Colleen Kay Hutchins

Biography

Colleen Kay Hutchins (May 23, 1926 – March 24, 2010) was Miss America 1952.

== Early life == Hutchins was a native of Arcadia, California. Her brother, Mel Hutchins, later became a basketball player for the Milwaukee Hawks, Fort Wayne Pistons, and New York Knicks.

== Pageantry == Hutchins was crowned as Brigham Young University's homecoming queen in 1947. In September 1951, she was crowned Miss America, the first Miss Utah to win the pageant.

== Personal life == Hutchins met her future husband Ernie Vandeweghe at a New York Knicks basketball game at Madison Square Garden after a friend introduced her to the team's forward. The couple married in May 1953, and had four children: son, Kiki, a professional basketball player and executive; daughter, Tauna, an Olympic swimmer, son, Bruk; and daughter, Heather. Hutchins is also the grandmother of professional tennis player CoCo Vandeweghe, daughter of Tauna. She was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Vandeweghes resided in Indian Wells, California, Laguna Beach, California and Palm Springs, California. She died on March 24, 2010, in Newport Beach, at age 83.

== References ==

== Sources == Garr, Arnold K., Donald Q. Cannon and Richard O. Cowan ed., Encyclopedia of Latter-day Saint History, p. 526