Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Every Ending is Someone Else's New Beginning

The Queen's Final Tea with the outgoing 2012 crew...
This past weekend I traveled to Portsmouth for a bittersweet but happy moment...I went to the VA State East Coast USA finals to crown my successor as my reign is over and another young lady's about to begin. I had planned to go down for the day to help out and crown when I received a call the night before that a judge had gotten ill with the flu and asking if I wouldn't mind filling in to judge the pageant?

Of course I said yes, knowing how much hard work these ladies put into winning these events and it was a wonderful pageant. We saw gorgeous girls from as young as 5 months up to age 22...I'll admit I was a *little* disappointed that there weren't any "over 40" gals like myself this time around but the quality of the competition was fabulous nonetheless! Shows like Toddlers & Tiaras really don't do justice to the fantastic systems like ECUSA that encourage every girl to be their best and reward BOTH participation AND success onstage. I think you need both to help the contestants grow...participation awards reward the courage it takes just to even get on stage for some newer contestants, and the higher titles and crowns encourage ongoing improvement. It really is a win-win situation for those competing.

Here are a few photos, one was with Mr. Tim our emcee (The Voice of Pageants!) who had been helping me with tips to improve my performance as a pageant & event hostess and the other was a group shot where one of the moms caught me trying to get everyone organized for the group shot! Think of "cat herding" with the little ones and the bright lights and you get the picture LOL!

Congrats to all the winners this weekend and esp to Summer Fant, who I crowned as my successor for the Pro Supreme title for Virginia! I hope she has a wonderful year!
With Mr. Tim Whitmer, the "Voice of Pageants" after a long day working together!

Catching our last little lady before she runs off for the final photo! We managed to get a great group shot though :)