2011 Ms. Senior Arizona Pageant

The 22nd Annual Ms. Senior Arizona Pageant was held last night. There were 15 contestants, ranging in age from 62 to 83 (you must be at least 60 years old to enter), each of whom had to give an opening inspirational speech and perform in the talent section of the competition. The five semi-finalists also had to answer an impromptu question in the final phase of the competition. . The winner was Myrna Foster, who thoroughly deserved first place; although in something like this, there are no losers. Last year's winner, Dr. Madeleine Paschal, can be seen in the pink dress in photo above, and she finished First Runner-Up in the national competition. . It seems to me that in a pageant like this, the competitiveness is downplayed, with all of the ladies encouraging and pulling for each other. They seemed to be enjoying simply the accomplishment of being in front of an audience and epitomizing beauty, grace, and elegance. Congratulations, not only to Myrna, but to each of the other entrants as well. . This was the second year we attended this affair. It was, as always, superbly staged by Jasel's mom, Marilyn Joyce. Liz and I had a ball. . This was also the first time I got to use my new, "Canon Rebel"camera, with its telephoto lens and its uber-powerful flash, in a big, indoor auditorium. We had fantastic seats, and the flash and telephoto really made a difference from last year, when I only had my dinky digital camera. I took 153 pics, over the course of about 2½ hours, and which, I discovered, almost completely drained the two AAA batteries in the flash. . We will almost certainly be making this an annual event. Anyone who wants to go with us to the 2012 pageant is more than welcome.

The Age of Elegance

We went to the 21st Annual Ms. Senior Arizona Pageant last night. There were 17 contestants, all of which were at least 60 years old. The catchphrase this year was "The Age of Elegance", which really does sum up what the pageant was all about. . We had excellent seats, right at the end of the promenade. So I was able to get some decent shots with my digital. The contest was divided into three parts - a.) A quick, prepared inspirational speech and a walk down the promenade by each contestant. b.) The talent show (lots of singing), after which the field was narrowed down to the five semi-finalists. c.) An impromptu interview question, followed by the final vote. . This is Ms. Senior Arizona 2009 taking her final walk. Since I didn't attend this even last ywar, I can't tell you anything about her. She did give a truly moving speech after her walk. .

And this is the newly-crowned Ms. Senior Arizona 2010, Maddy Paschal. Liz had worked with her helping to set up the (previously-posted about) 6th Annual Cameo Ball, and said she is just the sweetest person in real life. Congratulations, Maddy!

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After the pageant was done, anyone and everyone could go up onstage to congratulate and chat with the contestants.. Which allowed me to snap this pic of the five semi-finalists.

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All in all, it was a cool event. There were some truly inspiring contestants, including one lady who is dealing with Parkinson's and has to walk with a cane, but who nevertheless did a great big-band song-&-dance number in the talent competition. Another lady's talent was a clown routine, which was very good. The oldest contestant was 82 years old, which is fantastic in itself.

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The whole pageant went off without a hitch, thanks in no small part to the efforts Jasel's mom, Marilyn. She also organized the Cameo Ball, and that went smoothly as well. It's funny. You never appreciate the work that goes into events such as these, because everything just runs perfectly. You only notice the poorly-organized ones when things go awry.

Grandma Pageant

We're off to see the Arizona Senior Beauty Pageant tonight. Grandmas in sashes and tiaras and all that. Evening gown and talent competition, but no bathing suits. Which is probably just as well. I'll have a better report on it tomorrow. . And no, the above pic has no tie-in to the post. I don't have any pageant-related pix in my jpeg folder, so this one will have to do. Lord knows when I'd ever have a topic to use it with anyway.