Six young women will compete Saturday for the title of Greenwood’s Miss Hospitality.
The pageant, sponsored by the Greenwood Convention and Visitors Bureau, will be held at 7 p.m. at the Leflore County Civic Center.
“I think we have a good group, and they are all going to bring their A-game. It is going to be nice to watch,” said Evonna Lucas, sales and marketing coordinator of the CVB. “I am eager to see who wins.”
The Miss Hospitality Pageant is a statewide program that honors young women between the ages of 18 to 24 and uses them to promote Mississippi’s tourism, industry and economic development by serving as goodwill ambassadors.
“Miss Hospitality represents Greenwood in a positive light,” said Lucas. “She has to be poised, well-rounded and encourage tourism in this area.”
The theme of the pageant is “Delta Belle Royale.” It will feature a commercial competition, in which the contestants will promote Greenwood and tourism; an evening gown competition; and an on-stage interview.
The judges will look for not only the most poised contestant but also the one who is a good public speaker and has extensive knowledge of Greenwood and of the city’s assets that would attract tourists.
Judging the competition are Kelli Cotton, Cleveland tourism manager; Katie Kaiser, Oxford visitor services coordinator and a former Miss Hospitality; and Miss MVSU, Maritza Johnson.
The winner of the competition will receive a scholarship and represent Greenwood in the Mississippi Miss Hospitality Pageant, which will be held July 20-26 in Hattiesburg.
“This is a good program. They get to learn a lot, travel a lot and receive scholarship money,” said Lucas. “It’s a great opportunity, and I want young ladies in our area to seize that.”
The contestants consist of three seniors from Greenwood High School, Erin Peery, Destiny Crockett and Shandreaka Taylor; and three from Pillow Academy, Anne Claire Dunn, Kaela Lakeland Taylor and Alexis Goetzinger. The current Miss Hospitality, who will hand over her title Saturday, is Meri Del Jones, a Pillow Academy graduate and freshman at Delta State University.
“The Miss Hospitality program is an amazing organization. It’s a great way for young ladies to improve their public speaking skills,” said Paige Hunt, executive director of the CVB. “We have a wonderful group of girls who are competing in this year’s Miss Hospitality of Greenwood. And I know whichever young lady wins will do Greenwood proud in July.”
• Contact Ruthie Robison at 581-7233 or rrobison@gwcommonwealth.com.
