Shannon Reese was the winner of Miss Deaf Georgia of 1991-1993. The theme of pageant was "Magic" that was held in Macon, Georgia where she competed with four (4) other Deaf ladies. Shannon did tap dancing at the Miss Deaf Georgia Pageant.
She changed her talent performance for Miss Deaf America pageant since she felt that it was more appropriate to do a poetry and dancing. She did the ballet and signed poem "The Creation". She won the Best Talent Award and Best Evening Gown for Delta Group during the preliminary competitions in Denver, Colorado where she competed with 34 national contestants in 1992.
Shannon responded how she felt when she was the only Miss Deaf Georgia to represent Georgia while she competed with national contestants at Miss Deaf America pageant and what she had learned from her experience at the Miss Deaf America pageant:
"I felt honored and blessed to have the experience to represent Georgia. At the same time, I was in awe because I learned from other contestants that were older than me. They gave me valuable tips for my future endeavors. The pageant was exciting because I got to meet so many neat people, learn about the pageant itself, and see the difference in a national vs. state pageant. I felt I represented Georgia to the best of my ability and I was proud to be able to bring something back to Georgia at the end of the conference."
"About my experience, I learned to be confident in myself and proud of the person I am. Since there was so much diversity there, I was able to see different educational backgrounds. Another lesson I learned was that no matter grace, the inherent goodness of people. At the same time, I learned to be diplomatic towards people who can be difficult to deal with. What I learned will stay with me for a lifetime."
