Sydney Halper uses two words to describe the moment she was crowned Miss Idaho USA last weekend – “total disbelief.”
Halper, a University of Idaho senior, had been competing to be Miss Idaho for three years before she finally won.
The 21-year-old was raised in Reno, Nevada, by her adoptive mother. Halper moved to Moscow with her boyfriend to attend college, but moving to northern Idaho from an area with a population of almost a half million was a huge change.
“I like the change of pace,” Halper said. “It”s always nice to switch things up a little bit.”
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Sydney Halper, 2016 Miss Idaho USA, discusses her platform on adoption issues during an interview Tuesday.
Halper is working towards a degree in clothing textile and design with an emphasis in marketing, and said she has always loved fashion. She said she began modeling when she was 15 and has since loved styling people and dressing up.
Halper got involved in pageants three years ago when she first entered the Miss Idaho USA competition.
She hadn”t planned on competing when she moved to Idaho, Halper said. Yet, when she was contacted about the Miss Idaho pageant, she decided it would be a great opportunity.
“It”s such a process. I have an interview coach and a walking consultant,” Halper said. “It seems crazy to have a walking consultant … I”ve been walking since I was a kid.”
Halper said the biggest challenge she had to overcome, though, was more personal.
Right before last year”s Miss Idaho competition, Halper said her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Between supporting her mother through treatment and the recent death of her brother, Halper said she found it difficult to remain in the right mindset to compete.
Halper said her mother has always been supportive of her aspirations.
“Anything that I want to do or any endeavor that I have, like pageantry, she”s there for me,” Halper said.
Halper was adopted when she was one-year-old through the International Adoption Agency and said that inspired her to use the Miss Idaho platform to advocate for adoption.
“I understand the struggles that they go through and questions they face,” Halper said, “That”s one reason I wanted this title, because as a public figure you are really in a position to help people.”
Her public figure status has the potential to grow even larger. Halper will compete in the national Miss USA pageant next summer. The pageant will be a two-week process, and Halper said she will spend a lot of time preparing to compete with 51 other contestants, including the District of Columbia.
When Halper isn”t busy with schoolwork or working on her platform, she said she enjoys visiting her family in Reno. She also participates in the Clothing Textile and Design club that meets weekly, though she said her free time is sparse as she spends most of the week preparing for the Miss USA pageant.
“I always say I”m the worst college student, because my bedtime is like nine o”clock,” Halper said, “When it comes to extracurricular activities I spend more time on school and my grades.”
Halper plans to graduate this spring and is excited to pursue a career in the clothing textile and design industry after graduation.
She plans on moving to a city in California, such as San Diego, where there are more opportunities in her discipline and she can be closer to the beach, she said.
Halper said her plan is to become a stylist or personal shopper so she can learn more about her field. Halper said she dreams of one day establishing her own evening gown store where she can put her expertise in pageantry to work.
Halper encourages young girls who are interested in pageants to research competitions and apply. She said she has received a lot of benefits from winning the Miss Idaho competition, including scholarships, a dental package and many other gifts from sponsors.
“Even if you did a pageant one time and you didn”t do as well as you had hoped, just keep trying,” Halper said, reflecting on the fact that she competed for three years before winning. “You will obtain that goal with hard work, time and a little bit of perseverance.”
Jessica Gee can be reached at arg-news.uidaho.edu or on Twitter @jaycgeek