Amy Olesh, senior business management major and Kent resident, is one of 10 national winners in Lifetime’s Next Stop, New You – Make Me Over promotion. The winner will be chosen through online voting beginning Sept. 15.

Credit: Steve Schirra

Amy Olesh was surfing the Internet when she ran across a sweepstakes to receive a makeover in New York City. She wrote an essay, sent a picture and didn’t think of it again.

That is, until she received a phone call from Lifetime Television.

Kent State student, wife and mother of two, Lifetime chose Olesh as one of 10 national semi-finalists in Lifetime’s “Next Stop, New You – Make Me Over Promotion.”

Three grand prize winners will travel to New York City and participate in a three-day, two-night makeover.

“I just thought, ‘I deserve a makeover,'” Olesh said. “And I never thought another thing about it until I got a phone call.”

Olesh, senior business administration major, said she applied for the makeover because she will soon undergo a number of changes in her life. Olesh will turn 40 this year, graduate from the university in December and begin the search for a new career.

“I’ve been here forever and a day,” Olesh said because she has been taking night classes part-time at Kent State for nine years.

Olesh, who is currently a professional interior painter, said she hopes to have a new job in the spring. She said she wants a makeover to help her make the transition to a professional setting.

“I’ve never dressed for a professional setting,” Olesh said. “Now, I can go to work wearing crummy clothes, smeared makeup and a hat. For me just to go shopping, I wouldn’t really know what to pick out.”

According to Christina Praino, from Lifetime’s Project Support Team, the three finalists will spend three days and two nights in New York City.

They will stay at the New York Marriott Marquis in Times Square, and they are each allowed to bring one guest.

The sweepstakes’ Web site states that the makeover will include a hair cut and coloring, makeup and a $1,000 shopping spree. Each grand prize has an approximate retail value of $3,500.

Olesh said approximately 5,000 contestants entered the essay-based contest. The entries were judged on written expression, the candidate’s need for a makeover, originality and a photograph, according to the Web site.

The grand prize winners will be chosen by the public through an online voting process. Fans will be able to vote for their favorite candidate at Lifetimetv.com beginning Sept. 15. The voting will continue through Oct. 1.

Olesh said if she wins, she will bring her husband with her to New York. Either way, she said, she has enjoyed the experience.

“It’s exciting just to be in the top 10,” Olesh said, “but we could definitely stand three days away.”

Contact fashion reporter Samantha Rainwater at [email protected].