Pageantry has become a family affair for Mrs. Montana

By JORDAN DAWSON / Bigfork Eagle

When Bigfork' s Shelley Emslie was in high school in California she entered the Miss Encinitas pageant on a dare, and won. Now, two decades later the elementary school teacher and mother of two has returned to the pageant circuit. This time she has won the title of Mrs. Montana United States and she's taking it much more seriously.

"I did it as a dare, but what I found was that it opens up so many doors." Emslie said. "You can really promote your cause through these pageants."

Emslie won the crown May 28 in Helena and will represent Montana in Las Vegas at the Mrs. United States pageant July 23 and 24. At the state level she also won Miss Congeniality, Best Interview and Best In-gown. She tied Kelly Rieke, who is also from Bigfork, for Most Photogenic. Rieke was the first runner up in the pageant and won the Best in Bathing Suit category.

"It's her personality," said Robyn Malek, State Director for Montana United States Pageants, of Emslie. "She has that absolutely, perfectly beautiful personality and it shows in her heart, and on the outside as well."

Last year Emslie competed in the Mrs. America circuit and was the third runner up for Mrs. Montana and won Best In-gown and Miss Congeniality.

Emslie, 37, has lived in Bigfork for 13 years with her husband Todd and their children Alex, 8, and Hattie, 6. She is a fifth grade teacher at Swan River School where she has worked for 10 years.

Her platform consists of four charities; the Lupus Foundation, Hope Images, the Lance Armstrong Foundation and H.O.S.T. .

The Lupus Foundation has been close to Emslie's heart since she was diagnosed with the disease 12 years ago. She is especially concerned because there have been no new treatments for the disease in over 40 years.

"That just has to change," said Emslie. "If you have someone in the public eye then they can get the word out."

She hopes to help set up a Lupus Foundation of America Chapter in the area since there currently isn't one in the state.

"There are some people that just don't have what we have," Emslie said. "My parents instilled in me to always think of others before I think of myself. For me it is just second nature. There is always someone who has it worse than you."

She is also the founder and leader of the first branch of the Lance Armsrtong Foundation in the state, the Flathead Valley Army. Emslie was inspired to create the local army after she lost a close friend of hers to breast cancer.

Her organization, Hope Images, was inspired by a hiking trip she took in Glacier. While on the hike she started getting tired and wanted to quit, but she looked down at her Live Strong Bracelet and thought about how many people would love to be hiking that were not able to. She finished up the hike while being inspired by not only her bracelet, but the picturesque surroundings. It was then that the idea came to her to put together books of images to inspire cancer patients. She gives kids a page and has them fill it with something that would make others smile.

"The generations coming up need to know that we're not a 'me' generation," Emslie said. "We need to set a good example for the younger generations."

Emslie also created another organization, H.O.S.T., honoring our seniors today, in which she takes portraits of elderly people with their families. She came up with the idea after learning about the organization Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep that takes infant bereavement photographs. Emslie was recently accepted to be an affiliated photographer for that organization as well.

"So many people in other communities could be doing this type of thing," Emslie said. "I want to use my position as Mrs. Montana to be a catalyst to get people to do their own thing to help others."

It was actually H.O.S.T. that got Emslie back into participating in pageants. A few years after her win in high school she was crowned Miss Grand Prix in San Diego, and later went on to help direct the Miss Encinitas pageant. Years later when working on H.O.S.T. she was trying to find a way to get the word out about the project and found the Mrs. America pageant and thought it might be a good way to raise awareness.

"You have to love doing this stuff," Emslie said. "I love being on stage and performing. I don't mind it at all."

The opening number seems to be the only challenge for Emslie. She has been searching for a red dress for weeks with no luck, and she admits to not being much of a dancer. But Emslie doesn't plan on letting either obstacle ruin her good time.

"I'm so ready," she said. "I'm going with an attitude that this is a once in a lifetime experience and what is meant to be will be. I'm just going to have as much fun as I can. I'm just so ready to put Montana on the map."

Regardless of whether Emslie wins the title of Mrs. United States, or not, she is eager to partake in events in Montana in the coming months. She is especially looking forward to visiting schools and getting the Hope project going, she said. She compares herself to a kid in a candy store saying that she has so many ideas that she'll share them with anyone who will listen.

"You have to go in there with the reasons why you're doing this," Emslie said. "You have to take yourself seriously, but not too seriously. We all come back from Vegas as our state representatives so we don't lose anything."

Malek thinks that Emslie could actually be coming home a winner though.

"She has an honest shot," Malek said. "She has what they are looking for. She has poise, elegance and the charisma. And her platform is amazing."

Emslie credits her family and the community for her success.

"My whole family has been so wonderful," Emslie said. "They have whole heartedly supported me."