A Jefferson City woman is looking to knock out the competition at next year’s Miss Missouri Pageant.
Keara (Key) Gaitan is in the process of training, fundraising and engaging the community. She’s looking to inspire others as Miss Capital City.
Although she’s from Kansas City, Kansas, Gaitan said she considers Jefferson City her home.
“Missouri definitely made me who I am, Jefferson City specifically,” she said.
Gaitan is a recruitment coordinator at Lincoln University, where she graduated in 2019 with a degree in criminal justice.
Her experiences at Lincoln and the networking opportunities it has brought along have been beyond rewarding, she said.
After graduating, Gaitan moved to Mississippi to get a master’s degree in marriage and family therapy. She soon put those plans on hold and moved back to the community she calls home.
“Because I live in Jefferson City and because I spent a majority of my young adult life here in Jefferson City, it only made sense to me to choose my titleholder to be Miss Capital City,” Gaitan said.
Gaitan began campaigning as Miss Capital City in October after the state pageant signaled she was selected to participate.
Since being selected, Gaitan has set her focus to fundraising, getting involved in community service projects and making appearances throughout Jefferson City.
Her first official appearance as Miss Capital City was in the Dec. 4 Jefferson City Jaycees Christmas Parade.
Gaitan is running on a platform she calls K.E.Y. to the Crown, which she said stands for Kindling the Excellence in You.
In addition to underscoring her commonly used nickname, Gaitan said it promotes a message of giving back.
“My whole point is to give back to the community the same way it was kind of given to me, but just in a greater capacity, whatever that might be,” she said. “I’m just kindling, or pushing, for other people to realize that they can kindle excellence in themselves and then showing that I can kindle excellence in myself. And then us, collectively, can kindle excellence in one another.”
Part of the message is also about avoiding regret, Gaitan explained. Although she didn’t go through with getting a master’s degree yet, Gaitan said the experience of moving and putting herself out there made her into the woman she is now.
Gaitan previously competed in the Miss Black and Gold pageant hosted by the local Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity chapter at Lincoln, which she won. She advanced and went on to also win the Missouri district level of the Miss Black and Old Gold pageant, which is hosted by the national fraternity organization.
“Just having those experiences, I had the time of my life,” Gaitan said. “So that’s what I look forward to with this one as well. Just having a good time going out and reminding people that regardless of how you look, regardless of how different you might be, you can still do anything you put your mind to.”
The Miss Missouri pageant begins with a preliminary competition April 30 in Branson. If Gaitan advances, she’ll compete in the Miss Missouri semifinals May 1.
The preliminary competition consists of three phases: active wear/swimsuit, evening gown and a panel-style interview. Between eight to 16 semifinalists are then chosen based on scoring.
Semifinalists compete in the active wear/swimsuit and evening gown competitions again to determine the five contestants who advance to on-stage interviews. The remaining five are ranked based on the overall impression they make on judges, and a Miss Missouri is chosen to represent the state in the Miss USA competition.
The competition doesn’t include a talent portion, but if it did, Gaitan said she would likely rely on her boxing experience.
“If I were to actually do a talent portion, I box in my free time,” she said. “I would likely put some type of boxing combination together.”
Gaitan boxes at Building Community Bridges, where she also practices her walk with the help of Khiara Brown and the Poise Search Fashion and Modeling Company.
Gaitan also does fitness training at BCB and the Linc in preparation for the Miss Missouri competition.
Gaitan said she’s getting new headshots done and getting better acquainted with local businesses and organizations. She also still has money to raise.
As of Thursday, Gaitan said she has fundraised a little more than a third of her $3,000 goal.
The money will primarily go toward buying what Gaitan will wear for the pageant, she said, including her active wear/swimsuit, interview outfits and dresses.
“Just making sure that I’m completely covered and not coming out of pocket for too much if I don’t have to, just because money is a little tight, and I am still learning how to adult right now,” Gaitan said.