Miss America 2009

I bet a lot of people are wondering what has been going on with Miss Washington for the past 6 months. If it were not for the wonderful WA Ma to put up pictures every now and then there would be absolutely no record of all of the wonderful and exciting events I have been able to participate in this year! It really has been a fun year and I feel terrible for not keeping everyone in the loop, it was not at all intentional but if anybody caught the Miss America reality show on TLC, you would have seen me reveal my incredibly nerdy interest in numbers when I recited the first 60 digits of Pi. I have always been more of a numbers gal than a written word girl so it usually takes being reminded about 14 times to sit down and recount what’s been going on.

Where to even begin?! :) How about with the most incredible, fun, exhilarating, adventurous, challenging, and life-changing experience I have ever had: Miss America 2010! That was two weeks of my life that I will remember and treasure forever. I thoroughly enjoyed every single part of the process, which began way back in August when Peggy and I went shopping for gowns in Orlando. There were highs and lows throughout all of the shopping, interviewing, working out, practicing my piano, and on and on, but I have the best memories and have grown so much as a result. I have really tried so hard to pick a favorite part of all of it but I have determined that it is impossible. Everything was great for a different reason :)

That being said, I would say that in general, there has been one amazing THEME that has stood out, especially in the Miss America process, but has really been my favorite aspect of this entire year. That is the relationships I’ve developed and the intense love, support and encouragement I’ve felt. I took a lot of things away from Miss America but what continues to blow my mind and overwhelm me emotionally is how cared for I felt. My family, (pageant family and my biological family), friends, church and small group, my fans, supporters, and people that I have never even met have said and sent the kindest things to me. I literally went through moments where I would sit on the floor or my bed and stare off into space, before, during and after Miss America, wondering what I could have done to be treated so special. And in those moments, all I could think about was how thankful and blessed I was to have such an incredible opportunity. Thank you EVERYBODY who had any part in contributing to that once in a lifetime experience, whether it was by your physical presence, financial gift, thoughtful presents, words of encouragement, or prayers, you forever have a special place in my heart!

The ‘dream come true’ that was my Miss America experience began the morning that I left for the airport. Peggy, my family and I had been up later than we should have been the night before making sure that everything was packed to perfection. I woke up a little tired and anxious and was a bit in my own world as I got ready and moved towards the door. I would have had to be in my own world not to look out a single window in my house and notice the limo, fire truck, police cars, motorcycles, and the battalion chief outside my house waiting to escort me out of my fabulous hometown, Auburn! This is one of those cool moments I was talking about where I was overwhelmed by the love and support of the people around me… Even today, months later, I can hardly believe how unbelievable that was. And it only got better!! Hard to believe, I know :)

The motorcade and I pulled off Pike st SE and began the journey down Main St toward the freeway and Seatac airport. As if the limo, police, and fire escort weren’t cool enough, people had come out of their work and homes to stand on Main St and wave and cheer me on to Miss America. That was cloud 1-8, the 9th cloud came when I passed Washington Elementary, the school I attended from Kindergarten to 5th grade. All 400 students, staff, and my favorite custodian in the whole world, Mr. Berney, had lined up on the street waving handmade signs that read “Devanni is our Miss America”. I have never experienced or could ever imagine experiencing anything more touching, powerful, and inspiring than seeing 400 students screaming and cheering because they believe in you and look up to you. I was so moved by the love I was shown that morning that I felt like I didn’t even need to go to Miss America. In that moment I knew I was Miss America to those kids and it was more than enough for me. Anything that would come from actually being at Miss America was just icing on the cake.

On the day of arrival, I was so excited to find out the Miss West Virginia would be my roommate! The coolest thing of all was that we had an adjoining room with two other girls, Arizona and Illinois. I would be lying if I said wasn’t nervous to spend 11 days with these other 52 girls and was more than a little intimidated by many of their experience and resumes. It immediately turned out that that was a whole lot of wasted energy because they were the most fun and entertaining people I have ever met! I know it is sort of cliché to say that we all clicked and got along but it is 100% true! It goes back to that wonderful theme that has been my favorite part of the year, Relationships! I made the best friends at Miss America and the experience would not have been so off the charts if it weren’t for the other girls.

