Spring Festival!!

Before being crowned, in imagining the role of Miss Moses Lake, most all of my images were of the opportunities afforded her during Moses Lake’s biggest event of the year: Spring Festival on Memorial Day Weekend.  This weekend, all of my hopes for and images of the weekend, were beyond filled.  What an absolutely blessed couple days, filled with opportunities and experiences beyond anything I could have hoped for!

Spring Festival began for me on Friday evening.  I jotted over to the Parks and Recreation office to pick up my race number and packet for Saturday morning’s fun run, and received quite the welcoming in my crown and sash.  The room stopped and excitement filled the air as they learned that I would indeed be running the race, and asked if I would be willing to wear my crown and sash during.  After agreeing and being presented my race number, I headed over to the 3 on 3 basketball tournament.  There, I cheered on a few of the local teams, spoke with a radio announcer and reporter about the Miss America Organization and my work in connecting local classrooms with the impoverished world, and painted my hand blue as part of Blue Palm’s frozen yogurt give away.

"Blue Palm"ing it up for free frozen yogurt from Moses Lake's Blue Palm!

Next up was the lip sync concert.  Moses Lake’s lip sync concert is one of the town’s biggest events of the year, and draws an audience of roughly 1,000 to watch as local groups try to out-compete one another in dancing and lip syncing to music of the 80’s and 90’s.  The groups this year were phenomenal, and in the end, a group of three high school girls were named the winners and walked away with $400.  In the process of the event, however, they called for an impromptu race for the first one to make it to the stage with a penny from 1992.  I reached into my wallet, and completely by chance, the first penny my fingers grasped was from 1992.  I handed it to the sweet, young boy in front of me (who had just won a few minutes earlier with a quarter from the 1980’s) and I told him to “RUN!!!”  A few minutes later, I was being awarded an all access pass to the carnival rides!

At the lip sync concert.

After the lip sync concert, I joined a few friends and wandered through the Spring Festival’s many fabulous food vendors and carnival rides and games, taking in the sights, sounds….and tastes!!

I love funnel cake!!!  (PROBABLY, not the best Miss Washington prep though ;). )

Saturday morning started bright and early, with an 8:10 am start to the 5K fun run.  With a lot of hairspray, bobby pins and prayer, I managed to keep the crown on top of my head with no problem, and crossed the finished line roughly half an hour later, side by side with my good friend, Tashauna.  As I crossed the finish line, it was announced over the loud speaker that the local royalty had just finished, and I had a great time smiling an exhausted smile in response, and explained that I was there to support health and fitness in the community.

After the Spring Festival 5K Fun Run!  Thank you to my running buddy, Tashauna!!

After cheering on the remaining finishers through the finish line, I rushed home to freshen up, and returned back downtown to the Miss Moses Lake food booth.  There, waiting for me, were several of my gorgeous “Little Sisters” (part of the Miss Moses Lake mentoring program) with adoring smiles, their families, and two of the ladies I had competed with for the Miss Moses Lake title: Shaudai and Angie.  The support of all of these individuals means so much to me, but more than anything, I cannot explain the gratitude and emotion I feel behind the continued support of Shaudai and Angie.  It would be incredibly difficult to watch the person you competed against walk around with the crown and sash, smiling and signing autographs, and these two ladies’ graciousness, generosity of time, and expressed love and encouragement, means more than words can say.

The next several hours were filled with acting as a trophy girl for the car show, presenting medals for the 3 on 3 basketball tournament, signing autographs, posing for pictures, interviewing with radio announcers and giving hugs to children.  It is amazing how much it can mean to young children for me to simply show up to their band concert in the park, and afterwards give a few words of encouragement for their pursuit of music.  I am so very blessed to be in the position of providing such inspiration, and I only pray I can provide nothing but positive encouragement.

Trophy Girl at the Car Show.

With two of the Little Sisters and speaking with announcer Donny Parker.

A hug just because!

Handing out gold medals for the 3 on 3 basketball tournament.

Finally, it was time to go get ready for my single biggest presentation to my hometown community: the Moonlight Parade.  A quick change, make-up application and hair-fixing later, I was back downtown for the royalty barbecue where I met nearly 100 royalty from all over the state.  As Miss Moses Lake, I felt the overwhelming pride of “this is my town and my time to shine!”  After meeting up again with the Little Sisters on their float, and greeting the driver of my convertible, at 9 pm we were finally rolling into the parade.  And for the next hour I was on Cloud 9 as I sat atop the incredible 1928 convertible, my precious 4 year old “Little Sister” next to me, and did the “elbow, elbow, wrist, wrist”. 

With the Miss Moses Lake Little Sisters

With Mrs. Washington in front of my 1928 convertible for the evening.

The streets lined with a couple thousand individuals, on multiple corners I received standing ovations, hundreds of times I heard “Look!!  There’s Miss Moses Lake!!!!”, and several dozen times I overheard “Wow!  She’s gorgeous!!”  Not a single rude gesture was made or word heard, and the overall reception and feeling was one beyond description.  Thank you, Moses Lake, for your humbling acceptance of me as your representative!

With my escort and Little Sister atop our carriage!

Through all of this activity, was the amazing support of so many individuals.  A huge thank you goes to Miss Moses Lake volunteers Eloisa and Lydia, for their many, many hours put into making this weekend’s activities possible.  A huge thank you to Jessica Mata for the sharing of her daughter, my own personal “Little Sister” Bella, with me.  And more gratitude than can be expressed to my dear friend, Tashauna, for her patience and graciousness in spending the weekend with me as my friend, personal assistant and body guard.  Tashauana, no-one could have better kept me safe, sane and smiling.  I love you lady!

I am now headed to the west side of the state to cheer on two of Moses Lake’s star young ladies, Miss Moses Lake’s Outstanding Teen, Erin Carter, and Miss Columbia Basin’s Outstanding Teen, McKenna Reis, as they compete for the title of Miss Washington’s Outstanding Teen!