If someone were to hand-pick the person they wanted to become the first-ever Miss Washington from Snohomish County, they’d have a hard time finding a better representative than Tina Marie Mares.
Mares, 24, who grew up in Lynnwood, volunteered at Seattle’s Children’s Hospital and in soup kitchens. She helped organize a meal program for homeless youths.
She tutors young children in math and reading. She’s an advocate for children’s health care and plans to become an attorney specializing in family law to help children.
Even in her spare time, she’s busy. She plays the piano, has played soccer, does kickboxing and step aerobics, runs and rides a bike.
Mares was a Seattle Mariners ball girl for six years, was Miss Seafair and more recently Miss Sno-Isle.
“There isn’t an ounce of arrogance or competitiveness in her in the negative sense,” said Paula Lustbader, one of Mares’ law professors at Seattle University. “She’s very giving and cares about her fellow students.”
“I can’t say enough about her,” said Madison Batt, her former employer at a Lynnwood engineering company. “She’s just a great young lady that really wanted to learn.”
The raves go on. Is there anything wrong with her? Does she have a dark side?
“My weakness for cheesecake and Cinnabon,” Mares said with a laugh. She overcame that weakness to be crowned Miss Washington June 25 — the first from Snohomish County in the 47-year history of the contest, spokesman Nick Latham said.
“A lot of wonderful things are happening in Lynnwood, and having Tina Marie Mares represent the state in the Miss America pageant adds to the list of things of which we are proud,” said Jean Hales, president and CEO of the South Snohomish County Chamber of Commerce.
Mares was born in Seattle to John and Elizabeth Mares, and the family moved to Lynnwood when Tina Marie was about 9. Her parents instilled in her a spirit of volunteerism.
“I knew I wanted to make a difference,” she said.
Around the time she graduated from Inglemoor High School in Kenmore, she volunteered at Children’s Hospital in Seattle. For more than four years, her job was to play with kids with life-threatening illnesses, “to make the experience as positive as possible,” Mares said.
“They’re really what inspired me,” she said. “They motivated me to do what I could to help them.”
Meanwhile, Mares had fun with her stint as a Mariners ball girl. Even in that situation, she gave it all she had; she dove for a foul ball hit by Alex Rodriguez and the play was included in a highlight segment on ESPN.
Last year, she started law school. Her days were busy, consisting mostly of class, studying and the gym. “She’s a very good student,” said Lustbader, her professor.
While playing soccer in high school, “I was tough and I was fast,” she said. Mares broke the same ankle twice, in consecutive years. The hard work it took to come back from those injuries helped develop her dedication to going to the gym and staying in shape, she said. That, in turn, contributed to the flexibility she needs to do everything she does. “Time management is the key,” she said.
Mares loved volunteering so much that she was always looking for opportunities, and one of the avenues that opened up was Miss Seafair. She was crowned in 2002 and received a $5,000 scholarship.
This past February, she won the Miss Sno-Isle competition. For Miss Washington she would need a “platform,” and hers is promoting universal health care for children. She knows that standing up for government-funded health care can be an unpopular position.
“I think we owe our citizens that,” she said.
Mares performed Chopin’s “Nocturne in E Minor” on the piano in the talent competition at the Tacoma event. For winning, she will receive $12,500 in scholarships, and other prizes including jewelry, a mink jacket, hair care, speech training, an extensive wardrobe, luggage, flowers, spa services and photos.
She’s aware of the image of shallowness associated with pageants, and said it’s not accurate.
“One of my goals as Miss Washington this year is to dispel that stereotype,” she said.
Through pageants, scholarships worth thousands of dollars are awarded to young women who could not otherwise afford college, she said.
“It’s not a beauty contest, these are real women who want to make a difference, who are intelligent and generous,” she said.
Mares will take a year off from law school to fulfill her Miss Washington duties, which include promoting her platform, appearing at events around the state and competing in the Miss America pageant in January to be broadcast on CMT.
The busy schedule won’t be a problem.
“I have such as passion for what I do,” she said.
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