Copperas Cove Miss Five Hills Scholarship Pageant 2020 royalty named, crowning set for Saturday

By LYNETTE SOWELL

Cove Leader-Press

After a virtual pageant on Saturday evening, the titleholders for the 7th annual Copperas Cove Miss Five Hills Scholarship Pageant have been announced.  

The 2020 royalty and their platforms of service are as follows:

Baby Miss Five Hills – Ariana Benton – providing for hospitalized children

Baby Mister Five Hills – Nakoa Ramirez – meeting the needs of the elderly

Tiny Miss Five Hills – Elliana Alise Bardo – Keep Copperas Cove Beautiful

Tiny Mister Five Hills – Dominic Pollastro – Supporting the Copperas Cove community

Miniature Miss Five Hills – Joslynn Kaylene Coombs – Bling for Bravery (children with cancer)

Miniature Mister Five Hills – Christian Aquino – supporting the Copperas Cove Community

Little Miss Five Hills – Alaya Pringle – Elimination of Hunger

Little Mister Five Hills – Jordan Hendrix, Jr. – Cards Across the Ocean (deployed soldiers)

Junior Miss Five Hills —Kadence Coombs – Weekend Backpack Program (student hunger)

Junior Mister Five Hills – Trace Hensley – Supporting hospitalized patients and veterans

Pre-Teen Miss Five Hills – Romella Spitzer – Autism Awareness

Young Miss Five Hills – Elise Fuselier – The Effect of Poverty on Children

Teen Miss Five Hills – Parker Alexis Reed – Music Education in Schools

Miss Five Hills – Jasmine Hendricks – Keep Copperas Cove Beautiful/Recycling

Ms. Five Hills —Sandie Johnson – It’s All About You (female youth mentorship)

Senior Ms. Five Hills —Dawn Hale – Staying Busy—Finding Peace (elderly assistance)

The pageant announced winners on its social media platforms throughout the day on Sunday, but there are still two winners yet to be announced.

The Five Hills Ambassador and the Five Hills Junior Ambassador will be announced and crowned on Saturday, when the new royalty are crowned. The two are current titleholders and will have the opportunity to continue their platforms until the 2021 pageant next spring.

When given the choice between a virtual pageant and postponing the event until August, more than half of the contestants voted to hold a virtual pageant, said Wendy Sledd, pageant coordinator.

This year’s trio of judges included USA Petite Miss Natalie DeMarino, Miss Texas International Brianna Daughtry of Portland, Texas; and Miss Austin Juneteenth Kennede' Wallace.

For the younger contestants up to age eight, criteria included beauty (physical beauty, eyes, smile, hair, grooming), attire, essay (reason for entering pageant, purpose), plans for the year (development, intention, measurable, appropriate), and overall impression, up to a score of 100. Prior to Saturday’s pageant, contestants submitted a full-length photo in their pageant attire that was included in the judging process. The judges also scored essays from parents of contestants ages 0-8 years old on why they entered their children in the pageant and how they will make the most of their year-long reigns if selected to represent the city.

For the older contestants ages nine to 50-plus, the criteria for beauty, dress, overall impression were the same, and also included projection (confidence, eye contact, radiance, smile) and platform (development, intention, measurable, appropriate).

On Saturday evening, the contestants ages nine to 50-plus years were interviewed online by the judging panel via ZOOM, one at a time. For each category, the current titleholder introduced the contestant. The contestant would then have the opportunity to share the platform of service to which they plan to dedicate the next year. After that, the contestant answered two questions via a random draw from a bowl by the titleholder.

Along with the titles come more than $85,000 in prizes and scholarships, along with educational savings bonds for the younger titleholders and cash scholarships for the older titleholders. 

This year’s virtual pageant saw 55 registered contestants participating. The date for the pageant had been March 21, but the pageant was postponed due to COVID-19 and state requirements to not gather in large groups.