PAXTON, Ill. (WCIA) — The songbird from Paxton soared on ‘The Voice’ last night. Gina Miles won the singing competition bringing a sense of pride to her hometown. Her Paxton supporters say they’re still feeling the excitement from watching her take home the title.

“She just goes out there and does her thing. She does what she does best,” said Sally Ellis, Miles’ old teacher.

Gina Miles’ best was recognized on the finale of the show when she took home the top spot. The people cheering for her back home say it was only a matter of time before the world sees what she had to offer.

“When she leaked out that she would be on the voice this season I thought here we go, this is going to be it,” said Hillary Sawyer.

Miles says she’s thankful for the hometown support and it’s meant the world to her throughout the competition. Both, Sawyer and Ellis, said she had a passion for creating ways to express herself while also hiding from the spotlight.

“She was not someone who go out and couldn’t wait to share what she had created. It was something that we had to bring out her when she was younger,” said Sawyer.

Sawyer says Miles’ appearance in the show was no surprise. When others were feeling the pandemic blues, Miles was making music.

“She went out and she found her strength, found her power and she found her talent,” said Sawyer.

Now the entire country has found it as well, but the people of Paxton say her win has an even deeper meaning for their community.

“We need people like Gina because we have people like Gina. We need people like Gina to kind of step outside of our box and show everybody that it’s possible to be bigger than what you are in Paxton,” said Sawyer.

The town is talking about putting on a celebration for Miles when she comes home and cementing her accomplishment in Paxton’s history.