Pageant week started out with a whole lot of rehearsals, appearances and filming for TLC and Tall Pony productions. Filming was some of the weirdest but most hilarious moments with the other contestants. On the first day we revealed our hidden talents and pageant secrets. I was so excited that my memorization made the TV show but my pageant secret unfortunately didn’t make the cut. Apparently TLC didn’t feel like the world didn’t need to know about the power of hemorrhoid cream on blisters caused by long hours of dancing and walking in heels. Thank you to Momma Duck for passing on that nugget of knowledge to me and my Miss WA sisters :)

The other fantastic TV time came early Wednesday morning after the first night of preliminary competition. We were all so exhausted and coming down from the excitement of the night before and had to be hair and makeup ready by 7 am to start the 6 hour session they had scheduled. Everyone quietly dreaded this but it ended up being one of the memories that I share and laugh about the most! I don’t know if it was actually as funny as I think it is or if it was just because we were all delirious and couldn’t believe what they were making us do … hmmmm. The goal of the shoot was to show everyone how fun Miss America and Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas were. To do this they filmed us all over the hotel dancing to the song “We Came to Party” that was playing on an iPod that one of the camera crew was holding. *side note* My worst nightmare is dancing in public so for the first set of takes, when they were having us dance individually, I hid behind one of the columns in the lobby to avoid being chosen. But after dancing as a group up and down the escalator, in a crowd in the lobby, on the casino floor, and down the stairs to the buffet I was finally somewhat comfortable and ready for my moment in the spotlight! I even was asked to deliver a line, “Miss Washington is in the groove!” I totally thought I was a rock star but apparently Tall Pony did not agree because my solo dance performance and line were left on the cutting room floor along with my pageant secret :(

The appearances we did during the week were just incredible: Dinner at PF Changs, the gondola ride at the Venetian, walking the runway at Fashion Show mall, Buca de Beppo, racing at Pole Position Raceways, seeing Phantom of the Opera live and meeting the actors afterwards, and the Evening of Dreams on Friday night! One of my favorites was probably Pole Position Raceways because it revealed the competitive side of each of the contestants, me included! I wanted to win that darn race so bad that it took every fiber of my being not bump and crash the other contestants! It took a lot of deep breathing and reminding myself that it was all for fun. I know for a fact that other contestants felt the same way because during the finals race things got a little heated and during one of the far turns on the actual track there was a huge crash involving Miss DC and my roomie, Miss West Virginia! All we heard were the cars colliding and then we saw the operators and chaperones running out onto the track to make sure everyone was okay. Nobody was hurt which makes it okay to laugh out loud at as hard as you want at, which I definitely did :)

The actual competition was off-the-charts amazing. I can’t put into words what it felt like to be on that stage each night, to look out into the audience and see everyone cheering for you and the banners hanging from the balcony’s, it was indescribable. There is so much excitement and anticipation in addition to the awe of being at Miss America; I was so proud to be there.

There are so many highlights from the pageant but I’ll just share a couple. First of all, I LOVED our production number dance to the song “I’ve Gotta Feeling”. We rehearsed to the song 8 hours a day for a week and a half and performed it on stage all four nights of competition and I miraculously NEVER got tired of it :) It also helped that I was just crazy about our choreographers, Barry, Stacy and Brian! On the first night of competition I performed my talent. For those of you who don’t already know, I am someone who normally gets extremely nervous before I perform, despite the fact that I have been performing most of my life. I 100% rely on Momma Duck to hold my hands before I walk out on stage to shake out all of the butterflies, which was a luxury I was not afforded in Vegas. At Miss America though, I didn’t experience any of the anxious feelings that I normally get. When I walked out to play Malaguena in that incredible red dress from Regalia, I felt completely confident and at peace. When I was done it would have been impossible to wipe the smile off my face because I was so happy and felt like it was the best I had every performed it! It seemed the Black Eyed Peas were right about their feeling that it was gonna be a good night! (I crack myself up)

The second night of competition was on-stage question and it went by so fast that it barely felt like I did anything at all! It is crazy how time efficient they are with the competition each night, especially after you experience how much hurry up and wait they put you through in rehearsals :)

The third and final night of preliminaries was a different story though- it was both swimsuit and evening gown competition for me and surprisingly what I was the most nervous about! The stage floor was super slippery and my heel slipped more than once in rehearsal, so I was terrified that I was going to fall down the stairs during the show! Thank the Lord that did not happen! In fact, I ended up having the most wonderful and memorable moments of the entire week that evening. The ticket situation at Miss America was a bit of a bummer as the entire Miss WA section got seated off to the side of the theatre with half the stage being blocked by the huge props on the actual stage. Two angels, known as my Aunt Leslie and Uncle Jerry, showed up at Miss America a day earlier than they’d planned and decided to try and get tickets for the show that night. The tickets they bought last minute were in about the fourth row, center stage and they gifted those seats to my mom and dad. I of course had no idea until I spun around in the opening production number and saw my mom and dad’s beaming faces looking right back at me from so close! It was so awesome and took everything I had not to burst into tears from the power of that moment.

Finals night at Miss America, though it didn’t go just like I dreamed that it would, was still a totally awesome experience. I did not make the first cut into the Top 15 but it allowed me to experience a different side of the competition in the best seats in the entire house :) I was so concerned that it would be miserable and insulting to sit up there but it ended up being a blast. Every other girl sitting there was in the same situation as I and it allowed us to connect on a whole new level and just be together for the first time without having to think about the competition. Also, we got to hang out with Mario Lopez, no big deal. In case anyone was wondering, he looks just as good in person as he does on TV! He also smells really good which I told him to his face. He appreciated the compliment and proceeded to hug me, TWICE!

