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Crowning of the La Reina de las Flores

Group photo, L to R: Back row - executive director Carmen Casillas, queens co-director Angela Sanchez, Teen Miss Daisy Anaya, Elite Beauty USA Marissa Sanchez, SCORE's Teen Miss Adette Hurtado, queen's director Marivel Hurtado. Front row - Little Miss Alexandria Fernandez, Junior Miss contestant Marissa Baez, Young Miss Olivia Fernandez, Junior Miss Priscila Salazar, Junior Miss contestant Mireya Ortiz. Photo by Jenn Walker

If you’ve been in this community very long, surely you have seen the La Reina de las Flores around town. These young ladies are involved in an ongoing tradition that has spanned decades.

The La Reina De Las Flores Scholarship Pageant has been around for the last 30 years; this year’s crowning took place this morning during Apache Gold Casino Resort’s Cinco De Mayo celebration. 

This year's La Reina de las Flores crowned contestants
This year’s La Reina de las Flores crowned contestants.   Photo by Jenn Walker

“It takes a lot of courage, passion, and dedication to compete,” said executive director Carmen Casillas, who has been the executive director for the last ten years.

The pageant attracts contestants from as far as Kearny, San Carlos, and El Mirage.

Among other categories, the young girls are judged based on their service to the community. They raise money for events like Relay for Life and are involved in programs like Globe Clean and Beautiful. They visit the elderly, and perform at nursing homes.

One of this year’s participants completed more than 100 hours of community service.

“We really keep [the girls] involved in the community,” Casillas said.

The girls are also judged based on how photogenic they are, as well as their talent, modeling, congeniality, and etiquette.

They even participate in an etiquette workshop at Sincerely, Sandra, an image development and modeling school based in Chandler. There, they learn things like how to interview on camera.

The pageant usually begins in February, though next year it will start in January, Casillas said. This year, 15 girls participated in the pageant, including two girls from San Carlos. Participants’ ages range from 16 months to 18 years old. Winners receive educational scholarships.

To keep things fair, winners are chosen by a panel of judges from out of town.

“It’s a very extensive process,” Casillas said. “We don’t know the results until we open the envelopes.”

Group photo, L to R: Back row - executive director Carmen Casillas, queens co-director Angela Sanchez, Teen Miss Daisy Anaya, Elite Beauty USA Marissa Sanchez, SCORE's Teen Miss Adette Hurtado, queen's director Marivel Hurtado. Front row - Little Miss Alexandria Fernandez, Junior Miss contestant Marissa Baez, Young Miss Olivia Fernandez, Junior Miss Priscila Salazar, Junior Miss contestant Mireya Ortiz. Photo by Jenn Walker
Group photo, L to R: Back row – executive director Carmen Casillas, queens co-director Angela Sanchez, Teen Miss Daisy Anaya, Elite Beauty USA Marissa Sanchez, SCORE’s Teen Miss Adette Hurtado, queen’s director Marivel Hurtado. Front row – Little Miss Alexandria Fernandez, Junior Miss contestant Marissa Baez, Young Miss Olivia Fernandez, Junior Miss Priscila Salazar, Junior Miss contestant Mireya Ortiz.   Photo by Jenn Walker

This year’s crowned contestants are:

Baby Miss: Felicity Lagunas

Little Miss: Alexandria Fernandez

Young Miss: Olivia Fernandez

Junior Miss: Priscila Salazar

Teen Miss: Daisy Anaya

Other contestants included: 

Little Miss: Selestina Gonzales

Young Miss: Alexius Gonzales, Chloe Sanchez

Junior Miss: Marissa Baez, Mireya Ortiz, Krista Ramos

This year’s attending queens were: 

SCORE’s Teen Miss Adette Hurtado

Elite Beauty USA Marissa Sanchez

Miss OverAll Anisa Spurgeon

Little Miss Madison Smith

Young Miss Ezmee Lem

Jr. Miss Alexia Martinez

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

About Jenn Walker

Jenn Walker began writing for Globe Miami Times in 2012 and has been a contributor ever since. Her work has also appeared in Submerge Magazine, Sacramento Press, Sacramento News & Review and California Health Report. She currently teaches Honors English at High Desert Middle School and mentors Globe School District’s robotics team.

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