Sadie Porter: Newly Crowned Miss Washington Teen USA

By ALYSSA PATRICK
UNLEASHED STAFF

She walks coolly into Starbucks and takes a seat in a corner armchair.
She wears a casual smile, holds her chin up, and looks you in the eye. It almost seems like she’s wearing, across her shoulder, an imaginary sash that gives her gentle confidence and self-assurance.
Her name is Sadie Porter, and she is more than just a pageant girl.
“She is very determined and follows through with anything she puts her mind to,” says 27-year-old Mandy Case, one of Porter’s dance teachers at Selah Footlights Studio.
Porter participated in her first pageant at age 3.
“It was the American Co-Ed Pageant, which focuses on natural beauty,” she explains during a recent interview at a local Starbucks.
That particular pageant is open to girls and young women ages 3 to 22 and features “age-appropriate” clothing and on-stage presentations. It also adheres to a no make-up policy for all participants under 13.
Since that first pageant, Porter has participated in one every year. Now 17 and a senior at Selah High School, she’s earned many titles and tiaras.
Her most recent win was the title of Miss Washington Teen USA 2009, which she received earlier this month. Along with the crown, she won a prize package worth more than $20,000 as well as the chance to make appearances at events throughout Washington and the country. Plus, she gets to represent Washington state at the 2009 Miss Teen USA pageant next spring.
Other titles she’s held include Miss Talent in 2005 and 2006, and Miss American Junior Teen in 2007.
One of her goals is to hold the title of Miss Washington, maybe even Miss America.
She says her favorite part of pageants are the themed rehearsals. In most competitions, contestants have to learn a couple production numbers in a short amount of time, which means early and long rehearsals.
To make them a bit more enjoyable, the rehearsals often involve themes, such as pajama day or crazy hair day. This allows the girls to have a good time while learning intensive routines and bond. In fact, Porter says she’ made several friends through pageants, one of whom she visits often in Alabama.
Participating in all these pageants means Porter must dedicate time every year to finding a new dress and swimsuit, perfecting interview skills, and sometimes preparing a talent. That last part is usually not too difficult for the avid dancer.
“I dance five days a week at Selah Footlights,” she says. “I do ballet, tap, jazz, hip-hop, and I am on the competition team, Dance Explosion.”
Porter is also a dance teacher at the same studio, and is a part of the drill team at her high school. Her average day looks like this:
Because of an early morning drill, she starts school at 6:15 a.m. and is there until 2:15 p.m. she says. “Usually, I head to the studio straight from there, and am teaching or dancing until 10 (p.m.).”
Her activities don’t end there. Porter is also a member of Young Life and the youth group at Selah Covenant Church. She’s also serving as the student body vice president at her school.
What Porter has learned from participating in pageants seems to be the connective thread that helps her to succeed in all of these activities.
“Through the interview portions of pageants I have gained crucial business skills,” she says. “I am now able to comfortably talk to adults. Being on stage so often also gives me the confidence to do whatever I put my mind to.
“Overall, (pageants) boost my self-esteem.”
Case, the dance teacher, adds that Porter’s experience in pageants allows her to speak and carry herself very maturely, skills which make her a good receptionist at the studio.
And, of course, “she is a great performer,” Case says. “She knows how to turn it up on stage.”

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