Correction: Due to source error, a previous version of this article stated the incorrect time of the Miss Cassopolis Program. The program will take place at 2 p.m. Dec. 3. 

While many Cass and Berrien County residents are gearing up for the holiday season, several young women and men have spent the last several weeks preparing for an entirely different season: pageant season.

Many communities that are affiliated with the Miss Blossomtime festival, including Buchanan, Cassopolis, Edwardsburg and Niles, will be hosting their own scholarship pageants in the month of December, with the theme “Rolling out the carpet for …” Each community will “roll out the carpet” for something important within their community.

With the pageants just around the corner, the adults who facilitate these pageants are taking time to reflect about why they feel the scholarship programs are important to their respective communities.

Miss Buchanan

Miss Buchanan Secretary/Treasurer Kim Gaul said that she thinks the Miss Buchanan Scholarship Pageant is important due to the opportunity it offers its participants.

This year, the pageant will be offering seven scholarships, one for each Miss Buchanan contestant.

The queen will receive a $1,500 from the Masonic Lodge, while the other contestants will draw for one of the remaining scholarships, which include: a $500 scholarship from Edgewater Bank, a $500 scholarship from Honor Credit Union, a $500 scholarship from Buchanan Scarecrow Charities, a $500 scholarship from the Buchanan American Legion, a $500 scholarship from Redbud Insurance Services and a $1,000 scholarship from the Carlson family in memory of Arlene Carlson.

“We are really proud that we were able to get so many scholarships,” Gaul said. “It’s really important and it is a great incentive for the contestants.”

The Miss Buchanan Scholarship Pageant will take place at 6 p.m. on Dec. 2 at the Buchanan High School Auditorium. The theme will be “Roll out the Red Carpet for The Tin Shop’s Salute to the Tony Awards.” Tickets are $20.

A Coronation ball will follow the pageant at the Buchanan American Legion. Tickets to the ball will be $5 at the door.

Miss Cassopolis

Miss Cassopolis Chairperson Sue Hortsmann said the reason to be excited for this year’s Miss Cassopolis Program is that it has been growing.

This year’s program will include four divisions, which is new for the program, and 22 contestants.

“We’ve really been growing. We were kind of idled for a few years, and we’ve just been trying to get the community and the kids of the community involved in the program,” Hortsmann said. “So, we’ve been doing a lot of community activities, and it’s working. The kids are really responding to it, and they like the participation.”

Hortsmann said she is excited about the growth, because she believes that the pageant can teach children useful lessons, such as teaching them interviewing skills.

“Some of it is really basic,” she said. “But it’s things kids need to know. It’s going to be a fun day.”

The Miss Cassopolis Program will take place at 2 p.m. on Dec. 3 at the Ross Beatty Jr./Sr. High School Auditorium. The theme will be “Roll out the Red Carpet for Mary Poppins.” Tickets are $20.

An afterglow will take place after the pageant.

Miss Edwardsburg

Miss Edwardsburg Pageant director Tammy Boyer been a part of Miss Edwardsburg for 20 years, and, in that time, has seen it grow. All together, she has worked with 750 youth over the years for the scholarship pageant.

“The program now reaches youth from the age of 9 to the age of 19,” Boyer said.

A former runner-up to Miss Edwardsburg in 1982, Boyer said she has first-hand experience to know that the pageant can shape

“It touched me so much back then,” she said. “There is so much history here, that we need to work hard to preserve the pageant.”

Boyer said this year’s pageant will be a celebration of Miss Edwardsburg’s history, with the theme being “Rolling Out the Red Carpet to celebrate 60 years with the Blossomtime Festival.”

The Miss Edwardsburg Youth Scholarship Pageant will take place at 2:30 p.m. on Dec. 16 at the Edwardsburg High School Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $15 each in advance or $20 at the door.

Miss Niles

Miss Niles Chairman Angie Bielski, whose daughter was Miss Niles 2013, said she believes that the Miss Niles Scholarship is something worthwhile for children to take part in.

“It’s really great. The kids earn scholarships for their college with this,” she said. “Then, of course, they have the chance to go on to Miss Blossomtime.”

However, Bielski said that the Miss Niles organization does not only good for the contestants but the community.

“We give back to the community anyway we can. We do a lot of community service, our kids do,” she said. “Our Miss Blossomtime season is really crazy, but we try to help out as much as we can in the summer. That’s what I think is really great.”

The Miss Niles Scholarship Program will take place at 6 p.m. on Dec. 10 at Niles High School. The theme will be “Rolling Out the Red Carpet for The Hunter Ice Festival.” Tickets are $20.

Details of Miss Buchanan 2018 Pageant:

Theme: “Roll out the Red Carpet for The Tin Shop’s Salute to the Tony Awards”

Where: Buchanan High School Auditorium

When:  Saturday, December 2, 2017 at 6 pm (doors open at 5:00 pm)

Cost: $20