They are beauty, they are grace

Liberty University will be hosting the next Miss Virginia Pageant summer 2018

 

Liberty University will be getting a dose of glamour next summer.

 

The 2018 Miss Virginia Pageant will be hosted on
Liberty’s campus at the Tower Theater and  concert hall.

 

Both Liberty University and the Miss Virginia organization are looking to hold the event around the third week of July next year, according to Lee Beaumont, Senior Vice President of Auxiliary Services.

 

Harlen Gudger, Executive Director of the Miss Virginia organization, mentioned that he was looking forward to moving the pageant to Lynchburg.

 

Liberty University’s facilities—specifically the Tower Theater and concert hall—will save Miss Virginia more money due to the fact that everything needed to run the pageant will be under one roof.

 

“We’re looking forward to Lynchburg as a city for their support and the community’s support we feel like we will receive there,” Gudger said.

 

According to Beaumont, an event this size will benefit Lynchburg as a whole, and it will bring much more business to the area.

 

“This event, based on the numbers I have seen, will bring in somewhere between $900,000 and $1.2 million of economic impact to the region,” Beaumont said.

 

“Of course that will benefit the city.”

 

Gudger explained that not only will the pageant bring a mass amount of revenue into the city, but it will also double as a recruitment tool for Liberty.

 

The pageant will be held on Liberty’s campus, making it easy for the audience, as well as the contestants, to tour the facilities.

 

“We are both supporters of education,” Gudger said.

 

“Liberty University is the same thing. It’s a provider of education.”

 

Miss Virginia is big on supporting education and so is Liberty University, making the venue choice a perfect match.

 

Liberty has been offering a Pageant Scholarship for years, as stated on Liberty’s website.

 

So it is fitting for the Miss Virginia pageant to be held here starting next year.

 

According to Gudger, both the Tower Theater and concert hall already have all of the lights and sound systems needed to run the pageant—something that Miss Virginia did not have when the event was held in Roanoke.

 

Gudger further noted that the Berglund Center in Roanoke did not have all the bells and whistles that Liberty’s facilities have.

 

When in Roanoke, the Miss Virginia organization had to bring in all the sound systems.

 

But because Liberty’s facilities are state-of-the-art, they can save that money and use it elsewhere.

 

Preliminaries for the Miss Virginia pageant will commence June 21 and 22, 2018, and finals will take place  June 23.

 

For future details on the pageant dates, check out missva.org for updates.

 

GIBSON is a feature reporter.