Stephanie Accardo, Miss Richmond County 2012

This post has been long overdue… my Miss New York Pageant Week experience!!!....

After months of preparation pageant week came and went way too fast….It was an experience that I had mixed emotions about. I was excited to be a part of this tradition but scared of what I was getting myself into. I know I was as prepared as I could have been, but this would only be my second time around at this sort of thing. I was nervous as to how the other girls would be treating one another. Hey, let’s face it you put 26 beautiful, intelligent and talented women in the same competition all for one spot and the thoughts of destruction are endless. But to be honest, all of us got along really well. To me it felt like our own little sorority. We were together most of the time, shared many laughs and met each other’s family; where it was clear why every woman is who she is.

Onto the week..

On Monday June 11^th all the girls headed to the Hampton Inn right here on Staten Island, which wasn’t a long ride for me (it took all of 15 minutes.) My roommate was Jaleesa Peterkin, Miss Kings County 2012. Jaleesa and I competed at the Staten Island Pageant together so it was nice to be with someone I knew. Jaleesa and I hit it off great and we had a great week together. Once we settled into our room we headed for lunch treated by Mr. & Mrs. Nicotra at the Commons Café. After we headed into the city to visit City Hall, then onto some site seeing and photo ops! You want to stop traffic in the city, get 26 beauties with crowns on their head; watch the city STOP.. HAHAH! We went over to the famous Bull downtown and cut a full line of tourists for a picture; no one seemed to mind!!! We then took many pictures with some interested travelers, even some locals. NEXT STOP, the 9-11 Memorial. The girls and I were asked to join in on a quick tour of the grounds. This was truly an amazing experience and I recommend that if you get a chance to go do not pass it up.

Staten Island Ferry here we come! After reaching SI we headed to Borough Hall, there Borough President Mr. Molinaro Welcomed us all to the Island! He then sent us for a nice dinner at Blue Restaurant. Thank Mr. Molinaro, it was delicious! Our last stop for the night was at the St. George Theater for the Mr. New York Pageant. YES, you read it correctly I said MR.!!!!!

Many of the girls got men to compete in a competition very similar to ours. They would be judged on their introductions, swimsuit, talent and evening wear. This was a great way to relax all of us, because it was hilarious to watch. These men were all so talented and hilarious at the same time. I was to thank Mr. Richmond County Mike Katz for participating for me, You were definitely the crowd favorite!

The next day we headed to St. Adalbert’s for a presentation and competition sponsored by Project Empower. Kaitlin Monte, Miss New York 2011 addressed the students on the issue of bullying which the competition was based on. The kids had to come up with an anti-bullying slogan and presentation.

Next we visited Eger Harbor House Nursing Home. We chatted and even sang some songs with the residents. Afterwards was rehearsal….ALL NIGHT!!! Which then continued into Wednesday’s rehearsal. I had a blast during rehearsal; we were learning walking patterns and our “dance” routines for each segment of competition.

Thursday began competition with interview in the A.M. I competed in swimsuit and evening gown later that night. At this point in the competition I was feeling that I did the best I could have done. I wanted to nail my talent for the next night. Friday started with a visit to Fort Hamilton for the Army’s Birthday. We hung out with some of the troops down by Coney Island Board Walk. Thank You for your service!

Friday night was here and I was ready for talent but I had to answer the dreaded on-stage question first. But that came and went and now all my nerves were out of my system so I could rock it with my performance. I was feeling confident in my dance and costume. My talent was a character jazz where I portrayed and doll name Ruby who came to life. My costume was made by Kandice and Jodi Pelletier and it was rockin’, Thanks guys!!!!! My body was warm and it was go time. I took my spot on stage and turned it on… Although it wasn’t the best I could have done I was happy with it.

Saturday was here and it was time for the finalist to be called… When I didn’t hear my name called I was really upset at first. I thought why not me I worked so hard and I performed great these past two days?? But then I took a few deep breathes and said to myself that this was only my second pageant ever competing in, I should be so proud to have made it this far in one shot!

Overall, this was a huge learning experience and I loved every second of it! I am so grateful to have met so many wonderful women who have taught me so much about myself. I want to congratulate my sister queen Jamie Lynn Macchia, Miss Staten Island for making it to Finals- you made Staten Island Proud! I hope to be back next year and use everything I learned from this.

Congratulations to Mallory Hagan the NEW Miss New York 2012! It was so well deserved; you will do New York Proud on the Miss America Stage. I wish you all the best in the new journey you are embarking on! To all my Miss New York sisters it was a pleasure to meet all of you and I hope to see all of you in the future.

~~STEPHANIE