Clearly, I loved competing at Miss America and had so many fabulous experiences while I was there. There is one thing, however, that I have not shared yet that without a doubt was my greatest memory/honor/achievement from the national pageant. All 53 contestants had the opportunity to vote for the four girls that we thought possessed the qualities of a Miss America and deserved to be in the Top 15. Before the show Saturday night, Sam Haskell announced the 12 girls that had received the most votes and when I heard him say “Washington” my heart literally felt like it was going to jump out of my chest. While I was there, I truly considered myself to be surrounded with the very best of the best; With 52 of the most beautiful, talented, intelligent and accomplished people that I had ever met, and just to be associated with them and a part of that group was such an honor. So for that elite group of women to believe in me and respect me so much that they would vote for me just blew my mind. I was so thankful and it was a feeling similar to when I drove past the students at Washington Elementary on my way to the airport. In that exact moment the outcome didn’t matter because as far as I was concerned, I had already received the greatest honor of all!

Whew! That is a long entry and yet just a small taste of everything I got to do at Miss America! If I think of anything else I’ll put up a part II! Thank you again to everyone who shared in this experience with me, it was out of this world awesome!! :)

With lots and lots of love and laughter,

Devanni Partridge

Miss Washington 2009

Aloha from Maui, Oahu, and Kauai!

Joke #4: What does the ocean say to the shore?!

Peggy, Mike, and I had the most wonderful trip to Hawaii! It was my first trip to Hawaii and I had a total blast. The real adventure began the night before when I had to pack for the 11 day excursion, as packing is always an adventure for me. I managed to fit everything I needed for the vacation into one checked bag and a carry on but had no idea whether my bag was within the weight requirement. It is always something with me and the airlines! :)

The morning we left was so exciting! It was October 1st and the excitement of leaving for Hawaii was enough, but when I went to the magazine stand in Seatac Airport I spotted the new edition of the Seattle Metropolitan magazine. On page 3 of this particular issue was the Brotherton Cadillac advertisement with the photo we took the day I got “A brand new car!!!” I immediately bought an issue and it is now safely in my mother’s scrapbooking box, along with about 14 other copies :)

That day we flew into Maui and after a short drive from the airport we arrived at the most beautiful hotel right on the beach. It was so incredibly beautiful and I loved being in my room with my door open so I could fall asleep to the sound of the waves crashing on the beach. I woke up bright and early the next morning ready for my first full day in paradise! Well, it was early according to Hawaii Time; it was late morning Washington time! Regardless, I woke up to a gorgeous day and went for a long walk down the beach in a sundress and bare feet at 7 in the morning getting a tan. Ahhhh only in Hawaii!

While we were on the island of Maui we had the opportunity to go to the Maui County Fair and watch the very first Miss Aloha Maui crowned. Captain Mike was one of the marvelous judges at that pageant and the night before we went out to dinner with rest of the panel, Miss Hawaii herself, Raeceen, and the Miss Hawaii judge’s chair, Larry. We went out to a sushi restaurant where I tried everything put in front of me that Larry and Raeceen ordered. It wasn’t all bad and I thought that I might actually like sushi until an awful experience just a few days later. So very long story short, Devanni does NOT like sushi! :)

Immediately after the Aloha Maui pageant we took off for the airport to catch our flight to our next destination, Waikiki on Oahu! This of course meant, re-packing and lugging our suitcases. You would think that by now I would be getting better at this but unfortunately this was not the case. Each trip to the airport was definitely an adventure and I believe it was a less than an enjoyable one for poor Mike who had the unfortunate task of helping me cart my heavy luggage around. Thank you Mike for all of your help and being so patient with me on your vacation!!

Okay, back to the trip. We arrived in Oahu early in the afternoon and had just a short time to drop our clothes off at our hotel in Waikiki before we had to leave for the West Oahu pageant. *Interesting Fact* - This was the local pageant that Raeceen, the current Miss Hawaii, came from!! It was a beautiful pageant with lots of contestants and we watched three girls that night be crowned. It was a super fun day full of fabulous pageant festivities but also very long and exhausting. I was ready to sleep for 24 hours. Of course, I wouldn’t waste 24 hours sleeping in a paradise like Hawaii! I woke up early again and explored my first ABC store, which, were on every corner of Waikiki. They had everything you could possibly need on a vacation except stamps to mail your postcards home! That is when it comes in handy to have a prepared director like Peggy to help you out :)

