Interview with Gracie Hunt, Miss Kansas USA 2021

Interview with Gracie Hunt, Miss Kansas USA 2021

October 26, 2021
By Trisha Bantigue

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Gracie Hunt, the reigning Miss Kansas USA, is all about breaking barriers! A tomboy at heart, this beauty queen is ready to talk all about her nonprofit, soccer career, and what she loves about Queenly with CEO and co-founder, Trisha Bantigue.

<b>T: I’ve been so looking forward to chatting with you. How are you doing? </b>

G: I am excellent! I can not believe how fast Miss USA is coming upon us. I know you’re going to be there so I’m so excited to meet you in person in Tulsa. I’m glad we get to have a little chat beforehand though! I’m getting all my packing done and tying up all the loose ends- it’s really coming together.

T: Do you have all your dresses and wardrobe ready for the upcoming Miss USA pageant week?

G: I do! My gown arrived last week along with my costume, which I can not wait for you to see both of! I’m really getting excited, it’s feeling very real.

T: I am so excited to see the costumes as well, just because it’s super new and we’ve never really gotten to experience any of that.

G: Funny story! The last year that they actually had state costumes was when my mom competed at Miss USA and when she won state costume. So, it’s really a full-circle moment that the first year they’re bringing it back is when I get to compete and have a state costume for Kansas.

<b>T: Wow! I bet that feels really great, it’s almost very serendipitous in a way. </b>

G: Yes, it does feel serendipitous. It’s been really fun to get to walk this journey together.

T: So, I obviously know you’re Miss Kansas USA, but I would love to learn more about you! Tell us more about what you do, what you’re passionate about, straight from Gracie Hunt, herself.

G: Myself five years ago would have had a nervous meltdown if she found out she was going out to Miss USA because even though my mom did have this amazing pageant legacy, I grew up playing soccer. My dad really wanted me to play something that had a scoreboard with a finish line, that was a traditional sport and that’s because he lived through Miss Kansas USA with her. He and his family were there when she competed at Miss Kansas USA and when she went to Miss USA and was 2nd Runner Up.

I am a tomboy at heart. My comfort zone for my entire life until five years ago was on a soccer field. Four concussions changed that for me and it became a dream I could no longer pursue. From that, I decided, “Okay, let’s find a new dream, let’s not let this situation, these circumstances put me in a box and limit my ability.” But it was really difficult because as many athletes who experience something like this when you have all you know taken from you, your identity is really wrapped up with your ability on the field.

For myself, I actually saw my first pageant which was Miss Kansas USA with my mom and it really coincided with the end of my soccer career. All of those women on that stage were just incredibly inspiring to me and so I asked her, “Hey, do you think this is something you can help me learn?” And she was like “well, I don’t know because you don’t own a curling iron or a blowdryer because you’re such a tomboy.” But look at me here today, getting ready for Miss USA in three weeks.

It was very much like Gracie Lou Freebush in Miss Congeniality being pushed into the hanger and then pulled back out. It’s really just been a huge blessing in my life, I’ve made the most incredible friends, I’ve gained confidence and learned where it comes from, it’s not in what you’re able to achieve or what you’re able to do on a field, it’s something inside of you that nobody can take away and I think that’s the biggest blessing that pageantry has given me.

I’ve also been able to do a lot of work in the community. I founded my nonprofit, Breaking Barriers Through Sports, six years ago. From my sports background, I’ve been exposed to a lot and I’ve seen a lot of the world and what life looks like for a lot of people. I’ve also been raised with the value that “to whom much is given, much is expected” and to have empathy. So, I’ve been serving from the time I was tiny. All these values just coincided to help me create Breaking Barriers Through Sports which uses sports as the mechanism to bring people together no matter who you are or where you come from, no matter your ability, your race, your background.

That’s really a beautiful thing about sports, you don’t need to speak the same language, you can all speak that sport and play together. If you’ve watched any World Cup football, the way that it unites people. I’ve been fortunate enough to travel to several of the last World Cups and when I was in South Africa I got to go into an orphanage and they were playing soccer with balls made up of tattered-up rags. It really makes you so appreciative of all that we have in this life, whether it’s functioning sports gear or running water. Whether it’s a family that you love and that will cheer you on or friends. All of these things in this first world and our first world problems and we get so consumed by things that trip us up on a day to day basis that we don’t take into account that there’s a lot of suffering that we need to just open our eyes to and do what we can to help.

T: Exactly, I 100% agree with you! What most people don’t realize about sports is that not only is it this entertainment venue but for a lot of people, like what you said, in third world countries, in poor communities, is that sport is an escape from a lot of the struggle they have in their lives. Sports are a way to keep them going, right?

G: Absolutely, and I feel like you do that with Queenly to an extent. Obviously, it’s not sports, but you’re using the platform that God’s given you to work on reducing the footprint that the fashion industry leaves by allowing everyone to share, buy, and sell formal wear through this convenient, clean-cut app. Which is brilliant! To create this idea, to be a woman in tech, that’s a very male-dominated field and I know you must’ve faced many challenges in the development process and trying to get funding. I can’t imagine what it’s like pitching to a bunch of men in Silicon Valley and trying to explain to them the fashion industry and the pageant industry. So, you are the real MVP for getting this done!

T: Thank you! My employees told me that you’ve sold a couple of dresses on Queenly. How was that experience?

G: It was seamless- so easy! You just input the information and I’ve purchased multiple gowns on Queenly too. I can’t wait to show you which ones those are! My little sister actually was going to have a gown made for a competition a few months back but found one for Queenly and fell in love with it and that’s what she competed in. We just really need to spread the word as much as possible so that anyone who wants a dress for a pageant or occasion knows, “okay, guys. We need to join in the effort to save the environment and not break the bank while we buy the dresses. Queenly is amazing for everything.

T: This is the sustainable fashion revolution in the pageant industry so thank you for being part of it! Let’s turn back to your pageant life. What are you most excited for? Miss USA is in about three weeks, right?

G: Oh my gosh! I cannot believe it’s in three weeks! I’m excited for everything, it’s really hard for me to pick one moment, one phase of competition that I’m especially looking forward to over another. I value them all and I value the experience as a whole. I think that is the blessing of getting to compete at Miss USA is you get to take in this experience in its entirety and you’re more likely to have a son compete in the Super Bowl than a daughter compete at Miss USA. I know you’ve probably heard that before, and because of that I just think you just have to relish every moment of it.

That said, I have quite the cheering group coming on finals night of friends and family who are coming to cheer me on and I can’t think of another time in your life when you get to be surrounded and cheered on by so many people who are there and who love you and so I’m excited to hear all of them with all their crazy fat heads that they’re telling me they’re going to make out in the audience.

T: That’s going to be so cute! We’ll see you there, my team is also coming to support you girls. So, we’re super excited! The whole Queenly team loves you and we can’t wait to cheer you on and the rest of the girls in just three weeks.

G: I can’t wait! Well, thank you so much for having me and I can’t wait to meet you in person. Thank you to you and your amazing team for all that you are doing for Miss USA, for all of our contestant experiences, and for the girls in the pageant industry looking for their perfect gown, you guys are truly setting the standard. So, thank you and I look forward to meeting you in a few short weeks!

Thank you Gracie! Check out the full interview here and make sure to follow Queenly on Instagram for more exclusive interviews.

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Gracie Hunt

Miss Kansas USA 2021

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