East Longmeadow lady serves as Miss Commonwealth

Date: 6/1/2009

By Courtney Llewellyn

Reminder Assistant Editor



EAST LONGMEADOW - In her first pageant, 20-year-old Kate Bolduc was named fourth runner up. A few weeks later, in the Miss Baystate competition, she won the title of Miss Commonwealth.

"I had a friend in a Spanish class, Cherise Leclerc from Hampden, mention that she was Miss Greater Holyoke [2008]," Bolduc said. "She's the one that got me interested."

Bolduc said she originally wanted to enter the Miss East Longmeadow pageant, but was upset to find it hasn't taken place in the past few years. "I want to get it back and running," she stated. "I love East Longmeadow and I would've loved to represent it."

A Spanish and public health double major at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Bolduc hopes to someday go on to become a physician's assistant. Her talent at competition is playing the flute, which she's performed on since fifth grade; her platform is supporting the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

"I've been doing work with the [Make-A-Wish] Foundation for 10 years," Bolduc said. "One of the most exciting things about supporting it is being so close to it. Anything really helps, volunteers or monetary donations. It's a different kind of philanthropy. It provides families with an escape. We help put a smile on a face during a time of need."

Bolduc competed first in the Miss Western Massachusetts Pageant on March 1 in Holyoke. She said she didn't know what to expect going into the competition, but that she saw it as a great experience.

"I wasn't expecting anything," she admitted. "I was happy to place and that encouraged me to move on."

On April 25, she traveled to Brookline, Mass., to compete for a Miss Mayflower, Miss Commonwealth or Miss Baystate crown. These pageants are open only to prior Miss Massachusetts local pageant contestants.

"There was a smaller group of girls because it was the last pageant," Bolduc said. "It was nerve wracking, but it was the best competition."

Bolduc, Leclerc and 14 other young women will be competing for the title of Miss Massachusetts, currently held by West Springfield native Alicia Zitka, on July 10 and 11 at the Hanover Theater in Worcester.

"I'm taking it all as a learning experience," Bolduc said. "I'm really dedicated to it. It's a great organization. I just expect to prove that I can do it."

Between now and the Miss Massachusetts competition, Bolduc will be "meeting a lot of people, going to a lot of community events, definitely working out," practicing her musical piece and meeting with coaches.

Bolduc's upcoming appearances include the Garden Center YMCA's "A Walk To Remember" in Northampton on June 7; the Friendly's Children's Miracle Network Fundraiser in Florence on June 22; the East Longmeadow Carnival booth for Children's Miracle Network from June 30 to July 3; and the East Longmeadow Parade Fourth of July Parade.

The Miss Massachusetts Scholarship Foundation Inc. is a non-profit charitable organization dedicated to helping young women recognize their potential. Each year, the foundation stages the Miss Massachusetts Scholarship Pageant, a preliminary to the Miss America Program, the largest source of scholarship for young women in the country. For more information on the pageant, visit www.missmass.org.