A Pageant Contestant With Sense! (And Sensibility)

(I couldn't resist that literary reference...)

Via the Modestly Yours blog, we read that not all beauty pageant contestants are wanting to flaunt the silicone - or bellybuttons, for that matter. Miss America competitor Katie Millar - Miss Utah - took advantage of her moment in the national spotlight to highlight the virtues of modesty despite the number of people telling her that being modest would hold her back in the competition, which she'd entered in the hopes of winning a college scholarship.

In the swimsuit competition she was the only girl to wear a conservative one-piece bathing suit.

“There were 76 options of two piece and about 6 options of the one piece,” says Katie.

Katie was hoping to make a statement about modesty.

“There were a lot of people who said, ‘if you wear this you won’t do well,’” recalls Katie. “People don’t appreciate traditional standards. They don’t appreciate modesty.”

She chose an evening gown with sleeves, a high back, a modest neckline and a slit that came just to her knee.

But it didn’t keep her out of the top ten.

...And Katie took that opportunity to make her statement.

“When I did make the top ten,” said Katie, “the first thing that went through my mind was, ‘I get to wear my one piece swimsuit on national TV and hopefully a girl will see that she doesn’t have to show a lot of skin to get attention or do well in society today.’”

In another interview (including pictures of Katie at the Miss America competition), she said her mission as Miss Utah is to encourage girls that they can "be successful without compromising your values":

"My message as Miss Utah expands beyond just the pageant world," Katie said. "I hope that I am an example to all young women that you can uphold traditional values and be successful at the same time."

While some criticized and others questioned her wardrobe choices, Katie has also received a lot of appreciative comments from contestants and viewers alike. Now that the pageants are over, Katie swears she'll never rat her hair again.

An encouraging story, especially from the world of pageantry (I'm not a big fan, especially after ending up in the same hotel as a JonBenet-style child pageant while traveling to a bridal shower last spring). Katie has won $21,000 in scholarship money through the pageants, and plans to earn her neuropsychological PhD at Brigham Young University next year. Congratulations, Katie, and thanks for boldly standing up for class and feminine dignity - and showing a woman can still be gorgeous without baring nearly all.