Hannah Neeleman
Hannah Wright Neeleman was crowned Mrs. American in August 2023. Her response to the judge's question, “When have you felt the most empowered?” went viral on social media: “I have felt this feeling seven times now as I bring these sacred souls to the earth. After I hold that newborn baby in my arms, the feeling of motherhood and bringing them to the earth is the most empowering feeling I have ever felt.”[1]
Two weeks prior to competing in the Mrs. World pageant held in Las Vegas on January 21, 2024, Neeleman gave birth to her eighth child, a daughter. Neeleman's older sister, Micka Wright Perry, helped with the baby as Neeleman juggled rehearsals and group outings. Perry brought her own baby, 4-month-old Goldie, her 10th child.[2] Although Neeleman advanced to the next round of the competition, she did not make it into the semifinals.
Neeleman competed in the 2023 Mrs. American pageant as Mrs. South Dakota. Although she lives on a farm in Kamas, Utah, South Dakota, which has an open contestant policy, allows anyone to compete from their state. (“Mrs. American” and “Mrs. America” are separate pageants, each run by an 86-year-old mogul, Elaine Marmel, who is also in charge of the Mrs. World competition.)
She is the mother of eight children and lives with her family on Ballerina Farm, a farm-to-table agriculture business where they sell beef, pork, as well as sourdough accessories and other kitchen products worldwide. She posts pictures and videos of their life to her nearly 9 million followers on Instagram and 6 million on TikTok. "Her videos feature her making homemade bread and mozzarella cheese, decorating bright and intricate cakes, arranging flowers and tending to livestock, all while her children pop in and out of her videos helping her."[3] Her husband, Daniel Neeleman, is also on Instagram as @HogFathering. He’s amassed 442,000 followers.
Neeleman attended Brigham Young University's theater ballet program at age 16. She was accepted at Juilliard School where she graduated in dance. She and her husband, Daniel, lived abroad in São Paulo, Brazil, for four years while he worked and she danced. She learned Portuguese and fell in love with Brazilian cuisine and agriculture. “While most of his co-workers in Brazil would head to the beach on the weekends, we found ourselves venturing inland, marveling at the country’s productive farming community.”[4]
In 2017 they moved back to Utah started Ballerina Farm.
She had been crowned twice before returning to Utah. In 2008 she was Miss Springville (Utah, where she was raised), and in 2010 she was crowned Miss New York City. Back in Utah she was crowned Mrs. Utah in 2021.
