- Judith Ford
Judith Anne Ford, a native of
Belvidere, Illinois , was crownedMiss America in 1969. Judith Ford, later known as Judi Nash, had beenMiss Illinois 1968 when she competed for the Miss America title. Ford was a world-class trampolinist at the time of the pageant. Prior her winning the state title, she had graduated from Belvidere High School and was Miss Boone County.According to her biographic information, Nash's trampoline routine helped her win the title. Nash spent her freshman year at the
University of Louisiana at Lafayette , then called the University of Southwestern Louisiana, to train under the expertise of trampoline coachJeff Hennessy .After her freshman year, she won the Miss America crown and took a leave from college for a year. Following her year off, she transferred to the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign , where she received her bachelor's degree in physical education. She later in life earned a master's degree in physical education fromWestern Illinois University .She served on the
President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports for eight years, appointed by PresidentsRichard Nixon andGerald Ford . She was an elementary physical education teacher and is now retired, but still coaches golf and basketball. She is married to James Nash, an attorney in Geneseo, Illinois.External links
* [http://www.missamerica.org/our-miss-americas/1960/1969.asp Miss America Pageant]
* [http://www.missillinois.homestead.com/history.html Miss Illinois Pageant]
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