Carolina in the Miss USA pageant, and the name of the title held by that winner. The ...

2004 title in late 2003 and represented South Carolina in the

Miss USA 2004 Miss USA 2004 was the 53rd Miss USA pageant, held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California on April 12, 2004. The winner of the beauty pageant was Shandi Finnessey, who became the first winner from the state of Missouri. Finnessey was crow ...

pageant held in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...

in April 2004. She placed first runner-up to

Shandi Finnessey Shandi Ren Finnessey (born June 9, 1978) is an American actress, model, TV host and beauty queen. She is best known for winning the Miss USA title, as Miss Missouri USA. She previously held the title of Miss Missouri 2002 and competed in Miss Am ...

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

in the nationally televised pageant, the state's highest placement since

Lu Parker Frances Louise Parker (born April 16, 1968) is an American journalist, Miss USA 1994 winner, animal rights advocate, and motivational speaker. Early life Born in Anderson, South Carolina, Parker attended the College of Charleston, where she wa ...

won the Miss USA title in 1994. In August 2006 Pennekamp won the first Miss Earth USA pageant and succeeded Amanda Kimmel as the United States' representative at the Miss Earth pageant. The pageant took place in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

on November 26, 2006. She made the top 16 and also placed in the top 15 preliminary swimsuit competition. Pennekamp, who studied theatre and speech communications at

Newberry College Newberry College is a private Lutheran college in Newberry, South Carolina. It has 1,250 students. Accreditation Newberry College is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) to award ...

, is a member of the

Alpha Xi Delta Alpha Xi Delta (, often referred to as A-''"Zee"''-D ) is a women's fraternity founded on April 17, 1893. Baird's Manual is also available online hereThe Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage at Lombard College in Galesburg, Illinois, United Stat ...

sorority. The college established the Pennekamp Scholarship for the Performing Arts in her honor. She is currently living in

and working as a model and Host of The V Fixxx for the Vegas Entertainment Network. Also, she is an instructor for Gowns and Crowns which is the basis for the show

King of the Crown ''King of the Crown'' is an American reality television series that debuted on TLC in 2009. The series follows the life of pageant coach Cyrus Frakes and his assistants of Gowns and Crowns as they prepare beauty pageant contestants to compete. T ...

. She is married to another former model Brian Bluestein and they have a son born in 2012 and a daughter born in 2015. She is represented by the Patrick Talent Agency.Patrick Talent Agency, personality profile
(accessed 2006-09-06)

References

External links

Miss South Carolina USA official websiteMiss USA official websiteAmanda Pennekamp's Interview on MUSICandMODELING.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pennekamp, Amanda Living people Miss USA 2004 delegates Newberry College alumni Miss Earth 2006 contestants Miss Earth United States delegates 1981 births