On Monday was the day of the contestant lottery. We seated ourselves in the local Starbucks and waited for Washington to come up! It didn’t take long at all and I was able to select the exact number and place that I wanted to be! I will interview Monday afternoon, talent Tuesday, on-stage question on Wednesday, and evening gown and swimsuit on Thursday evening. I can hardly wait for the competition to arrive :)

For the next three days, Mike, Peggy, and I simply enjoyed being tourists. We layed out on the beach, spent time by the pool, snorkeled in Hanauma Bay, and paid a visit to the Pearl Harbor memorial. We also got to celebrate Mike’s birthday on the island of Oahu! There is SOOOOO much to do on this island you could live here forever and still not see everything! I thought about testing this theory but I thought that I would finish my year as Miss Washington and Miss America first :)

I have to draw special attention to my very favorite night that we spent in Waikiki. Thanks to Larry’s kind heart, generosity, and connections, we were able to attend a dinner show at the hotel Marriot and watch former Miss Hawaii Pele dance in the show. It was absolutely incredible and like nothing I had ever seen before. And it was even more special that we had an “in” to meet and take pictures with all of the dancers after the performance. Well, my referencing our “in” may have been a little over the top … really anyone who hung around afterward got a photo with the performers but it made me feel special and important! Hehehe

A few days later we, or I, had another packing nightmare and headed off to the island of Kauai. I had been warned about the chickens on this beautiful garden island but I did not expect to see what I saw when I just stepped out of the airport. There were chickens and roosters EVERYWHERE! They were as abundant as squirrels in the parks in Washington; just everywhere you looked there were chickens running around. It was very entertaining and fun for curious me to look at until the night came, and 2 am, and 6 am. The time clock in those birds must have been extremely thrown off from the hurricane that brought them there because those darn things croaked and cockle-doodle-dood at all hours of the morning! It’s funny to think back on now but in the moment I was not thinking happy thoughts about those birds :)

We stayed at the most beautiful resort in the entire world during our time on Kauai called the Waimea Plantation Cottages. I could have gotten lost in that place forever and been perfectly content. It was beyond beautiful and relaxing and I wished that I had more time to enjoy it! We were quite busy during our time on this part of the island helping out with the first ever Miss Island Mokihana pageant. Peggy was a judge and I co-emceed the program with Miss Hawaii.

Avery, the executive director for the program did an incredible job putting the show together and I had the best time! He also taught me how to sew a lei which was also a special memory from our quick visit. He made certain in dividing up the script that Raeceen got all of the difficult Hawaiian words to pronounce but I still got stuck with a few that I practiced diligently and proudly nailed the night of the show :) It was so much fun to be a part and yet another highlight from my year!

The next day we sadly packed our bags for the last time and left for the airplane that was going to take us home to Washington. It was a fantastic getaway and the perfect way to rest and rejuvenate before jumping in to Miss America preparations! Thank you Mike and Peggy for the incredible experience and Larry, Raeceen, and Avery for being such wonderful hosts during our stay!! I hope to return soon :)

And the answer to the very hilarious and wonderfully cheesy joke that you all have been anxiously awaiting is …………….. “Not much, it just waves!!!!”

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

With lots and lots of love and laughter,
Devanni Partridge
Miss Washington 2009

Boy how time flies!!

Joke #3: Why was the pianist smacking her head on the keys?!

Where do I even begin?! So much has happened since I last updated my blog, so please brace yourself for a long post. I actually had to pull out my calendar from the end of August and September to even remember everything that I’ve done these past weeks! I didn’t mind at all though, it was fun to look back at all of the adventures I have gotten to be a part of and the re-live some of the memories that were made. So let’s begin shall we…. :)


Just as I hoped it would, my schedule immediately picked up as soon as I got home from Orlando. The day after I returned I attended a Community Advocate Appreciation dinner and had the opportunity to kick back and enjoy the company of Donate Life Today staff and other volunteers. It was a blast to have the relaxed time together, to learn more about the inspiring stories behind everyone’s effort, and hear about everything Donate Life Today has done in Washington and Montana. Since then, so many exciting opportunities for my platform have come about which I will speak more of later… I have to post in chronological order or I just get all messed up! hehehe


In the beginning of September I was able to get up to Fischer Plaza in Seattle and have an interview with Carleen Johnson at KOMO radio. I was kind of nervous because it was one of the first times I had interviewed in any fashion since Miss Washington. Carleen is so wonderful though and asked perfect questions about Miss Washington and Donate Life and the butterflies did not last long at all! I believe that the interview is going to air in November, right in time for Give Thanks, Give Life month!




