Lorien Smith will represent Whitman County in the Mrs. Washington Pageant as Mrs. Colfax. The pageant will be held in person again this year after a successful and socially distanced in-person experience last year. 

There are three different competitions, according to the Mrs. Washington Pageant website. Smith will be competing in the Mrs. Washington America Pageant. The winner of the Mrs. Washington Pageant will be crowned as Mrs. Washington America and go on to compete for Mrs. America. The winner of Mrs. America will be eligible to compete for Mrs. World.

There are three categories in the state pageant: judge interview, physical fitness and evening gown. Smith said 50 percent of the scores are based on the judge interview, 25 percent is based on physical fitness and the last 25 percent is based on the evening gown. 

Smith said volunteering in the community is necessary to prepare for the event.

“Before I decided to join the pageant, I went back to school at Inland Northwest Health Services last fall to get my EMT license,” she said.

Smith volunteers at the Colfax Fire Department as an EMT. She said she completes a 12-hour shift once a week. 

The pandemic has definitely made the pageant process interesting, she said. 

“At some point we have to find sponsors, and I know that’s really hard because a lot of local businesses have been hit hard by this, so they don’t necessarily have that money to be a sponsor,” Smith said. 

Different workshops have been held on Zoom to help with pageant preparation, she said.

“Once we do anything in person there’s masks, the social distancing and all the protocols we have to follow,” she said.

Because of the pandemic, there are things Smith said she misses in her life. 

“I homeschooled my kids before COVID-19, so that wasn’t a change for us,” she said. “Homeschooling is not the same as quarantine schooling.”

Pamela Curnel has been the executive Washington state director of the Mrs. Washington Pageant for the last 29 years since she won Mrs. Washington in 1993. 

Curnel said she held an in-person pageant last year during the pandemic, but she followed all the safety regulations. The Mrs. Washington Pageant was one of the few pageants held in person last year.

“The winner went up and grabbed their own sash and crown,” she said. “They each said it was one of the most empowering moments they have had,” Curnel said. 

Smith said she is hoping to gain friendships, more self confidence and become more involved in the community.

Contestants will be from all over Washington State. The official Mrs. Washington America pageant will be Aug. 14  in Olympia, Smith said.