• Courtesy
• Danielle Morse

On Saturday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) convened a group of people who are familiar with the existential issues facing rural fire departments: fire chiefs and first responders. He also hosted U.S. Fire Administrator Lori Moore-Merrell. And Miss Vermont.

Uh, come again?

That's right: Danielle Morse, 23, is a volunteer firefighter in Whiting and, for a few more months, a reigning pageant queen. Since she was 15, Morse has responded to car crashes, home fires and other emergencies. As for the glamour stuff — well, that came later.

"I'm glad I can be there to support people in their worst times," she told Seven Days. There are "just so many great aspects" to firefighting, she added. "I wish more people knew that."

Morse hopes to help recruit firefighters as towns struggle to find volunteers. For her, serving has been a huge confidence boost. She recalled a training session during which she had to climb up a ladder while carrying a second one, then set that ladder up on a roof and scale it.

It was "one of my most proud moments," she said.

In comparison, rocking formal wear onstage in front of a bunch of strangers was a breeze. Morse first competed in 2019 but won last year, when she dazzled the judges at the Vergennes Opera House. She and the other 50 winners from around the country then met in December at the Mohegan Sun casino in Connecticut for the Miss America pageant. Onstage, she hyped her firefighting pedigree.

"I usually put out the fire, but I'm here to bring the heat tonight!" Morse told the crowd.

While she didn't win, Morse said she had a blast and, "to top it off, I just made 50 best friends."

As a teenager, Morse spent a month as a patient at the University of Vermont Children's Hospital due to complications from an appendectomy. She's made it her mission since to support the facility, raising nearly $12,000 for the hospital and buying toys, books, blankets and other supplies for young patients.

Her stay there also inspired her career. Last May, Morse graduated from nursing school. She'll take up the profession once her year as Miss Vermont comes to an end.

After winning the state pageant, she said with a laugh: "It's crazy that I'm supposed to be one of those cool women I look up to."