Miss Idaho’s Outstanding Teen 2013

This weekend I got to spend the weekend with 36 BEAUTIFUL women. All wearing a crown. 17 teens and 19 miss. It was my first official outing as a member of the Miss Idaho board. In the morning we had orientation and then that night we had the Miss Idaho’s Outstanding Teen pageant. I’ll admit… I felt super weird. For the first time in four years, I was there without a crown. I was probably really awkward around the contestants because a lot of them are friends and girls I competed with in my four years, and now that I am not a titleholder… I didn’t know how to act!

First a morning at orientation. It was so fun to spend the day with women that I have admired since I started competing. The Miss Idaho board is full of spectacular men and women. I am so honored to be a part of it. Even if I feel like a child around them. Best part? My Mom is on the board as well, so I had an extra excuse to spend the day with her! And my Dad was even there volunteering this weekend. He helps with the financials. It was a quick day from 10-2 with presentations from Miss Idaho paperwork and production to ad sales and scholarship opportunities. Then a quick meeting with local directors so I could talk about social media.

After that I ran to Target to do some Easter shopping with my mom, tried to catch a quick cat nap (getting up at 5 AM does not agree with my body), ate some pizza and got read for the teen pageant. It was so fun to be there watching all these young women. All very accomplished. All very impressive. It is amazing to see how this program transforms these teenage girls into classy and confident individuals. I had my winner picked from the very beginning. All the girls were darling, but little Miss Abby won my heart over last year as she was one of my sister titleholders. I am so glad I got to be with Abby at the very start of her pageant career, her future is so bright! Last year she was one of the younger contestants and placed in top ten. I was so impressed with her, and so after the pageant I told her, “Promise me you won’t give up! You were incredible tonight and you can only improve.” In November she came over to have me mock interview her to prepare for her next local, which she ended up winning. I was so happy to see her competing again. And guess what? SHE WON!

I love being a part of this pageant world. I loved competing (maybe a Mrs. pageant in my future?) and I know I will love volunteering. These women are beyond impressive. Performing talents, promoting platforms, public speaking, all while staying healthy and attending school. The scholarship opportunities are ENDLESS. And they are all working towards something greater than perfect hair. I love the Miss America Organization and all it stands for. There are so many role models in the organization, so many women working to better their community. Do you have any organizations you are passionate about? Where have you found your role models?

Love,
Deidre