 |
| James Oliver Curwood was born in Owosso, Michigan on June 12, 1878, the son of James M. Curwood and Abigail (Griffin) Curwood. |
 |
| The Curwood Castle, built by James Oliver Curwood as a writing studio in Owosso, MI, is located in Curwood Castle Park overlooking the Shiawassee River and is open to the public 1-5 p.m. daily except Monday. |
| |
| |
|
2010 Curwood Royalty
Bright lights, decorations, designer clothing and sparkling evening wear set the scene at the Baker Welcome Center
in Owosso for the 30th Annual Curwood Festival Queens Scholarship & Princess Pageants.
On Saturday, March 20, young ladies varying in age from 17 to 22 competed for the chance to win the coveted title of
Miss Curwood Festival 2010.
Escorted to the stage by Brandon Nequist, candidates strutted down the runway to background music provided by
Soundwavz while modeling clothing from "Classy-A Woman's Boutique" located in Owosso. Also modeling and
making a special appearance were previous pageant winners including Sarah (Adams) Hoover, Jamie Zmitko-
Somers, Kelly Van Poppelen, Stephany Maniscalco, and Erica Haney. During the tallying of the final votes, the
audience was treated to a slide show created by Carrie (Mowen) Miculka highlighting the 30 years of past festival
queen and court members. The crowning moment of the night was the presentation of the winners.
|
Winners l to r: Court Member, Elizabeth Valasek; Queen, Charity Smith; Court Member, Jessica Justice. Photo courtesy Jeffrey Simms Photography.
Winners l to r: Court Member, Paige Sink; Princess, Lily Kregger; Court Member Mackenon Tyrell. Photo courtesy Jeffrey Simms Photography |
Charity Smith, 18, was crowned Miss Curwood Festival 2010. Smith received the coveted crown compliments of
Schmidt Jewelers along with a cedar chest from Marr's Furniture and Premier Rent to Own and designer Juicy
Couture sunglasses from Capital City Vision Center in Okemos. Charity and court members Jessica Justice and
Elizabeth Valasek will all receive portraits from Images Forever, teeth whitening from Dr. Golombisky and Dr. Searls-
Elliott, and dry cleaning services from Ruthy's Cleaners.
Queen Charity will receive a $1,000 academic scholarship while court members Jessica and Elizabeth receive $500
each. Checks will be sent directly to each girl's respective school of choice at the conclusion of their reign in March
2011. Scholarships are underwritten by Paul Davis Restoration & Remodeling, McCardel Restoration, Northwestern
Mutual-Len Wright and Curwood Festival via ticket sales and entry fees.
Also crowned that evening was the 2010 Curwood Princess, Lily Kregger. Princess Court members Paige Sink and
Mackenon Tyrell were also winners that evening. Lily is 9 years old, in 3rd grade at Central, and her parents are
Kevin & Janena Kregger. Paige is an 8 year old third grader at Salem Elementary and her mother is Cimberly Sink.
Mackenon is 8 years old and is home schooled. Her parents are Robert & Erika Tyrell. The Princess & Court will be
driven in parades all summer by Dave & Nina Hall. Lily's crown was also provided by Schmidt Jewelers and she too
received a cedar chest from Marr's Furniture and Premier Rent to Own as well as Ralph Lauren sunglasses from
Capital City Vision Center.
The six winners and participants received bags containing gifts provided by Target Industries, Gelina Begole at Hair
Peace, Spagnuolo's Confections, Soy Beam, Canine Club of Owosso, Capitol Bowl, Jumbo's To Go, McDonald's-
Van Poppelen Organization, Capital City Vision Center-Okemos, Shiawassee YMCA, Norm Henry Shoes, New York
Style, Guido's Coffee Lounge, J's Tux & Bridal Boutique, Drew's Pub & Steakhouse, Sand Pebbles Salon, Donna's
Reflections and Cone Zone.
A reception, following the announcement of the winners featured pastries and beverages provided by Creative
Catering by Dianne. Floral decorations and the girl's bouquets were provided by Gayle Green Flowers and Owosso
Floral.
The queen candidates first met on March 5 for an Informational Session where they enjoyed a tour of Curwood
Castle by Lois Whelan. They also got to know each other during their fittings at Classy and were treated to lunch
courtesy of Mancino's Pizza & Grinders. Candidates were judged in two stages. The preliminary judges interviewed
each queen candidate awarding points for question responses, personality, poise, and knowledge and overall
enthusiasm for the Curwood Festival and our community. Final judges interviewed the candidates the morning of the
pageant in one on one interviews and in panel interviews. The candidates and judges were then treated to lunch
courtesy of Subway and McDonald's. Totals from each session were added together along with their stage
performance to determine the winners.
About Smith:
Charity was sponsored by Treasures Restaurant. She is a freshman at Lansing Community College and graduated
from Owosso High School. Charity enjoys singing, dancing, reading, the Owosso Community Players and theatre.
She is the daughter of Renee Smith.
About Justice:
Sponsored by Selleck Architectural Sales, Jessica graduated from Owosso High School and is a senior at UofM Flint.
She enjoys art, sewing, painting, reading & writing, and music. Her parents are Janie & Gary Justice.
About: Valasek
19 year old Elizabeth, a Owosso High School grad is in her sophomore year at Michigan State University. Sponsored
by her parents, Robert and Kathy Valasek, she enjoys running, snowboarding, baking, dance, MSU All-Girl
Cheerleading and spending time with friends and family.
Committee members include Sarah (Adams) Hoover, Jamie Zmitko-Somers, Debra Adams-Mills, Kelly Van
Poppelen, Lee Mills, Kaylee Luft, Carrie Miculka, Christie Usher, Jason Hoover, Lisa Dexter, Kaitlyn Dwyer, Katrina
Whittaker, Stephany Maniscalco, Amanda Pirochta, Holly Fitch, Holly Miller, Julie Weatherwax, Megan Simms,
Jessica Farr-Minton, and Karyn DeLorge.
For more information, contact Sarah at 517-203-4129 or e-mail: mgobluegrad@hotmail.com
|
|
2010 Queen & Court Hopefuls
Girls between the ages of 17 - 23 years are eligible to participate in the Miss Curwood Festival. Check below for more information. |
Candidates for Miss Curwood Festival 2010 gathered last week for an Information Session as pageant activities get underway. They are pictured here at Curwood Castle with long time Curwood volunteer and Castle docent, Lois Whelan. The candidates will undergo preliminary interviews on Tuesday, March 16 and Saturday morning, March 20 in preparation for the pageant.
The new queen and court will be chosen on Saturday, March 20th at Baker College of Owosso’s Welcome Center along with a new princess and court. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. with the pageant beginning at 6:30 p.m.
|
Top row left to right: Morgan Walters, Jessica Justice, Lois Whelan, and Charity Smith. Bottom row: Haley Salander, Liz Valasek, and Sophie Brady. Picture courtesy of Deb Adams-Mills.
|
Seating is on a first come-first serve basis. Ticket prices are children ages 6-12: $5.00 and children & adults 13 and up: $8. Children under 6 must be seated on a lap. Tickets are available at the Curwood office Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 1:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. or at the door the night of the event. Proceeds from the event fund the queen & court scholarships.
This year’s candidates and some committee members will also be modeling clothing from Classy (formerly The Classy Closet) for a portion of the pageant.
|
|
|
