The 2018 Miss Grays Harbor and Outstanding Teen were crowned Saturday evening in a combined pageant that spanned more than three hours, followed by an after-party at the Hoquiam Elks Club. The winners, Kuinn Karaffa and Mercedes Morrill both are of Montesano.
“Attendance was great! We had a full house,” said co-Executive Director Liisa Mayberry. “I would like to thank the community for their continued support of our program.”
Also during the evening, Tom Elledge received the Spirit of Grays Harbor Award in recognition of his support of the Miss Grays Harbor program. (He had to come down from his backstage perch to accept it.)
Miss Grays Harbor
Kuinn Karaffa, 22, a graduate student in pre-law at Washington State University, was named Miss Grays Harbor. Her platform is Habitat for Humanity, and for her talent she played her own arrangement of “My Heart Will Go On,” from the film “Titanic,” on piano.
Runners-up, in order, were Courtney Glenn, a 17-year-old senior at Aberdeen High School; and Kylie Shepard, a 21-year-old graduate student at the Chicago School of Professional Psychology (online).
Other awards among the group of six contestants were:
Personal Growth: Courtney Glenn
Staff Award: Mercedes Pinnell
Dash for Cash: Mercedes Pinnell
Talent (tie): Dakota Roos (jazz tap dance to a Michael Jackson medley) and Kuinn Karaffa
Scholastic Achievement: Kylie Shepard
Living Your Platform: Kylie Shepard
Miss Congeniality: Kylie Shepard
Moving On Up Award: Kylie Shepard
Lifestyle & Fitness: Kuinn Karaffa
Evening Gown: Kuinn Karaffa
Private Interview: Kuinn Karaffa
Empowered Young Woman: Kuinn Karaffa
Four Points of the Crown: Kylie Shepard
Together We Can (tie): Kuinn Karaffa and Kylie Shepard
Outstanding Teen
Mercedes Morrill, 13, an eighth-grader at Montesano Junior/Senior High School, was named Outstanding Teen. Her platform is physical fitness for young girls and teens, and for her talent she performed a tumbling demonstration.
Runners-up, in order, were Dannah Gleason, a 17-year-old junior at Aberdeen High School; Shayli Burlingame, a 14-year-old freshman at Aberdeen High School; and Morgan Lamont, a 15-year-old sophomore at Capital High School.
Other awards among the group of nine contestants were:
Personal Growth: Peyton Wood
Staff Award: Macy Holcomb
Dash for Cash: Shayli Burlingame
Scholastic Achievement (tie): Ellie Winkelman and Macy Holcomb
Living Your Platform: Ellie Winkelman
Lifestyle & Fitness: Mercedes Morrill
Talent: Dannah Gleason (contemporary dance to Marilyn Bailey’s “Survive”)
Private Interview: Sofia Da Silva
Miss Congeniality: Shayli Burlingame
Four Points of the Crown: Shayli Burlingame
Photo by Keith J. Krueger 2017 Outstanding Teen Paicyn Dragoo places the crown on 2018 winner Mercedes Morrill at the annual pageant.
Photo by Keith J. Krueger 2017 Outstanding Teen Paicyn Dragoo places the crown on 2018 winner Mercedes Morrill at the annual pageant.
Photo by Keith J. Krueger Kuinn Karaffa, 22, waves after being crowned Miss Grays Harbor 2018 at the 7th Street Theatre in Hoquiam on Saturday. Behind her, at left, is Mercedes Morrill, 13, the newly crowned Grays Harbor Outstanding Teen 2018.
