Once again COVID-19 has negatively impacted an activity that is a valued tradition across high schools and small towns in this area. That would be all the high school pageants (Miss Alva, Miss Burlington, Miss Cherokee, Miss Timberlake, Miss Waynoka, Miss South Barber, etc.) whose winner represents her school in the Miss Cinderella Pageant during NWOSU's Football Homecoming held each fall. NWOSU's Homecoming in Alva is simply a favorite part of the fall season in northwest Oklahoma. It's not only fun, but good for Alva businesses.

Now the pageants have been revised and NWOSU's Homecoming will not happen in the fall as it has for decades, but is planned for the spring.

As usual, the people in northwest Oklahoma and south central Kansas persevered and found a way. Every town did their pageant differently – some with limited seating in the auditorium, some with no audience.

South Barber hosted a virtual pageant, said South Barber Pageant Director Meagan Henry. Contestants were seniors Kate Perschbacher, Porsha Binning and Lacee Wolf. Instead of performing at a live pageant, the talent and poise portions were pre-recorded and uploaded to a private website. Judges accessed the website and conducted interviews through a Google Meet on Friday, Sept. 11. The student body gathered to watch the videos and view the coronation, which was also live-streamed on Facebook.

Since talents were pre-recorded, Henry said that allowed for some new diversity in regards to the types of talent presented. "Kate shared a highlight video montage of her rodeo activities, with a personal voice-over that helped her connect her passion to the audience. Porsha shared her enthusiasm for playing the piano and sang "Great Balls of Fire." Lacee sang 'Always Remember Us This Way' by Lady Gaga and looked stunning in a shimmering silver dress," the director said.

Each contestant still walked the stage for the poise portion of the pageant, "donning very elegant evening gowns and carrying themselves with confidence and grace," Henry said.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, last year's winner, Malayna McKitrick, was not able to be a part of the coronation. Instead, the girls agreed to crown and honor each other, and "they did so with class," Henry said.

Porsha Binning was crowned the 2020-2021 Miss South Barber. Henry said, "Not only did she shine with a dual talent, her strong resume of extracurricular and academic achievements helped her display confidence through her interviews as well. Porsha shared that her mom has often challenged her to be the inspiration younger generations look up to. She will strive to be the best representative of South Barber that she can be in all of the endeavors in which she is involved."

Lacee Wolf was named runner-up after winning the poise portion and "a strong talent performance," Henry said.