Justiss Firemoon's Got Talent

America’s got talent. The Hi-Line’s got talent. Justiss Firemoon’s got it, too.

Firemoon, the Hi-Line’s representative at Saturday night’s Miss Montana Pageant, won the talent competition with her singing of “Phantom of the Opera.” In her first pageant ever, the Fort Peck Reservation 18-year-old also survived the first two cuts of contestants that trimmed the field from 13 to seven.

“I truly enjoyed the experience,” she said.

Sheridan Pope of Sidney was crowned Miss Montana 2013 and will represent the state at the Miss America Pageant in September at Atlantic City, N.J. Olivia Dowler of Kalispell was first runner-up in the event at Dawson County High School.

As for Firemoon, she might give the Montana pageant another go.

“It was an exciting time,” her father, Thomas Firemoon, owner of Nakoda Trails Stop in Frazer, told The Courier on Tuesday. “She learned a lot. They want her to come back. She’s strongly considering it.”

Justiss Firemoon focused her platform on suicide prevention because it so troubles Native American reservations. The Poplar High School graduate, who hopes to attend medical school and has visited UCLA, also won as top seller for the pageant’s Good Luck Ad Page and was awarded an $800 scholarship for her pageant participation.

You can see Firemoon’s thank you message to supporters on Page 3A.