Former Sea Gal is Miss Washington USA

By Christopher Huber
Sammamish Review

Christina Clarke was on the spot during the 2011 Miss Washington pageant Oct. 8 and 9. During the interview portion on stage, the judges asked her to sing an Elvis song — she had performed a few with the Sea Gals for American Troops during a USO tour. And without preparation, she executed.

“I hadn’t even sung in such a long time,” Clarke said.

That spur-of-the-moment success very well may have helped the 2007 Eastlake High School graduate make the cut to the top five in the competition. And moments later in her first ever beauty pageant, Clarke was crowned Miss Washington. The final moments on stage, waiting for the winner to be announced were a bit nerve-wracking, said Clarke, who moved from Sammamish and entered as Miss Snohomish County.

“As soon as they said ‘first runner-up is Spokane,’ I just kind of melted inside,” Clarke said about her reaction to earning the Miss Washington crown. “The feeling I had was, completely just blown away from hearing my title.”

Clarke will go on to compete in the Miss USA pageant, on NBC, in the spring. And even though she was new to the whole beauty pageant thing — she hadn’t even watched them prior to this experience — it wasn’t as intimidating as she had expected, she said.

“I had no idea what to expect. I was just hoping to hear myself called in the top 10.”

The beginning stages of the competition were a bit slow going, while judges interviewed all the contestants involved. Once the interviews were over the first day, the show got going, with hair curlers, earrings and such flying around backstage, she said.

“It’s really chaotic,” Clarke said. “When the actual show gets going, it’s go, go, go, go, go.”

Having performed with the Seattle Sea Gals for the past two years, Clarke, who spent the first 20 years of her life in Sammamish, said she felt confident on stage.

“This was such a new experience for me,” Clarke said. “It wasn’t really a scary thing; it was just an exciting feeling.”

Since becoming Miss Washington, she appears at various community and charity events. She has worked with organizations like Project Homeless Connect, United Way, the Special Olympics and Hope for Horses, according to the Miss Washington website.

Eastlake teacher Richard Belcher remembered his former student’s kind demeanor and that she didn’t fit the stereotypical beauty-queen mold.

“She was extremely respectful and polite,” said Belcher, who had Clarke in his senior English and sophomore world literature classes. “I always remember she was always watching during lecture. I always had her attention. She always was engaged in class.”

It didn’t surprise Belcher all that much that Clarke ended up finding success with the Sea Gals, as Miss Washington and with her community involvement. Her positive, can-do attitude was contagious.

“It doesn’t surprise me one bit she’s involved in the community,” Belcher said. I think she has a real positive outlook. There was a certain glow about her I’ll always remember.”

In the midst of pursuing a degree in psychology and working as an optician, Clarke said she hopes to purposefully fulfill the responsibilities of being Miss Washington for a year. She has numerous appearances to make throughout the year, including throwing out the first pitch at a Mariners game and possibly coming to speak at her alma mater, but said she plans to be proactive in her community service efforts.

“The most important thing is making every day count,” Clarke said. “It’s easy to let things lag each day because there’s lot’s to do. It’s important to follow through. There are tons of things I want to do. The important thing is just doing it and making it happen.”

As for competing in the springtime Miss USA pageant — televised on NBC — Clarke said it’s going to be tough to find that perfect gown. She’s also looking forward to all the new people she’ll meet.

“I cannot wait to meet Donald Trump,” she said.