The Miss Downey Pageant has been the start of a lifelong journey for a group of talented young ladies to become the next generation of great leaders in society for over 60 years.
Although pageants were once considered a beauty contest, pageants have long evolved. Inner beauty and talent have been a big part of pageants since the mid-1930s across the nation. In 1945, The Miss America Pageant began providing scholarships and to this day it’s known as “the world’s largest provider of scholarships for women.” The Miss Downey Pageant has not fallen behind.
The journey begins long before pageant day. Some candidates spend years refining their leadership skills on their path to the Miss Downey title. To be crowned Miss Downey along with her respected court, each candidate must show exceptional leadership and passion towards the community.
On September 28, The Downey Rose Float Association will host the 65th Annual Miss Downey Pageant. For the last few months, the 2020 candidates have been working hard learning what it means to be a Miss Downey Queen and Princess. The upcoming court has large shoes to fill, like they do every year.
For many of these young ladies, the Miss Downey Pageant will be their first pageant. Interviewing the current Miss Downey, we learned a lot about what it means to be Miss Downey and the work associated with it.
Asking Miss Downey Mariah Lora what Miss Downey means to her, she mentioned, “Being Miss Downey, to me, means embracing your authentic self, loving your uniqueness, and most importantly breaking the stereotype of ‘pageant girl.’”
She added, “pageants are more than makeup, hair, gowns, and the way one walks the stage. I quickly found out after a few pageant practices that this negative connotation people tie to pageants is completely inaccurate. The girls competing are making positive impacts all throughout their community, noticed or unnoticed. These young ladies are aspiring doctors, teachers, lawyers, engineers, entrepreneurs, community activists, and more.”
The 2018-2019 Miss Downey Pageant was Lora’s first pageant. Prior to her time as Queen she served as ASB President and helped lead her Basketball team at Warren High to the CIF Playoffs, but being Queen did not put a damper on her Basketball career, she continues to compete in Basketball with her college team.
Leadership is a big part of being part of the Miss Downey Court. Throughout the year, these young ladies participated in many community events. Events include helping decorate the Downey Rose Float, book readings for kids, paper crane folding to spread hope across the community and help support the theme of this year’s Downey Rose Float, “On The Wings of Hope,” and most recently, Princess for a Day, an event where The Downey Court invited young girls to participate in crafts, princess story time and pictures with the Downey Court.
As a contestant, Lora wanted to “inspire and empower young girls to passionately follow their heart and dreams.” As her term as Miss Downey comes to an end in a few weeks, she hopes to pass on some words of encouragement. “You are all so beautiful both inside and out. Do not be afraid to say hello to others at your many events. Use this year to network. You will meet so many amazing people this year! It is amazing and can open many doors for you in the future. Most importantly, enjoy every single moment! Time flies when you are having fun!”
To support the upcoming court and the Downey Rose Float Association, tickets for the 2020 Pageant can be purchased from the Downey Theater Page here.