Some students come to college and learn life has other plans for them, said one inductee of the Greater Huntington Wall of Fame following the induction ceremony Thursday, Oct. 24.
“You go to college, and you can take all kinds of courses, but you come out, and you bloom into something that you have an even greater talent and education for,” former student JoAnn Odum Aldrich said.
“For so many of us, when we go to college, we don’t really graduate being involved in the things we thought we might,” she added.
Shortly after beginning her educational journey at Marshall College, Aldrich was crowned “Miss Huntington” in 1961. She went on to represent West Virginia in the national competition at Carnegie Hall in New York City, where she was crowned Miss USA/World 1961-62.
Aldrich then competed at the Miss World competition in London, England, where she placed fifth runner-up.
Although Aldrich’s pageant career put a halt on obtaining her degree in education, she said the knowledge she gained from traveling nationally and internationally was invaluable.
“With education, we often think of other countries being good or bad considering the USA,” Aldrich said. “But I realized that no matter where we came from, we shared the love for peace and being able to understand one another. I think that more edified me in the realization that we’re really all one, and we want the same things.”
During her reign as Miss USA, Aldrich visited the White House and met former President John F. Kennedy and former Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson. She said Kennedy was aware of Marshall’s recent accreditation as a university and was “very much involved in Huntington.”
Following her pageant journey, Aldrich returned to her hometown of Huntington, with her influence bringing Miss USA/World competition to the city in 1962 and 1963.
She also returned to the newly-accredited Marshall University at this time. During her time at Marshall, she served as chapter president and vice president of Sigma Sigma Sigma, which she said all of her favorite Marshall memories revolve around.
“Being a part of a sorority is really a great honor in the first place,” she said. “To be affiliated with the Psi Chapter of Sigma Sigma Sigma, which has more than a 100-year history itself, it made me very proud to be a part of an organization that shared my own values, which is very important to me.”
Aldrich remains involved with Tri-Sigma as a house-board member and a representative of her chapter. Aldrich also credits her sorority with the responsibility of introducing her to her now husband, Jerry Aldrich. JoAnn and Jerry went on a blind date in March, got engaged in May and married in September.
“When I married, I then phased out of school, but I had another step of education: a new wife and, ultimately, a mother,” she said.
Although JoAnn and Jerry’s marriage took them out of Huntington for 55 years, since their return, JoAnn said she encourages students to stay in the city following graduation. She recently founded a conservative women’s group in Barboursville which makes efforts to improve state education and increase job opportunities in West Virginia.
Baylee Parsons can be contacted at [email protected].
