Cara McCollum (February 6, 1992 – February 22, 2016) was an American journalist and lead news anchor for ''SNJ Today'' (which she joined in July 2015). She was

Miss New Jersey The Miss New Jersey competition is an annual pageant held to select the representative for the state of New Jersey in the Miss America pageant. Two Miss New Jersey winners have gone on to hold the title of Miss America: Bette Cooper who won in ...

2013 and competed for the

Miss America 2014 Miss America 2014, the 87th Miss America pageant was held at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey Sunday, September 15, 2013. Miss America 2013, Mallory Hagan crowned the winner, Miss New York, Nina Davuluri, who served as Miss Am ...

title.

Background and education

The daughter of Rick and Maureen (née Buckingham) McCollum, both of

Forrest City, Arkansas Forrest City is a city in St. Francis County, Arkansas, United States, and the county seat. It was named for General Nathan Bedford Forrest, who used the location as a campsite for a construction crew completing a railroad between Memphis and Litt ...

, McCollum attended

Forrest City High School Forrest City High School is a comprehensive public high school in Forrest City, Arkansas, United States. It is the sole high school administered by the Forrest City School District and its main feeder school is Forrest City Junior High School. ...

, where she was named valedictorian. She was also named an

Arkansas Times ''Arkansas Times'', a weekly alternative newspaper based in Little Rock, Arkansas, is a publication that has circulated more than 40 years, originally as a magazine. Founded as a small magazine on newsprint in 1977 by publisher Alan Leveritt, ...

Academic All-Star in 2010. McCollum entered

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

in 2010, and was on the cheerleading squad during her freshman year. She was a journalism student under

John McPhee John Angus McPhee (born March 8, 1931) is an American writer. He is considered one of the pioneers of creative nonfiction. He is a four-time finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in the category General Nonfiction, and he won that award on the four ...

(in his “Creative Nonfiction” course),

Evan Thomas Evan Welling Thomas III (born April 25, 1951) is an American journalist, historian, and author. He is the author of nine books, including two ''New York Times'' bestsellers. Early life and career Thomas was born in Huntington, New York, and r ...

, and Alma Guillermoprieto, and was also a member of the sorority

Kappa Alpha Theta Kappa Alpha Theta (), also known simply as Theta, is an international women’s fraternity founded on January 27, 1870, at DePauw University, formerly Indiana Asbury. It was the first Greek-letter fraternity established for women. The main arc ...

and

University Cottage Club The University Cottage Club or simply Cottage Club is one of eleven current eating clubs at Princeton University, in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. It is one of the six bicker clubs, along with The Ivy Club, Tiger Inn, Cap and Gown Club ...

. McCollum received her B.A. in English (with a concentration in journalism) in June 2015, after taking time off to complete her year as Miss New Jersey (2013-2014).

Miss New Jersey 2013

In early 2013, McCollum won the Miss Island Resort pageant, which allowed her to participate in the

2013 competition. In June 2013, she won the title of ''Miss New Jersey'' with the platform, “Giving the Gift of Reading." This platform promoted youth literacy through her

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

“The Birthday Book Project," an organization which gives gift-wrapped books to underprivileged children grades K-5th for their birthdays. McCollum also had a musical talent, as seen in her advanced piano skills (despite a rare bone growth that made one of her fingers immobile), and she went on to perform Calvin Jones’s rendition of “Whitewater Chopped Sticks." In September 2013, McCollum participated in the

pageant as Miss New Jersey. For the “Show Us Your Shoes” parade along the Atlantic City Boardwalk, McCollum wore a mermaid costume with flippers and a net banner that read “Washed Ashore and

Stronger than the Storm Stronger than the Storm was an advertising campaign to promote tourism in New Jersey in 2013. It portrayed the state as being resilient and having recovered from the impact and aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, which had caused severe damage in Autumn ...

” to honor those affected by

Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as ''Superstorm Sandy'') was an extremely destructive and strong Atlantic hurricane, as well as the largest Atlantic hurricane on record as measured by diameter, with tropical-storm-force winds spann ...

. During her year-long reign as Miss New Jersey, McCollum was named New Jersey Library Association Champion of the Year, as well as a Daily

Points of Light Points of Light is an international nonprofit, nonpartisan organization headquartered in Georgia, United States dedicated to engaging more people and resources in solving serious social problems through voluntary service. Each year, Points ...

Winner for her advocacy of youth literacy. Tracey Hoover, CEO of Points of Light, also highlighted McCollum's non-profit, ''The Birthday Book Project'', in an article that she wrote for ''

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

''.

Death

On February 15, 2016, McCollum was involved in a car accident. She was taken to Cooper University Hospital in Camden, where she died on February 22, 2016, sixteen days after her 24th birthday. A funeral was held in her hometown of

and a memorial service was held in

Ocean City, New Jersey Ocean City is a city in Cape May County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is the principal city of the Ocean City metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses all of Cape May County and is part of the Philadelphia- Wilmington- Camden, ...

. McCollum's longtime boyfriend, News Anchor Keith Jones, delivered the eulogy at both occasions. Jones called their two-year courtship an "encyclopedia of memories." Jones said the pair constantly wrote each other letters. He said, "Thank you for the two of the best years of my life ... may God bless you Cara." McCollum's family said Cara had made the decision to donate her organs.

References

External links

(Has Been) Royals - Lorde Cover
* {{DEFAULTSORT:McCollum, Cara 1992 births 2016 deaths People from Forrest City, Arkansas Journalists from Arkansas Miss America 2014 delegates Princeton University alumni American women television journalists Road incident deaths in New Jersey