The Miss La Palma Pageant may be making a comeback.
The contest, dormant for a while, was discussed at the October 15 City Council Meeting. No decisions were made, but the Councilmembers, residents and former participants in the pageant all had plenty to say about it.
A former Miss La Palma gave an impassioned and emotional plea in favor of bringing back the pageant, calling it “valuable.” She said the list of former Miss La Palmas includes impressive women now working in the fields of medicine, education and film, among others. She said, “These women are phenomenal and they came from us.”
Mary Paningsoro, whose daughter Cheyenne was a former Miss La Palma, also spoke in favor of the value of the pageant, saying, “I believe in the program; I volunteered.” She said her daughter learned how to speak from the pageant and it has been a valuable career- and resume-builder and she looks back now and says, “Thank goodness for that Miss La Palma pageant.”
Resident Jan Jensen said the contest is good for youth and city relations, and that “we need to help prepare kids for real life,” and this would be one way to do that.
Councilman Gerard Goedhart said he is against the idea of spending taxpayer money on a pageant in the classical sense, but later clarified that he would be fine with a private group handling it and would be more inclined to approve it if it had more of an emphasis on skills and service to the community than a “beauty” pageant.
Mayor Marshall Goodman said he too was in favor of a group like the Soroptimists or the Community Foundation handling it. Comparisons were made to the Miss Buena Park contest which just wrapped up for the year, and is handled by the Soroptimistst in that city.
Councilman Goedhart said once again that he “just doesn’t want to have a superficial contest,” and not one that will be a “major expense.”
The city had $3200 in budgetary funds set aside for this purpose last time there was a pageant. This included a scholarship that was given to the winner.
The Council will continue to consider and discuss this matter.