On Saturday, November 6, Durant hosted their annual Calendar Girl pageant sponsored by the Athletic Boosters club. This pageant allows for sophomore, junior, or senior females attending Durant to showcase their public speaking skills, poise, and natural beauty in front of a live audience with pageant judges watching their every move. The goal of this pageant is to be one of the Top 13 contestants so they can be featured as a month or cover girl for the calendar produced after the pageant.

All 23 contestants for the Calendar Girl pageant came to the stage with different levels of experience and knowledge of pageants.

Senior Ava Starck, Miss January, says “This was my first pageant ever, so I was super excited but also a little bit nervous.”

She had to put a lot more time and effort into preparing and practicing for the pageant. In the end all of her hard work paid off because she got second place in her first pageant. She was shocked and excited when she was announced Miss January at the end of the event.

“I was just very proud that I did this because it was very out of my comfort zone,” says Starck.

Many girls had to step out of their comfort zones to participate in such public school events. Contestants pushed through their nervousness and discomfort because they wanted to do something they had never done before (and have an excuse to dress up).

“I like getting dressed up and I thought it would be fun to participate [in a school pageant],” says junior Isabel Hernandez, Miss November. “I was very surprised that I got a month in general and I was very happy because November is my birthday month.”

Some Calendar Girl contestants, however, have participated in multiple pageants and have even won titles.

Senior Lisee Griffin, Miss May, says, “I have participated in numerous pageants such as FFA Sweetheart and Junior Royalty.”

When Griffin was crowned Miss May, she said she was honored and proud of herself for such an amazing accomplishment. She is looking forward to an amazing year to come while getting to know the other Calendar Girls more.

For girls considering doing the Calendar Girl pageant next year, Griffin has shared some information to help girls go through with the pageant.

“I would tell [girls planning on competing] to be themselves. Don’t put on a persona for the audience, just have fun and relax. It’s supposed to be fun so don’t get too wrapped up in the idea of winning, just have fun.”

More helpful advice for potential Calendar Girl contestants is to have confidence and practice as much as possible. Being prepared and confident can make certain contestants stand out more than others and that’s what the judges look for.

Durant’s 2021 Homecoming Queen, Tamia Williams, also participated and was crowned the 2021 Cover Girl for the calendar.

Even the Homecoming Queen and Cover Girl can be nervous for such outgoing events.

Williams said, “To be completely honest, all I could think about [before walking on stage] was [to not fall] and to keep my head high. I’ve never done anything like Calendar Girl before.”

Even though only 13 girls were selected for the calendar, this unique event brought out some of Durant’s most talented ladies for one special evening of beautiful gowns, grace and friendly competition.

Congratulations to all who participated and congratulations to the 2022 Calendar Girls.

Cover Girl                  Tamia Williams
Miss January             Ava Starck
Miss February          Cassidy Brankley
Miss March               Kennedie Clinton
Miss April                  Ava Reuter
Miss May                   Lisee Griffin
Miss June                   Avery Ashley
Miss July                    Halie Guthrie
Miss August              Ava Moreno
Miss September      Skylar Sewell
Miss October           Emma Harnage
Miss November       Isabel Hernandez
Miss December       Allie Sigl

Students can visit the Durant Boosters Instagram account @durantboosters or email durantboost[email protected] for more information on the Calendar Girl pageant.