Before this year, the only golf I had ever seen was on TV and the extent of my playing experience was on the putt-putt course. (By the way, I am the master of putt-putt golfing and would dare anybody to challenge my skills on the green!) Okay back to what I was talking about… I went from never being on an official golf course or hitting a ball with anything but a cheap putter, to attending two golf tournaments in one week- one through Boss Construction that was fundraising for Children’s Hospital and the other through Brad Brotherton in support of the Arthritis Foundation. At the first tournament I had the privilege of meeting Mr. Dan Swank, brother of Academy Award Winning Hillary Swank! I snapped a picture with him and realized very quickly that we had two things in common, he was running for a city council position in Edmonds, (my dad is running for city council in Auburn), and we both know Patti Belik! What a small world :)




Also in September I had the opportunity to give a presentation to all of the Miss Seattle contestants at one of the Sunday rehearsals. This was one of my favorite appearances that I have ever gotten to do because I was able share with the 14 girls what I had learned from the past three years of competing in pageants. Not to sound too cheesy, but I love and appreciate our pageant system and I love sharing my joy and experiences with other people with the hope that they will find their own excitement for the program. It was also fun just to hang out and laugh with everyone as always!







Just a few days later, my little sister Anne and I got to hop in the victorious Vibe and take a little road trip to the west side of the state. We met up Amanda Cheatham, Executive Director for the new Miss West Sound pageant, to visit the Bremerton Central Lions Club. That was such a fun day- getting to spend time with my little sis, hear all about the new program that Amanda is working on and that I am so excited about, meet all of the enthusiastic Lions Club members of Bremerton, and we even got to squeeze in a visit with my aunt, uncle, and three sweet cousins that live over on that side of the water!




The city of Auburn honored me in a very special way that I still am having a difficult time getting my mind around. Very shortly after winning the title of Miss Washington, Mayor Pete Lewis proposed and got approved a hometown sign to be hung in Auburn that read, “Hometown of Miss Washington 2009, Devanni Partridge”. The day of the sign dedication and unveiling, a ceremony was organized complete with my friends, family, the Mayor and council members, many Miss Auburn board members, the Auburn Reporter, and local TV channel 21. I can still hardly believe it! Auburn is where I grew up and have always called home and for the city to show me that much support and encouragement is overwhelming! Thank you everyone who worked to put that together and were there that day to share in the exciting moment!






It is always fun to come to an appearance as Miss Washington, but sometimes it is just as fun to take off the crown, put on the jeans, grab some bobby pins and go to an appearance as a chaperone extraordinaire! My sweet friend Jackie Mendez, who happens to be Miss Pierce County this year had taken on the chaperone role for me a time or two this year, was gracious enough to let me come to see her perform at the Puyallup Fair as her body guard. What a blast! She blew my chaperone alias within the first 20 minutes of us getting there but it was still super fun to see her and Hailey perform on the Education Stage… and then on the hypnotist stage! I had no idea how good of a ballerina/river dancer/counter Jackie was! Hopefully someday there will be an encore performance :)




The homecoming party that the Miss Seattle and Miss Auburn group worked so hard to put together came just a few days later and was more wonderful than I could possibly describe. It was a blast to see people that I hadn’t seen since July and had been missing like crazy, also to see the people that I love and see on a more regular basis, and those who I haven’t seen in quite a long time! The decorations were beautiful and thank you Lona, Donna, Julie, Nancy, Lucky, and everyone else from my Miss Auburn family who helped! Also, all of the hugs and encouragement were so appreciated and very much needed and I heard that the food was absolutely delicious though I never ended up making it over to the table to eat any of it! Hehe not even the Sparkle Cake that my mom made at my request… I made up for it when I got home though and ate ALL of the leftovers :)








In addition to the fun and encouragement that came at the homecoming party, I received a GORGEOUS Ann Hand necklace and earrings from my Miss Seattle buddies. In addition to being excited about the beautiful jewelry for its dazzling elegance, when I was in Florida, I saw Miss America herself wearing the same design but in a ring and remember thinking how stunning it was. So now I have my own fabulous crown pieces that match Katie Stam’s!






One of my best friends in the entire world, Jackie “Devackie” Mendez, invited me to come and be a part of a special event that she worked so hard to plan that happened to be the same day as Spring Forum. It was a walk that raised money for Candlelighters, which helps children who are fighting cancer. That was the reason for my absence from the morning meetings in Renton :) So I was sad to miss part of the Fall Forum festivities but so happy to be able to support Jackie and hang out with her family, friends, and volunteers for a couple hours!





When I did make it back from Tacoma to Renton, it was sweet to be greeted by everyone from around the state who made the trip over for the fun filled weekend! I got to see everyone in a wonderful mood, with nice full tummy’s as I showed up right as the lunch break was finishing up. Perfect timing :) It was my first time coming to Fall Forum and I enjoyed it so much. My mom and I found a comfy place in the lobby of the hotel and were able to visit with everyone that passed by for the two or three hours between when the meetings finished and dinner started. It was a perfect time to chat, catch up, and just relax with friends! Dinner was just as wonderful and filled with great entertainment, thanks to Danielle Henry and her musical talent, and laughs, thanks to Carol and her Apple Awards!

