MACKENZIE PETERS
MACKENZIE PETERS
CHESTERTOWN — She’s beauty, she’s grace, she’s Miss Eastern Shore and vying for the title of Miss Maryland USA 2022.
Mackenzie Peters, 24, is one of many contestants in this year’s Miss Maryland pageant, to be held May 13-15 at Bethesda North Marriott Hotel and Conference Center. She said she is the first person to compete in Miss Maryland USA with the Miss Eastern Shore title.
Peters said a lot of the time “pageant weekend” will be spent in rehearsal, going over the introductory dance and how to be onstage, before actually competing.
This is Peters’ second time competing in the Miss Maryland pageant. She previously competed in 2020, and said with a laugh that she did “terrible.”
“It was nothing like I thought it would be,” she recalled during a March 27 interview. “I hope people can realize, just because you fail doesn’t mean you can’t try try again to succeed.”
Miss Maryland USA is the only pageant Peters has competed in, she said.
Peters, an admissions director at Peak Healthcare at Chestertown, did not compete in last year’s Miss Maryland USA pageant. She cited relocating to Chestertown and improving her mental health as the reasons for her hiatus.
“It’s not like any of those beauty pageant movies,” Peters said of the pageant. “It’s just a grand experience to begin with because you get to meet so many empowering women in the same room … you just feel a part of it.”
Peters said the pageant consists of doctors, lawyers, nurses and more, with everyone lifting each other up. She herself has aspirations of going back to school and becoming a lawyer.
“It’s just a really amazing experience. I’m really excited,” she said. “This year I’m going to be more prepared and confident. The first year when I competed I was not as confident as I am today.”
The Miss Maryland USA pageant consists of an opening dance number, a two-and-a-half minute private interview and swimsuit and evening gown presentations. There is also a party for the contestants to get to know each other, according to Peters.
There is no talent portion to the Miss Maryland USA pageant.
“The only thing that I’m probably good at is being a decent human being and being friendly and being a good friend and a role model,” Peters said. “Besides that, I have yet to find anything that I’m good at.”
Peters said the interview is the most important aspect of the competition because it’s when contestants get one-on-one time with the judges to explain why they should be the next Miss Maryland USA.
Among her list of topics for the pageant are homelessness, mental health and disabilities.
Peters has a learning disability and is diagnosed with PTSD and anxiety. She said her mother was a single parent as she was growing up.
“She did the best she could … it was really hard,” Peters said.
Peters said she moved around “a lot” throughout her life, living mostly in Cecil County.
She recalled an individualized education program meeting where the school told her mother she would not graduate high school and be independent.
“Just because people say you can’t do something, doesn’t mean you can’t,” Peters said. “The only person that can say no is yourself because it’s up to you if you give up or not.”
Peters graduated from Crestwood High School in Mountain Top, Pennsylvania, in 2016 as a junior.
“I just moved around so much, I was like, ‘if I don’t graduate this year I’m never going to,’” she said.
Peters said she hopes the winner of the 2022 Miss Maryland USA pageant will be someone “that’s really genuine” and looks “differently than what they have done in the past.”
“All of the (beauty pageant) systems, they have a stereotype of what a reign should look like, appearance wise. … You haven’t seen anyone my size win, that’s so unfortunate,” she said. “I want to send a message that size doesn’t matter, it should depend on what you can do and bring to the table, instead of making it all about your appearance.”
Peters said the first time she applied to the pageant just to see if they would call her back; this time she thinks she will be “more prepared and do a lot better.”
For the pageant, participants get a coach to help them make their interview forms stand out, teach them how to walk, stand, talk into a microphone and generally how to present themselves.
“They also give you fashion tips on how you should dress for pageant weekend,” Peters said.
As of Sunday, Peters still needed to finalize some of her outfit choices.
“It’s just a really cool and exciting opportunity,” Peters said of the pageant, adding that she was excited to represent Chestertown. “I think this year I’m really well prepared compared to the last time.”
While the Miss Maryland USA pageant is judged, there is also a “people’s choice” vote.
For more information on Miss Maryland USA, or for information on this year’s contestants and how to vote, visit www.missmarylandusa.com.
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