Most pageants will not accept delegates if they have had a child, have been divorced, or are over the age of 27 (for Miss divisions). In the spirit of "Celebrating the Essence of Today's Modern Woman," we realize life may have taken you down some of these paths and others that do not allow one to participate in other pageants with some of these arguably outdated requirements. We believe that women who are in their 30's, that are mothers, or who have been married in the past have valuable insight to offer to the modern day women that they would be speaking to and interacting with during their reign. Women with or without these experiences are equally qualified to be role models to today's women, offering valuable insight and advice from personal experience or otherwise. We want to be open to ALL women, allowing ALL women the opportunity to compete for the experience of a lifetime!!
Our goal is INCLUSION for women from all walks of life. We are open to women of all ethnic backgrounds, races, sizes, and encourage women to show off their natural curves and healthy body images. One does NOT have to be a size 0 to score well in our swimsuit competition! (although if you are and that is appropriate for you body type, that's ok too!) We want to promote a healthy body image for each delegates' respective frame, height, build and overall makeup. There is no ideal image; all women possess their own unique beauty, and that uniqueness is what the Essence Pageant System wants to highlight and showcase to the public.
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| Lauren Parkes, Executive Director www.laurenparkes.com |
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| Tamika Hall www.tamikahall.com |