That was the perfect way to spend the weekend before leaving for vacation…. To Hawaii!! That blog, complete with all of the great pictures and fun memories that Peggy, Mike and I made, will be here soon!

Answer: SHE WAS PLAYING BY EAR!!!!! Gosh that is funny :)

With lots and lots of love and laughter,
Devanni Partridge
Miss Washington 2009

My fabulous trip to Florida!

Joke #2: Why didn’t the astronaut eat breakfast?!

Finally back home and settled from my wonderful trip to Orlando, Florida! Throughout my past three years of pageant memories, this trip was quite possibly my most favorite experience. It was a time of bonding with Peggy, Breann, Reina, and all of the other state contestants. We had time to relax and enjoy each other’s company and time to explore and shop as well!

As excited as I was to leave that Wednesday morning, the 5 am wakeup call was not at all appreciated, especially because I didn’t begin packing until about 11 pm the night before and was up until after one in the morning! I was even less excited when I had to order decaf coffee instead of my regular, fully loaded, morning cup of Joe. I didn’t realize that flying could dehydrate you. Also noting the fact that it was already one million degrees at our destination, I reluctantly made the “healthy” choice.

Airport security was no breeze either. As I am far from a flying veteran, I was unaware that you could not have liquids in your carry on bag greater than 3 fl oz. I had packed all of my brand new makeup to come on the plane with me, and most of it was more than 3 ounces. I of course was caught, securing myself a baggage search. Fortunately I only lost my Mac brush cleaner and was allowed, with a reminder, to stow the rest. As pleased as I was that I only lost one item, it took most of the vacation to get over the great loss… I’m lying; I am still not completely over it :) For the most part, the rest of our travels went smoothly. We had just a slight plane malfunction which did not instill much confidence in our pilot or the aircraft and a hiccup with the rental car. Peggy, Breann, Reina and I got a wonderful lesson of how to be patient, flexible, and gracious that day, yippee! Haha


With all of this excitement, lack of sleep and caffeine, you would have thought that Peggy and I would have just collapsed on the beds of our hotel room when we got in, well past 11 pm, Eastern Time. *Random Fact* This was my first time leaving the Pacific time zone! Well not with night owls like me and Peggy! Not only did we not immediately go to bed, we stayed up until almost one in the morning, chatting, watching TV, and complaining about the lack of cell phone service and wireless internet in our hotel. Memories :) This became the pattern that we followed for the majority of our time there. It took both of us about 7 of the 11 days we were there to fully adjust to the time difference.


The first few days of our adventure were spent with Breann and Reina, helping to finalize last minute details for the national teen competition. There definitely wasn’t much to do; Reina was so calm and well prepared! I just loved getting to spend all that time with her! She was busy with paperwork and competition preparation immediately following her crowning that I barely had any time to get to know her. Boy was I missing out! She is such an outstanding girl and is just perfect for the role of Miss Washington Outstanding Teen. Of all of us there, Reina was by far the most calm and collected and she made all of us proud with her stellar performance and attitude throughout the entire competition!

Once our girl was all checked, I officially got to see a side of Peggy that I had only heard of. She is the most stealthy person I may have every met and I quickly discovered how she got the nickname, the crafty 1! She knew just how to work the system and staff of the MAOT program so that we could see as much of Reina throughout the week as possible. I was so amazed and encouraged to know that she will also be sneaking around Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas to see me and offer her great love and encouragement during my upcoming pageant week.

Sunday night the three of us made our way to Regalia for a special meeting with David and Carry. Just like my experience with Brad Brotherton, this is a sponsorship that I heard people rave about but I could not fully comprehend until I actually experienced it. We spent nearly four hours trying on dress after dress, looking for the single evening gown and talent costume that would perfectly fit my personality on stage at Miss America. David and Carry made me feel like royalty in their store and worked with me as if they had known me for years. I don’t know if it was the lack of sleep or the dreadful humidity that made me all sensitive and emotional, but I was holding back tears as we left their store. The experience completely overwhelmed me. It is unbelievable how many wonderful and generous people there are associated with this organization and I can’t get over how lucky I am to be a part of it!


(The tears may also have been a result of laughing so hard at how high Peggy jumped and how loud she squeaked when she came out of the door in Regalia and was met by a lizard on the door frame :) Oh how she makes me laugh!!


The very next day I got to meet my new roomie for the rest of my time in Orlando, Kara Jackson, Miss Idaho. I was stoked to get to meet all of the other state titleholders that I will be competing with and just ecstatic that I would get to spend so much time with Kara and actually get to know her. She and I stayed up just as late as and even later than Peggy and I did the first week which is hard to believe! We talked life, pageants, boyfriends, and Sex and the City for hours and hours and I was so sad that I only got the week with her!

