One wouldn't expect a former Miss Wisconsin to spend her free time taking quilting lessons. Then again, one wouldn't expect this "star" of Milwaukee's most watched morning television news show, the FOX 6 Wake Up News, to be so down-to-earth and just darn nice.

FOX 6's Nicole Locy is, to put it in a very clichéd way, more than just another pretty face. Sure, she is one of the rising stars in local TV news. She's also good looking, charming and intelligent. But she will be the first to tell you that while she's made some great choices in her young life, she's also faced some challenges. But through it all her faith has led her in the right direction. If you ask us, that's a pretty refreshing and somewhat inspirational message in these crazy days.

Speaking of crazy times, Nicole is pretty busy these days. She's getting married on August 19 (sorry, guys!). But whether you are a guy or a girl, you will love the story of how she met her future husband. Her story helps us to realize that things do truly happen to us for a reason.

Nicole is working more than ever today, too, early mornings and late nights, bringing you the news, traffic and witty conversation with Scott Steele and everyone's favorite TV dog, Spunky.

Despite her long hours, wedding planning and those quilting lessons, Nicole Locy took some time recently to chat with us. We think you'll like what she had to say. You'll learn that she's a sports fan, she's thrilled to be working in Milwaukee, she's a big country music fan, and bottom line, you'll learn that Nicole is just a nice person. Please read on for this OnMilwaukee.com Milwaukee Talks exclusive with Fox 6 reporter Nicole Locy.

OMC: So, tell us the Nicole Locy story. Where did you grow up? How did you get to Milwaukee?

Nicole Locy: I grew up in a little town called Reedsburg, near Wisconsin Dells. I lived there from the time I was three until eighth grade. Then I moved to Appleton with my dad (my parents were divorced when I was in third grade), so I was pretty much raised by a single father.

I lived in Appleton (went to Appleton West High School) until I went to Madison for college.

OMC: So you are a Badger? Tell us about your days at UW.

NL: I went to Madison for four years. I spent one year living in France, studying abroad during my Junior year -- that was very cool. Actually, I don't recall ever studying!

I graduated from UW in May of 1997 and became Miss Wisconsin in June 1997

OMC: What did your Miss Wisconsin duties include?

NL: I spent five days a week travelling around the state talking to kids in schools, and then two days a week (the weekends) doing other Miss Wisconsin events. The Miss Wisconsin crown is a scholarship program and part of the Miss America affiliation.

When I won Miss Wisconsin, I said that I wanted to talk about divorce and work with kids, parents and school districts to find things they all could do to make the adjustment easier for kids. But, once I did a little more research and found out that "only" 50 percent of the kids in schools came from divorced families, I realized that I would only hit half of the kids with my message. So, instead I switched my topic to crisis management and talked to kids about moving, divorce, death, anything that happens to a kid that is a crisis. So, I talked to kids about how you overcome those situations.

My main message was that you can't ever change where you come from, you can't even change what you have been through but from here on out - your life is your decision. Make your life what you want it to be!