Teen winners for the 2019 Miss Texarkana Twin Rivers Competition beamed the brightest of smiles from the Pleasant Grove High School Performing Arts Center stage Saturday night.
Three new winners were chosen to represent their respective Outstanding Teen titles during the event, which is a Miss America preliminary: Rachel Mullino as 2019 Miss Texarkana Twin Rivers Outstanding Teen, Olivia Grace George as 2019 Miss Texarkana's Outstanding Teen and Gwennyth Simmerman as 2019 Miss Twin Rivers Outstanding Teen.
Mullino will represent the title at the Miss Arkansas competition next summer, while George and Simmerman represent their titles at Miss Texas.
Mullino attends high school in Texarkana, Ark., and chose a social impact issue about the importance of volunteering.
"My platform was 'LIVE in your Community.' LIVE stands for Launch Into Volunteering Experiences," she said. "I want elementary students to get into volunteer work so they can understand how good it is for you, how it can build friendships, how it can help you out in your career later and how also make your community a better place."
She's volunteered for the past four years with such causes as the Special Olympics and Night to Shine prom. Her talent was a tap dance to "Mr. Pinstripe Suit." She's tap danced her entire life, so it was a natural choice.
Mullino admits to being surprised at winning the title. "This was my first pageant ever so I was very shocked. I did not expect. I was very happy and happy for the other contestants and everything they got," she said. She was inspired to try at the encouragement of her uncle.
George lives in Texarkana, Texas, and this past year represented the Miss Twin Rivers OT title. Her social impact issue is inspired by the gospel hymn "This Little Light of Mine." It's "Be the Light."
"In my platform I'm talking to kids and really preparing them for the future, telling them to investigate their entertainment, to think of others . I have a whole analogy that goes with it," George said. She also wants to teach youth to find their "inner light" and share it with the world.
Her talent? A contemporary dance to the song "Blue Lips." That's one she worked on for three years.
When she was called as the winner, what did she think? "I was like, 'Oh my goodness, that's my name. Oh my goodness, Olivia. OK, Olivia, walk. Oh my goodness, Olivia,'" George said. It was an emotional moment.
Simmerman attends middle school in McKinney, Texas. Her social impact issue? It's to spread kindness and raise awareness about bullying and suicide prevention-"just helping people find their joy in their life," she explained.
"And my talent is a lyrical dance to 'I Can Only Imagine,' and it means so much to me because I think about my uncle every single time," Simmerman said. "He passed away a few years ago, and he was a big role model in my life. He was just a very good person and I always think of him whenever I dance."
Hearing her name called as the Miss Twin Rivers OT winner was a surprise, she admits. "I was honestly so shocked. I did not expect to hear my name," Simmerman said. "I was just happy I got to compete here and have the experience. And I'm so excited to work with these directors."
On Saturday morning, the Little Miss Texarkana Twin Rivers competition saw several younger girls crowned as winners: Hadley Butts as Baby Miss Texarkana, Dylan Garner as Baby Miss Twin Rivers, Abbie Munoz as Tiny Miss Texarkana, Malika Jackson as Tiny Miss Twin Rivers, Brooklyn Brown as Mini Miss Texarkana, Caroline Duncan as Mini Miss Twin Rivers, Londyn Little as Petite Miss Texarkana, Avery Brown as Petite Miss Twin Rivers, Macey Orr as Little Miss Texarkana, Rylee Plunkett as Little Miss Twin Rivers, Abigale Foster as Young Miss Texarkana, Madalynne Owens as Young Miss Twin Rivers, Kaleigh Grace Bolton as Junior Miss Texarkana, Cadence Heath as Junior Miss Twin Rivers, Addison Hash as Preteen Miss Texarkana and Zoe Potter as Preteen Miss Twin Rivers.
(On the Net: MissTexarkanaTwinRivers.org.)