Lehi People
Brooklyn Ward wins 2026 Miss Lehi crown
Jennifer Thomas | Lehi Free Press
Miss Lehi 2026 was crowned on Saturday, June 13, at Lehi High School. Brooklyn Ward won the title and a $4,000 scholarship.
Miss Lehi 2025 Jennifer Connolly and Johnny Revill emceed the scholarship competition. The nine accomplished candidates had private interviews (30% of their final score) with five judges during the day on Saturday. The remainder of the competition categories — on-stage conversation (10%), health and fitness (20%), talent (20%) and evening wear (20%) — were presented that evening in front of a live audience. While auditors tallied the scores after each event, Connolly and Revill kept the audience relaxed with friendly banter.
Brooklyn Ward is a graduate of Lehi High School and Utah State University. She charmed the audience and the judges with her grace and intellect throughout the competition.
“I feel so elated and humbled to be the new Miss Lehi. I feel like I was able to give my whole heart to this competition and I could not be more grateful for this special opportunity to serve the City of Lehi, a place that has given me so much,” said Ward.
“Brooklyn was one of the first contestants to reach out about this year’s competition. It has been fun to see her growth, and I’m so excited to see where her year of service takes her. She is already getting meetings scheduled, projects outlined, and her calendar is starting to fill up,” said Kate Daly, Director of the Miss Lehi organization.
Candidates in every local Miss America Scholarship Competition have a community service initiative (CSI), formerly known as a platform. The young women are expected to find a cause they are passionate about and impact the community with their advocacy.
Ward’s CSI is entitled, “Nourish & Strengthen — Empowering the Lehi community for better health through nutrition education and excitement for healthy eating.” Ward is excited to share her initiative with the community of Lehi.
“My CSI is ‘Nourish and Strengthen,’ it is all about empowering the Lehi community to be excited about healthy eating and nutrition education,” said Ward. “I cannot wait to get Lehi City excited about healthy eating and to promote programs that encourage nutrition education and bridge the gap between not only affording healthy food, but also knowing how to prepare it as well as knowing how to implement those healthy changes within your lifestyle.”
Ward has a plan outlined and is ready to implement “Nourish & Strengthen” within the community.
“I hope to dive right in this summer with Farmer’s Market demos and other city events. I hope to attend all community events to talk with people and connect them with resources for healthy eating,” said Ward. “I also have a podcast planned and so many other ideas that I am excited to get to work on.”
The Miss Lehi 2026 royalty also includes Izzy Dallin (First Runner-Up), Jeida Barron (Second Runner-Up) and Maren Shelton (Third Runner-Up). Each of them received an $800 scholarship.
The Miss Lehi Scholarship organization received a generous donation this year that allowed for a third runner-up to be recognized.
“We were fortunate to add an additional runner-up this year because of a donation we received through our Legacy Club. We are so grateful for our sponsors and for those who participate in our Miss Lehi Legacy Club, which helps support young women in our community to further their education and serve within the City,” said Daly.
I am looking forward to Lehi Round-Up. Participating as Miss Lehi has been my dream since I was a child,” said Ward. “Being in the parade is one of my favorite things. I have walked the parade with the drill team several times as I am a proud former Pionette, but riding the float as a part of the Miss Lehi royalty is a dream come true.”
“I love Lehi, I will always love Lehi. I tell everyone how wonderful this community is and always share my pride as a Lehi Pioneer alum. I am so grateful for this city and all it has given to me. Lehi has helped me become who I am today,” concluded Ward.
“All nine young women have been preparing for the competition for the last six months. They all showed up with their very best on Saturday. It was exciting to watch them nail each phase of the competition,” said Daly. “I hope they are proud of their hard work.”
