LYNNWOOD — After Lynnwood resident Hollie De Lisle won Miss Congeniality and was the winner of the talent competition in the Miss Seafair Pageant July 22, she thought she had a chance at the top title, but said she was still shocked when they actually announced her name as Miss Seafair 2003.
“I was so excited I thought I had a good chance of winning— but I wasn’t sure that I would— it was a surprise and I was very excited,” said De Lisle, who isn’t a veteran of pageants.
“I have three brothers, I’ve grown up doing sports and fishing and stuff, she said, and pageants weren’t on the top of her list.
But De Lisle, 20, a 2001 grad from Meadowdale High School, thought she’d give it a try since she needed the money to continue her education in television and radio broadcasting. She has just finished two years at Edmonds Community College and will be transferring to Lee University in Cleveland, Tenn. in the fall, she said.
It all started at the Miss Sno-King pageant in January which is within the Miss America system. De Lisle was crowned Miss Sno-King Seafair there and was then invited to vie for the top spot of Miss Seafair.
Along with her title as Miss Seafair and receiving $5,000, she was also awarded $300 (sponsored by the Seafair princess drivers) for her win as Miss Congeniality and $500 (sponsored by the Seafair Commodores) for her win for the top talent. She sang “On My Own” from Les Miserables.
Along with a talent contest, the 21 contestants also had to go through a number of on and off stage interviews and evening and professional wear exhibitions.
One of the things they asked her to do, she said, was a 10-second spot promoting the Seafair event. This wasn’t so difficult for De Lisle because of her experience working for Spirit 105.3 FM as a disc jockey/announcer on the weekends.
Since her crowning, De Lisle said she has enjoyed all of the “celebrity” attention at the Southwest Airlines Torch Light Parade and many other Seafair festivities she has attended in the past week. She looks forward to her last event of the summer, the General Motors Cup hydroplane races and Blue Angels show.
“I have been having so much fun with people thinking of me as a celebrity, pictures with the kids is so fun— I’m just a college kid but it’s nice to be a role model,” she said.
De Lisle is the daughter of Kim and Robert De Lisle of Lynnwood.
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