At 19 years old, Hillware is America’s Miss District of Columbia 2012 and is preparing for the America’s Miss national pageant in July. Follow her journey at sarahhillware.com.
What’s the toughest part about competing in a pageant?
Well, you know, it’s not tough. I would just say that there’s a lot of prep work that goes into being a representative of your area. For me it’s how well I’m able to articulate why I want to represent the District of Columbia but also to be able to sort of answer the tough political questions that a lot of people have strong opinions on. When you are a representative you have to be able to articulate in a way that doesn’t offend people while still staying true to yourself.
You’ve taken up health education as your platform. Why?
It’s called “Knowledge is Power: Empowering People to Be Their Own Best Health Advocates.” Essentially what it’s about is bringing health education to those who may not have access. For example, I visit schools and I give small presentations on ways to be healthy, ways to decipher what’s good and what’s not depending on what schools have in their lunch line and ways to take that [information] back home and share with families and parents. … I’m looking to meet with the D.C. public school system to see where the District is at as far as how many healthy options they are providing and how does that differ throughout D.C.
Are you nervous for the national pageant in July?
Well, I mean, once you have that title, your job is essentially preparing for the national pageant. I think by then I should be ready to go. I’ve been doing a lot of community service and trying to get my work out as much as possible.
You’re also a junior at George Washington University. How do you manage everything?
It’s just staying organized. I was just telling one of my friends, I schedule my day by hours and sometimes even by minute.
