Law school student crowned

Photo by david henry

BEAUTY AND GRACE. Miss Pierce 2010 Kristen Tateishi, above right, lends a hand to a young Life Christian School student during a performance.

Kristen Tateishi earned some money for college on March 6 when she was crowned Miss Pierce County 2010 in front of about 700 people at Life Center in Tacoma.

Tateishi, 23, is in her third year of law school at Seattle University.

A resident of Bellevue, Tateishi is a Rule 9 intern in Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. Because she works in Pierce County, she qualifies for the competition, which awarded more than $15,000 in scholarships and prizes.

Tateishi will receive a $2,750 scholarship and qualifies for the Miss Washington pageant in Burien in July. The winner of that will represent the state in the Miss America competition.

Each contestant underwent a 10-minute, off-stage interview on March 4. The event at Life Center was split into talent, swimsuit and evening gown segments.

Tateishi did a modern hula dance to the tune of “My Yellow Ginger Lei.”

The masters of ceremonies were State Auditor Brian Sonntag and Liz Lamb-Ferro, who was Miss Pierce County in 2008.

“Everybody’s talents were fantastic,” Lamb-Ferro said. “We had a good cross-section of young people.”

Miss Pierce County is for women from high-school seniors to age 24. For the first time, the Outstanding Teen competition was held on the same day as the Miss Pierce County competition. Shelby Stielow, 16, of Orting was named Miss Pierce County Outstanding Teen 2010. She did a tae kwon do demonstration that included breaking a brick with her elbow.

“Combining them worked out well,” Lamb-Ferro said. Having the teen contestants preparing and performing with the young adults allowed both to form relationships, she noted.

Lamb-Ferro graduated from Pacific Lutheran University in 2007. She noted Sonntag was also MC in 2008 when she won the pageant. She used her earnings to pay tuition of pre-requisite classes for her master’s degree in business administration.

She noted Tateishi plans to graduate this May and take the bar examination this summer. The pageant’s scholarship money is appealing to contestants, according to Lamb-Ferro. “It is critical in this day and age, when scholarships are harder and harder to come by. It is no longer enough to walk in with a 4.0 GPA and all kinds of extra-curricular activities. Finding a resource like Miss Pierce County is critical for a young woman, especially if it avoids having to take out another $15,000 in student loans.”

Now in its 37th year, the pageant was held for the first time at Life Center. Lamb-Ferro noted the professional lighting and sound equipment and technicians to run them were a plus, and the size of the sanctuary allows room for growth in the number of contestants and audience members.

During the interview segment on stage, Tateishi discussed her platform, supporting the rights of abused and neglected children. She discussed her efforts to lobby legislators to maintain funding for the court appointed special advocates, who support in the legal system because of abuse.

Lamb-Ferro said Tateishi wants to carry on her cause after college.

“Becoming an attorney will give her hands-on experience with children in the system.” Winners of the pageant dedicate themselves to their particular cause for a year of service, she noted.

Commenting rules