Washington crown: Royalty graces North Bend Auto

Published 3:25 pm Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Ever wondered where North Bend royalty spend their time in the Valley? International Junior Miss Washington, HayleeMae Dennis, can be found in an unlikely place most weekdays, her mom’s repair shop: North Bend Automotive.

Surrounded by oil advertisements, Dennis, 21, is an anomaly in an auto shop. She placed her sash and tiara next to her without fear of contaminating its lustrous surface with grease, even when she briefly broke up the conversation to help a customer.

Dennis said she has competed in five pageants since 2012. She was crowned 2014 Miss Moses Lake (a preliminary branch of Miss Washington and Miss America) and on Sunday, Feb. 22, International Junior Miss Washington.

“I did my first one and I kind of got hooked,” Dennis stated, curled up on a couch in her mom’s shop. “They’re really expensive, which kind of sucks, but it’s kind of an excuse to get involved.”

For the International Junior Miss competition, Dennis competed in the interview, fun-fashion and evening-wear competitions. She said she attributed her win to her verbal skills during the interview portion, which consisted of one-on-one sessions with the judges.

“This’ll probably be my last year (competing),” she continued. “(Pageants) are a lot of work and very expensive. I always told myself I was just going to win one crown and be done, but I won last year… I’ve kind of done what I wanted to do. I wanted to win a state title and that’s what I did.”

Dennis lives in Auburn, works part-time at her mom’s auto shop, has an internship with the Make-A-Wish Foundation in Seattle and is enrolled online at Bellevue College, where she’s working on her business degree. She began her college career after she received a full-ride volleyball scholarship for North Idaho College in Coeur d’Alene, but moved back to Washington in 2012 after an illness prevented her from playing.

Dennis said her interest in pageants developed after her halted volleyball career left a vacant space in her life.

“I’ve had some medical issues where I can’t play volleyball anymore, so I was kind of getting bored,” she explained. “I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do and I had always watched Miss USA and Miss America on TV and I thought, ‘You know what, maybe I’ll apply.’”

International Junior Miss holds competitions in Australia, the U.S., Canada and the Bahamas. There are six titles per state for ages 4-24 (though Washington has an additional Pacific-Northwest title), and the winners convene in Virginia Beach, Va. July 22 to 25 for internationals. Winners receive glitzy prizes like clothes, a cash scholarship, a royalty cruise, international travel opportunities and photo shoots.

Winners at the state level are required to make 12 public appearances a year, which can range from regal parades to hospital or classroom visits. Their entrance fees to internationals are waived, but each winner still has to pay for flights, lodging and other fees.

In preparation for internationals, Dennis said she’s looking into sponsors to cover her dress, hotel and flight expenses. Otherwise, her only other plans are altruistic.

“It’s nice that you get to mentor little girls all the way through the year,” Dennis stated. “I’m going to work as much with my sister queens as possible. We’re all in this together, I’m going to be their biggest fans.”