Former Miss Douglas County walks among us
Miss Douglas County 2010 is a UCC student with a few more sequins

College campuses encourage creativity and self-expression. UCC is no different hosting students with purple hair, head to toe camouflage or Dr. Seuss leggings. Some students don roller skates and call themselves by pseudonyms like Hurtin’ Burton, and there is even a sparkle wearing, tiara crowning, cliff jumping, singing and dancing beauty queen among us.

Her name is Elizabeth Denny.

A normal student by day, she wakes up and works out by 5:30 a.m., goes to classes and then runs to one of her three jobs (Great Northern Trailer Works, Macy’s and Leap of Faith Dance Studio). After that it gets a little different; some days she ends up in high heels with a sparkling crown on her head waving to onlookers. Other days she is singing her heart out, honing her talent of voice. Oh, let’s not forget she still studies for the 17 credits she is taking this term.

“I feel like I’m superwoman sometimes,” Denny says, but you can hear the smile in her voice.

Denny’s schedule is definitely full. “I have my life on an excel sheet,” she laughs. “If I have free time, I look at my excel sheet and figure out what I should be doing next. I don’t really have down time.”

While Denny was supporting her older sister at the 2006 Junior Miss Pageant, a pageant director approached her and encouraged her to participate herself. Denny started beauty pageants her sophomore year in high school and has competed in five since. Her most recent title was Miss Douglas County 2010; she recently gave up her crown on April 16 to the current 2011 Miss Douglas County, Sutherlin High school student Brooke Painter.

The pageant work is more than makeup, tiaras and a swim suit. “It’s not just walking around in a pretty dress,” she explains.

Each contestant has a platform they run on that usually deals with a social issue; as part of her platform Denny raises funds for suicide prevention and awareness. “I want to educate our community about suicide prevention and take the taboo off. It is a treatable mental illness.”

A scholarship program for pageant contestants has helped Denny to pay for college. “The scholarship money has given me the goal of never going into debt for school.” Since starting, Denny has won $16,500 towards her education.

Denny will graduate UCC this spring with an AAOT and a scholarship to attend Simpson University in Redding, California. She plans to major in music and would love to be a music minister or teach private lessons.

Will the former Miss Douglas County continue on the pageant circuit in California? Maybe, maybe not. Denny explains that competing in California will mean a lot more girls and a lot more competition. Now that her reign as Miss Douglas County is over, she plans to be in the Miss Southern Gem pageant in Klamath County on May 8.

The Mainstream is a student publication of Umpqua Community College.