My Competition Week & Crowning Moment

I just returned home from Jacksonville and wanted to jot my experience down so that I could share it with everyone. Going in to competition week, I had no idea what to expect. After all, this was my second Mrs. pageant. The first being Mrs. Texas International. I had heard so much from so many people and I was nervous, yet excited to experience it all firsthand.

I arrived at the beautiful Omni Jacksonville on Sunday afternoon with my mom, brother and yes, three children in tow. The last three little people were a last minute decision. I’m so blessed that I have a supportive family that was able to take off of work to watch them during our busy week. I knew it was going to be tough having my three babies, 3 and under there, but I also wanted a real sense of home with me and to remind me of my ultimate purpose. Needless to say, they had a blast and after 2 weeks of being at the Omni everyone knew who they were.

Our week was jammed packed beginning with orientation on Monday evening. I knew it was going to be a special week when Mrs. Mary Richardson opened us in prayer. It was so much fun getting to know the other contestants, especially during our outing day on Tuesday. We took a historic trolly ride all over downtown St. Augustine and visited the Fountain of Youth, and were even able to taste the water (I was hoping to buy a few gallons of it). Afterwards, we had lunch on the bus while driving to the outlets for shopping and signing autographs. Our next destination was my favorite, taking a very exclusive, behind the scenes tour of the Jacksonville Jaguar stadium!

It was very apparent that Jacksonville and St. Augustine were very happy to have the International Pageant system in their backyard.

Wednesday, was the start of our theater rehearsals. The Matt Davenport Productions staff was amazing! They were all so much fun and very encouraging each day, which made the day fly by. Wednesday night, however, I was a nervous wreck because interviews were the next morning. Mrs. Hawaii International and Mrs. California International, thank you for walking around the interview room with me while praying. My nerves were gone when I walked out of the room that night. These two girls are just a small example of the kind of positive energy we had all week! A week I will truly never forget, not because of the outcome, but because of the sisterhood we all shared.

My husband joined us Wednesday night and from that point on the rest of the week flew by. The preliminary competition was so much fun. When Saturday night finally arrived and we were all waiting for the Top 16 to be announced I had a sense of peace come over me. I knew I had given the week all that I had. I wasn’t physically or emotionally tired because I had stayed true to myself the entire time and I believe that that was key. I hadn’t pretended to be someone that I truly wasn’t in hopes of capturing a new title because as Mr. Eddie Peterson said, “you all have a title and a crown already. We would ALL still be going home with one.”

When I was announced as the photogenic award winner, I was over the moon excited and shocked! I had never won that award before. Once the Top 16 was announced it was a whirlwind to the finish line. Mrs. South Carolina International, thank you for making me put down my study binder and praying over me for our on stage question. Fitness and evening gown competition was over before I knew it. I was so glad to have my husband back stage with me to keep me from over analyzing everything. He told me he couldn’t tell how I did anyway because he didn’t have his glasses on. The joys of getting old! ha!

Unfortunately, the crowning moment was all a blur to me. I remember hearing 4th place, 3rd place, 2nd place and first place and being so excited for each of them while still being so proud of every girl that was on stage that night. I remember looking down at my hands and arms and seeing them shaking after my name was called. Then seeing the gorgeous Maggi Thorne in her stunning red dress walking towards me followed by my husband who was holding flowers. I heard later that Justin had a very difficult time crowning me and Maggi told him just to smile, which sounds completely right!

Being blessed with the title of Mrs. International 2015 wasn’t something that I did on my own. It was God’s destiny for me on that particular night. Your destiny didn’t stop on July 25, 2015. Yours is still out there, you just need to keep looking for it.

Until the mission is complete,

Farabe’ Algor
Mrs. International 2015