It was much more than beauty, fashion and show at the 2015 Miss Lakeside Scholarship Pageant, now celebrating its 53rd year with a Roaring 20s theme. With three panels of judges and nine weeks of preparation, in the end, only one can carry the title of Miss Lakeside, Teen Miss Lakeside and Pre Teen Miss Lakeside 2015.
It was much more than beauty, fashion and show at the 2015 Miss Lakeside Scholarship Pageant, now celebrating its 53rd year with a Roaring 20s theme. With three panels of judges and nine weeks of preparation, in the end, only one can carry the title of Miss Lakeside, Teen Miss Lakeside and Pre Teen Miss Lakeside 2015.
Much goes into choosing the next youth ambassadors. Grades, community service, finding sponsors, learning all the stages of employment applications, personal interviews, and public speaking are a few of the criteria judges have to consider in continuing a 53 year legacy.
Pageant Executive Director Jill Fleming said the pageant itself is the “fun night” for all the girls that participated and the accumulation of many hours of hard work. Much goes into consideration in selecting the youth ambassadors, whom all volunteer hundreds of hours each year representing Lakeside throughout the county and beyond.
But in the end, Rebecca Sullivan earned the crown as Miss Lakeside 2015, Kassidy Haugum-Diego as Teen Miss Lakeside 2015, and MaKenna Hyland as Pre Teen Miss Lakeside 2015.
And the competition was tough. With 19 contestants in the three categories, the judges had their work cut out for them. After an impressive Roaring 20s opening performance, during the casual wear competition, all contestants gave a tidbit of Lakeside’s history. In the formal wear competition the Miss and Teen Miss contestants answered impromptu questions.
Fleming said that crown always comes with a price.
“It’s a working crown,” she said. “Our 2014 pageant ambassadors raised more than $54,000 for local charities this year.”
As much as Fleming said she was excited in working with the new pageant winners and their court of princesses, she said it was a very sentimental farewell to the young women that she worked with all year.
And it was a bittersweet moment as Miss Lakeside 2014 Celeste Frandsen, Teen Miss Lakeside 2014 Destiny Wisely, and Pre Teen Jr. Miss Lakeside 2014 Trinity Stewart said their farewells. But the excitement of crowning the 2015 winners overcame any tears of sadness and were replaced with tears of joy.
