Young women will compete for crown, scholarships at Miss Merced County competition
The 47th annual Miss Merced County pageant is scheduled to be held on Nov. 5 at Buhach Colony High School in Atwater.
Five women will be crowned in front of a crowd of family and friends.
Three competitors will be vying for Miss Merced County, three women will be competing for Miss Merced County’s Outstanding Teen and 15 women will be trying to win titles of Miss Yosemite Valley’s Outstanding Teen, Miss Sierra Nevada, and Miss Yosemite Valley, according to the organization’s news release.
Competing for the titles this year are:
Miss Merced County’s Outstanding Teen — Madison Beach, Siya Lakireddy, Chloe Gentry
Miss Yosemite Valley’s Outstanding Teen (Open Competition) — Keira Bixler, Hasini Merla, Jennifer Pan, Delilah Sichmeller.
Miss Merced County — Ananya Veerapaneni, Bianca Trindade, Giselle Alexander
Miss Sierra Nevada and Miss Yosemite Valley (Open Competition) — Angela Adade, Danica Almanza, Cheyenne Amar, Elita Damron, Lauren Leonardo, Lena Liu, Jozalene Molina, Topanga Scherf, Raelene Sichmeller, Mackenzie Starnes
The Miss Merced County competition operates under the Miss America Organization and the five women crowned at the event will travel to Visalia in June and compete for the title of Miss California and Miss California’s Outstanding Teen 2023.
Miss Merced County’s Outstanding Teen is open to girls between the ages of 13 to 18 and Miss Merced County is open to ages 18 to 26 from residents in Merced, Stanislaus, Mariposa or Madera County.
The competition includes an interview with a panel of volunteer judges, an on-stage talent show, on-stage Q&A and red carpet/evening wear event. The teen competition also includes a lifestyle and fitness portion.
The winners earn scholarships ranging from $200 to $500 to further their academic career.
In addition to the scholarships, one lady will receive the Friendship Award which is voted on by the candidates. The winner of this scholarship will receive a $150 cash award which has been donated by the Olivarez-Kidwell family.
For more information or to secure tickets, call 209-261-9363.