This was also about the time that the rest of the contestants began showing up. I didn’t realize how many 52 were until I tried to learn and memorize 52 faces, names, and states. There were more awkward moments than I could count as I asked the same people multiple times if we had met yet, which we of course had I just did not remember. By the end of the week I think I mastered ¾ of the girls and I was quite proud of myself for that personal victory :) I was no comparison however to Miss New Jersey who managed to learn every titleholders name and state without any help of a program book or list of pictures. Truly impressive!

Our adventures together technically began on Tuesday evening with the first night of preliminaries for the MAOT pageant, where I also got to meet Miss America Katie Stam for my first time!! It was so exciting and overwhelming both to meet Katie and see Reina perform her talent on that fantastic stage. Officially though, our festivities began bright and early Wednesday with a photo shoot at Seaworld and VIP visitation to Universal Studios. Oh my gosh!! This day was the most fantastic and filled with the greatest memories of my entire 3 year pageant experience. I had such a blast getting to hang out with the other state contestants. We all had so much instantly in common and more fun than should be legal running around that park! We had the greatest tour guide to top it off. He had so much energy and enthusiasm and gave us the inside scoop on all of the special buildings and rides in the park. He even walked us to the front of the lines at all of the major rides in the park. It was truly a day I will never forget, for more than just the wonderful experience…. The heat and humidity that day will also be quite difficult to erase from my memory. I have never experienced nor do I want to ever again experience weather like that :) hahaha










The next morning was another early one, starting with a photo shoot at 7 am down by the hotel’s pool. We were promoting the wonderful new sponsor, Nature Quest and participating in some TLC filming with Miss America Katie Stam and CEO of the MAO board, Sam Haskell. I was so pleased that they scheduled us to be with such wonderful people that early in the morning, it helped me fight off those grumpy, early morning feelings that I would have normally had to deal with :) Later that day I had the opportunity to participate in a personal interview with TLC. It was a different experience and was my first chance to go through some Q & A since my Miss WA interview. Though it was not judged or for a title, it gave me the same rush of anxiety and butterflies in my tummy! I was glad for the experience and am so interested to see how they piece all of our activities and interviews together to make the TV special in January!

Later that evening all 53 of us got dressed to the nines and headed out to a fundraiser at the Siegel mansion. I have never been in a house that spectacular in my life. Inside and out it was the most beautiful home I had ever seen, including Mrs. Siegel’s two story closet! It was bigger than my bedroom… I could have gotten lost in there just in the shoe section :) It was a wonderful evening filled with meeting and greeting many of the Siegel’s guests, lots of fun, and FUNdraising! The generous Siegels ended the evening with a presentation of a 25,000 dollar donation to the Miss America Organization.


Saturday was the final night of competition. All of us contestants were so excited for our girls and could not wait to see the outcome. I wonder if I will ever get tired of the anticipation of the competition and excitement on the face of the winner…. Nope I don’t think I will! The night ended up being 14 year old Miss Wisconsin’s. She was so beautiful and did a fantastic job throughout the entire competition. I am so excited to see all the great things that she is able to accomplish over the next year, at such a young age.



The only sad part of the evening was that it was the last night all 53 contestants would get to spend together. I did my best to get as many phone numbers as I possibly could and cannot wait for the reunion in January!



On our final day in Florida, Mike, Peggy and I traveled to the Kennedy Space Center. I had no idea what to expect but was so pleasantly surprised! I was absolutely fascinated by all of the exhibits and loved every second of our tour. I must admit however that the highlight of the day came on the drive home. All week long I had been scouring the swampy water on the side of every road we drove on looking for an alligator. Everyone talked about how abundant they were but for all my looking I was never able to spot one. Until that glorious final day, when on our drive home from the space center, hot and exhausted from the hours in the hot sun, I spotted the ferocious creature sticking just the top of its head and snout out of the water. It was totally an exciting moment for me! hehehe. Thank you again Peggy and Mike for sharing that wonderful day with me!! :)

Well that closes out this adventure… Ready for the answer to the joke?!?!

Answer: He wanted to wait until launch time!!

Is it killing ya?! Oh geez I just crack myself up!

Once again with love and laughter,

Devanni Partridge
Miss Washington 2009

My 1st month as Miss WA 09!

Joke #1: What was Camelot famous for?!

(ans. at the end of the entry! :)

I can’t believe that it has already been a month since pageant week!! It has truly been a whirlwind. A month filled with the meeting of phenomenal sponsors, shopping, making new, very dear friends within the Miss Washington board, moving out of my beautiful Bellingham apartment in the heat of the summer, shopping some more, laughing and on it goes!

