Judging the Mrs., Miss, and Miss Preteen Virginia International 2011 Pageant
Meanwhile, my own Mom judged the Miss and Mrs. Divisions, along with an accomplished panel including Jason Devine (Mr. International 2010 aka Shannon Devine's husband!), Tina Montgomery (Miss VA International 2008 and top ten finalist for Miss International 2008), Joe Battiston (President & CEO of Tubular Fabricators Industry, Inc., and Historic Petersburg, VA., Board of Directors member), and last, but far from least, Gail Mates. Gail was selected out of thousands of women to be the National Spokesperson for the AHA's Go Red for Women campaign. She is a motivational speaker who has changed her life by slowly adding healthier diet choices and exercise to her daily routine – losing over fifty pounds in the process! Gail and I instantly bonded as we both made the conscious decision to change our lifestyles in many of the same ways, and we both share those changes with others.
As always, DeShawn Shepard, her husband, Marcellus, and all of her pageant staff put on a fabulous production! The evening was opened by a flawless rendition of the National Anthem by Tamika Mills (Miss VA Intl 2010), and included Marcellus – a radio personality with a “radio voice” to match – as the master of ceremonies, moving farewell speeches from the 2010 titleholders (Heather Thompson- Mrs., Tamika Mills- Miss, and Kailee Horvath- Preteen), and professional dancers to keep everyone in an upbeat mood – coupled with “old school Mo-town” classic pop music to keep audience members of all ages entertained!
The competition was fierce and judging was such a tough job – I honestly couldn't have picked one preteen winner on my own – they all did an awesome job! The preteens were all confident, poised, and stylish, especially considering how young they were! In the end, Tribly Brown was the preteen first runner up and Jessica Riker took home the Miss Preteen VA International 2011 title!
The direction for the preteen's gowns was simple: "a dress that made the girl feel like a princess". Though all of the gowns fit that description to a "T", I do have to say that I loved Jessica's yellow gown. It made her look like "Belle" from Beauty and the Beast – my absolute favorite movie since before I can even remember. After all, what girl, at some point, hasn't dreamt that someday life might transform her into a princess by surprise? You can never go wrong with a Disney classic!
With the difficulty I faced choosing a preteen winner, I'm sure the Miss and Mrs. judges had an even harder decision to make. With four Miss contestants and nine Mrs. contestants, all of whom were poised, articulate, confident, beautiful, and dedicated to their platform and the International system, it was an extremely intense competition. You could practically cut the tension with a butter knife as the evening wound down toward the moments when the winners were announced!
Deshauna Barber, of Woodbridge, VA, took home the Miss VA International crown. She is a student and a member of the US Army Reserve – appropriately; her platform is "support our troops!" Last year, I attended the VA International pageant where Deshauna was first runner up for the Miss title. I'm not sure whether it was her unbeatable physical fitness, confidence on stage, or heartfelt on stage interview, but I told her that she definitely needed to return to the International stage, so I am glad that she did – and I'm sure she is too!
Rebecca Crosen, of Piedmont, VA, captured the Mrs. VA International crown! Rebecca not only has warm stage presence and an infectious smile, but she also has an inspiring story of perseverance, service, and dedication. Also the community service award winner of the pageant, Rebecca has transformed her own struggle with anemia into motivation for her initiative to educate and encourage others about blood donation in partnership with It's Hip to Give and the American Red Cross. She has been working with her platform and the International system for years and it's great to see yet another example of the benefits of perseverance!
The International System has many aspects that make it the wonderful organization that it is. One of these aspects that you won't find in many other systems is the room for personal growth and perseverance that International offers by allowing previous contestants to return and compete again. I believe that the core of pageantry is self- growth, I have learned so much about who I am and who I want to be through pageantry that I could not imagine having the opportunity to explore otherwise.
Remember, there is no such thing as "losing" – there are only lessons – and never let anyone or anything stop you from pursuing your dreams.
Juliana McKee
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