Fincher vying for national title
PRESCOTT – Zoe Fincher is on a mission.
Fincher, the 18-year-old daughter of Tina Kisselburg and Jason Fincher, has been named World’s Miss Natural State Tourism 2022 and is headed for the national competition in Pigeon Forge, TN July 22-24. Her platform is “Piece by Piece the Key to Special Needs is Education”. She said those with special needs aren’t any different than others, and they can learn like the rest of us because everyone’s the same. What they may lack in one area, they make up for in another, just like anybody else.
Part of the reason special needs is Fincher’s platform is her 15-year-old brother, Blake, has special needs. While she works with special needs people, she’s going to college to become a marine biologist. “I thought about going into special needs,” she said, “but I’m not sure I can deal with the way they’re treated. I’ll be a better advocate for them with my title. I can do more for them that way.” She also has a 14-year-old brother, Baker, who, she says, is a typical 14-year-old boy.
Right now, Fincher is attending the University of Arkansas Hope-Texarkana, getting the basics out of the way for her degree in marine biology. She’s working on the math and science that will be required. Once she’s got the basics out of the way, she’d like to to to the University of Tampa to work on her Bachelor of Science degree. While she’s not a certified diver yet, she plans on getting her certification once time permits.
When asked why marine biology, Fincher said she’s been told stories of when the family went to Sea World when she was young and fell in love with the creatures of the ocean. “I love learning about the ocean and things in it. My three main wow factors are turtles, dolphins and sharks.” That’s right, sharks. At some point, she’d like to swim with them, saying the key to staying safe is knowing and respecting them. She has no problem with hunting, either land or sea creatures, as long as it’s for food, but she gets upset when animals and sea creatures are killed for sport or fun.
Finding time won’t be easy as Fincher stays busy with pageants and runway modeling. In February, she’ll be headed to the Big Apple, New York City, to model outfits for Deepchi Reddy a designer for Drisha Closets. She’s an official model for the company and sees it as a great opportunity. She said she could probably have a future in modeling, but wants to go to school and get a degree in something she loves.
In talking about the national competition, Fincher plans on competing in every division. This includes the normal, interview, talent, swimwear and evening wear, along with doing a monologue, a community service division, scrapbook division and state division. “It gets you out of your comfort zone,” she said. “It’s helped me in a lot of ways and I’ll compete in as many divisions as I can, probably all of them.” Once she earned the state title, work began on the scrapbook with Fincher recording her journey as queen.
School, pageants and modeling requires a balancing act. Fincher says it’s not easy to balance everything, but she makes time because it’s something she likes. She does homework in class and when she has half-days of class, and works on the pageants and modeling afterward. While this may disappoint a lot of guys, it’s what it is, Zoe’s not interested in dating at this time. “I”m more interested in being myself. I have the rest of my life ahead of me. I want to work in my degree and relationship with God. I don’t think dating is the right call for me right now. I want to tick to my morals and ethics because that’s what makes a person a person, but it’s hard at times.”
Fincher likes to read, preferring science fiction, history and classics. She also enjoys most kinds of music, but especially likes older artists such as Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and the Beatles. This work, she said, shows emotions and is inspiring. It makes connections with people.”
She’s an odd young lady in another way as she refuses to accept things without earning them. “If I don’t work for it, I don’t feel I deserve it. I like to do the work.” This causes a bit of friction with her grandmother, Jacque, who helps Fincher with her pageants, but, like grandmothers are, doesn’t want anything in return. Fincher insists on paying her back by helping her out, or just spending quality time with her.
Fincher has a cell phone, but isn’t attached to it. “I have it for emergencies,” she said, admitting she often leaves it laying somewhere. “I’m not one for material things. I want to earn people’s respect and spend time with people when I’m not modeling or in pageants. I like spending time with my family and friends. They push me to be the person I am today and are why I’ve accomplished so much at 18.”
In talking about her mother, Fincher said her mother is her anchor and is a big help.
As for pageants, Fincher said they’ve helped her self-esteem and ability to speak in public. The website for the pageant is www.misstourismpageants.com.
