Newsmakers

The 2011 Miss Nevada and Miss Nevada Outstanding Teen Pageant took place July 1-2 at the CasaBlanca Resort in Mesquite.

Miss Clark County Alana Lee, of Las Vegas, was crowned Miss Nevada.

Lee, the daughter of state Sen. John Lee, D-North Las Vegas, is a senior majoring in broadcast journalism at Dixie State College in St. George, Utah.

Her platform for the pageant was “Improving Relations Through Effective Communication.”

Lee will represent Nevada in the Miss America Pageant at Planet Hollywood Resort in January.

The Miss Nevada runners-up were: Miss Northern Counties Kellie Mills, first; Miss Mesquite Elizabeth Mercado, second; Miss Summerlin Randi Sundquist, third; and Miss Lake Tahoe Diana Lynn Sweeney, fourth.

Miss Lake Tahoe Bailey Gumm won the Miss Outstanding Teen competition. The Miss Outstanding Teen runners-up were: Miss Henderson Outstanding Teen Emily Messina, first; Miss Southern Counties Outstanding Teen Sabrina Singh, second; Miss Truckee Meadows Outstanding Teen Emilie Heidenreich, third; and Miss Douglas County Outstanding Teen Leah Walters, fourth.

Las Vegas Valley resident Johnny Fortuno won the Elvis Rocks Mesquite competition June 23-26 at the CasaBlanca Resort. He was awarded $3,000 in prize money.

Fortuno, who also won the preliminary round of the Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest in May, is set to compete in the 2011 Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest Aug. 10-16 in Memphis, Tenn.

Six Southern Nevada artists were among 15 Nevadans recently awarded 2012 Artist Fellowship funding by the Nevada Arts Council.

Las Vegans Carrie Ann Lahain (creative prose/fiction), Maythinee Alisa Washington (theater performance) and Brent Sommerhauser (sculpture) will receive a $5,000 fellowship.

Honorable mention recognition in the amount of $500 will be awarded to the following: Linda Alterwitz (photography) and Boris Shapiro (music performance/jazz drums), both of Las Vegas; and Joshua Kryah (poetry) of Henderson.

Two Las Vegas-based FedEx drivers won first place in their respected divisions at the 2011 Nevada State Truck Driving Championships May 21 in Reno.

Christina Fleury (step van class) and John Lugo (straight truck class) plan to compete in the American Trucking Associations’ 2011 National Truck Driving Championships, known as the “Super Bowl of Safety,” Aug. 9-13 in Orlando, Fla.

FedEx freight driver Wesley Repp of Las Vegas was named Rookie of the Year.

Do you know an individual adult whose achievements are worth a mention? If so, send us a brief description of his accomplishment, including name, the city where he lives, and a photograph to: Newsmakers, Las Vegas Review-Journal, P.O. Box 70, Las Vegas, NV 89125-0070. Photos cannot be returned.