I was so honored to have my first official Miss Washington appearance at the Auburn Noon Lions club. They were my very first sponsor in 2007 when I competed for Miss Auburn and it was more than wonderful to be able to return to the club, thank them for their amazing involvement, and show them where the investment that they made three years ago had taken me. Thank you from the bottom of my heart my fantastic fellow Lions club members!

After the stop in Auburn I was off on a running start with a visit to the Mac makeup store, Brotherton Cadillac, our wonderful hair sponsor Jill, and of course, Miss America paperwork! Having been doing my makeup since 7th grade, I thought that I had a pretty good grasp of makeup tricks and techniques. That was until I met Rachel, a sponsor, makeup artist, and wife of one of this year’s judges, Brian Michaels. She went out of her way to meet Peggy and me and help me develop the look that was just right for me. I left with 7 new shades of eye shadows, brushes, moisturizer, foundation, toner, mist, and brush cleaner (which was later an unfortunate casualty… I’ll explain more later :). It was such a fun day and could not have fallen at a more perfect time.

The very next day we met bright and early for a photo shoot at Brotherton with my beautiful, brand new 2010 Pontiac Vibe in gorgeous victory red! Peggy, Papa and Mama WA, and I spent over 6 hours with Brad, Roger, Brian, and Marcus capturing the most beautiful pictures with the “Victory Vibe”. It was unquestionably the hottest day of summer and we would not have gotten as fabulous a shot had it not been for the effort of everyone there. Peggy manned the hairspray, my mom the crown and sash, dad had the water, Roger shaded me from the harsh rays of the sun in between shots and directed it with precision when needed, Brian had the expert eye and Marcus captured all of this on his high tech camera. What a blast!! I was overwhelmed by how I was treated there. I had heard Janet gush for a year about their generosity but was still completely blown away by their level of service and care. I will never forget how special and truly QUEEN-LIKE everyone there made me feel that day.

Not 24 hours after driving the Vibe off of the Renton lot, I watched it disappear in the side mirror of Peggy’s car for the Bite of Seattle and the Miss Tri-Cities pageant. As excited as I was for my first public appearance and to visit my first local as the new Miss Washington, I leaked a tear or two over leaving behind my new, fuel-efficient treasure! Of course, those sad feelings didn’t last long once the trip was underway. How could they with the company of the most hilarious, Mike and Peggy Miller?! The visit to the Tri-Cities was fantastic. I had the opportunity to meet my very first Miss America, Kellye Cash, visit with the new Miss Texas, and meet the first member of the Miss Washington class of 2010.

We arrived home from the weekend trip mid Sunday afternoon. We departed for Oregon the next day at 7 in the morning, not my or Peggy’s best time of the day to say the very least! It was all worth it though, when we finally arrived and met Barb, a Color 1 consultant. She spent two wonderful hours helping me discover the colors, prints, patterns, and fabrics that were just right for me.

From Barb’s home we left to meet up with Bob and Bev White, long time Miss Washington supporters and volunteers. As usual, Bev was cracking Peggy and me up the entire time and fed us delicious Taco Salad and homemade pie. It was so nice to see them in their new beautiful home, doing so well and just loving life! I cannot wait for another getaway to Oregon to see them again!

Tuesday brought a wonderful break from traveling with a refreshing evening with my friends, family, and Miss Auburn members. Thanks Lona and Anne! It is truly impossible to put into words how appreciative I am for each of these people in my life. I wouldn’t be reaching my dreams without the support network that I have been blessed with. I will be constantly reminding myself of this throughout the year!

Two days later the Decision to Donate movement kicked off in Seattle. It was a joy to be a part of and to hear stories from families of recipients, of donors, and from medical professionals speaking of the miracle of organ, eye and tissue donation. It was overwhelming and affirmed my intense desire to promote awareness and registration for donation. WA-MA came with me to this event and drove with me up to Bellingham right afterward to pack up my college apartment. That of course was after we had to drive back down to Auburn to get my keys that I left at my parent’s house! My mom thought it was an accident; really I was intentionally extending the trip so that I could drive my absolutely FABULOUS car some more! In the end we made it up to Bellingham around midnight and spent all of the next day packing, cleaning and loading up the truck. It must be noted that that day was one of those ridiculously hot days we were so fortunate to have this summer. That wonderful heat wave UNfortunately continued through all of the next week while I unpacked and got settled in. Okay, that can be the end of my complaining! I really was totally thankful for the beautiful home to move into, the help from my mom to set up and organize my new space, and as hard as it is to admit, the beautiful weather that we have had :)

Well I believe that this pretty much catches us all the way up to my departure to Florida, where I am now as I write this. Sorry for the length of this entry! Life was a little hectic and I was slow to sit down and get started. I commit to never letting that happen again… well I will at least do my very best!

Anyone figured out the joke yet?!?!?!?

Its knight life!!!

Always with lots of love and laughter,
Devanni Partridge
Miss Washington 2009

Appearances