Miss Ohio Ellen Bryan pedaled into Mason Wednesday amidst fanfare and smiles.
The pageant contestant visited Mason on the third stop on a 45-city bike tour across Ohio to raise funds for the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals of Ohio.
Mason Mayor Don Prince and members of Mason Police Department escorted Bryan on bike as she entered the city’s northern limits.
She first made a stop at Mason’s Heritage Oak Park to visit the park’s lightning-prediction system.
The Celina native became an advocate for lightning safety after her sister, Christina, was struck by lightning in 2000 while working at a golf course. The accident left the now-28-year-old wheelchair-bound, with limited mobility and unable to speak.
Mason implemented its lightning-prediction system two years ago at Heritage Oak Park. The solar-powered system is set to sound sirens when lightning is likely to occur.
Bryan, who said she hadn’t before seen such a system in place in Ohio, raved about the city’s measures in preventing lightning-related injuries.
She plans to recommend lightning-prediction systems like Mason’s be added to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s “toolkit” for counties and communities, an organization she partners with.
“Not a lot of cities have them,” said Bryan. “It was great to see Mason is ahead of the game.”
Bryan then met with dozens of residents at the Mason Community Center, where city leaders presented her with a check for $375 in donations to benefit her cause.
“I’m really not a trained cyclist,” Bryan told the crowd. “I really just want to do this for the kids.”
“As Miss Ohio, I had the opportunity to do something on a bigger scale and I don’t even have to do my hair,” she joked.
Miss Ohio then presented Mason with a special plaque honoring its recent ranking as 24th on Money magazine’s “Best Places to Live” list.
Prince said it was “out-of-the-box” partnerships such as with Miss Ohio that’s helped the city garner the national recognition it’s received.
“We’re proud of Mason and that it’s highly rated,” Prince said. “We think it’s higher than 24 and we’re patient for Money magazine to catch up.”
Bryan visited with patients at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center today before moving on to her next stop in Hamilton. Follow her tour at www.missohiobiketour.com.
