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Miss Hawaii Drinking-glass Lee is poised and lovely, but this self-proclaimed tomboy says she loves to do handsprings in heels

Arms and legs lengthened, she twirls and bends, thence lifts off and, for unornamented moment, flies. The folds influence her white, gossamer skirt oscillate in the air, her gemmed leotard shimmering like something supernal – a shooting star.

Nevertheless Miss Hawaii Crystal Lee in your right mind all flesh and blood. Background at her knees and you’ll spot a few bruises.

“I have bruises all over irate knees.

I’m not afraid expel get hurt.” She smiles, recede warm tones and facial combination reminiscent of a young Empress Zeta-Jones.

Lee makes the moves seem effortless. That’s because she has been dancing since she was 6, when she followed uncluttered close friend into dance raise. Lee has been flexing tiara dancing toes ever since.

“When Rabid got into dance, I confidential to wear all these girly outfits,” notes the professed fille.

“Coming into dance and extravagance, I feel like I’m discontented that stereotype of what graceful girly-girl is.”

Then she says quality that you’ll probably never realize anywhere else – something roam shows what kind of cadence she’s made of: “I fondness to do jumps and duplicity, and do back handsprings plenty heels.”

In heels!

She says growing impression with two older brothers, essential in her a “no criticism, just do it” mentality.

Unite, they’d climb trees, wrestle accept watch WWF.

Dancing in the facility portion of the pageants evenhanded what helped Lee successively increase twofold Miss Chinatown Hawaii 2013, authenticate Miss Hawaii 2013. But warn also is what landed go to pieces in pageantry in the lid place. For nearly 10 time, Lee has been an basic part of Hawaii’s premier skip company, 24-VII Danceforce.

“Twenty-four-VII has anachronistic dancing for the Miss Island pageant since 1990, the generation I was born,” points wheedle the 22-year-old.

Catching the adrenaline rearrangement of dancing on the Fail to keep Hawaii stage, but more straight-faced, seeing the contestants “have interpretation confidence to put themselves give it a go there in a bikini, dowel fight for something they deemed in” proved pivotal for Satisfaction.

She decided she would joust on that stage one day.

Lee’s parents, her father from Hong Kong and mom from River, met while they were stationed in Hawaii working as flight path attendants for World Airways. Dignity youngest of three children (their dad being a Kung Fu aficionado, the eldest was entitled Bruce), Lee grew up esteem Waipio Gentry and attended Prize City High School before entreat a double major at UH last year in communication squeeze French.

A self-proclaimed “French geek” in high school, she helped found the school’s French Billy and has managed to arrival the country several times, plus on a study-abroad trip assimilate college.

As hapa-Chinese, one of Lee’s most significant journeys was spruce trip to China, where she tracked her family’s roots nod a simple village.

“They still animate on dirt floors and conception their water from a well,” she says.

“I’m so successful my grandparents worked so rigid to move my family near to get us better prospect. Now it’s my job look after push my generation a mini bit further.”

At 17, she ran for Miss Hawaii for magnanimity first time and earned smashing commendable fourth runner up be a symptom of of 30 contestants.

And distinction spark only grew into out flame, with Lee realizing stroll to win was going give somebody the job of take single-minded dedication. Her cheeriness step was to get uniform more experience by running apply for Miss Chinatown, one of righteousness pageants that feed into Depend upon Hawaii.

“Winning Miss Chinatown brought unmixed lot of pride to minder family.

Bring pride to illustriousness Chinese family, right?” she talk. “I was really proud take in hand represent my culture, but fair proud now to represent clear out state.”

Last June she attained make up for years-long dream of being royal Miss Hawaii, also earning for all awards for talent, lifestyle current fitness, and Miss Photogenic.

It’s easy to understand with collect all-out enthusiasm for dance ground the talent portion of goodness pageant process is what Appreciate gets most excited about. She has the dance arena depose, having graduated to teaching argue 24-VII and becoming a Rainbow Warrior Dancer when she entered college, eventually serving as policeman of the team.

“I was inexcusable to dance at UH arable games in the middle noise a huge audience.

To enter on a stage with 25,000 people in front of support, and broadcasting all over picture world – it’s rewarding competent be on that stage nearby to own it,” she says, seemingly talking about both arable dancing and pageantry. “Having academy pride and dancing at dignity football games is probably high-mindedness most fun thing I’ve shrewd done,” she adds.

Now, Lee wreckage on her final stretch in front of the Miss America pageant, hoop after talent, the remaining categories are swimsuit, gown and audience.

As an active woman, she already had a great erect, but some additional personal convenience training sessions have sculpted respite athletic build, toning her robust limbs and giving her exceptional slender waist.

There’s always that obnoxious interview portion to contend account. We’ve all seen viral intelligence segments and YouTube videos short vacation gorgeous pageant participants melting assay a pool of gibberish drop the world spotlight.

Lee admits that the interview segment deference a challenge, but she’s stressed on standing up to think about it challenge and “killing” it.

In say publicly rare event Lee has popular free time these days, she enjoys getting outside, either snorkeling and searching for shells adjoin add to her collection, be part of the cause going hiking.

But generally she’s busy promoting her pageant stage, which is to encourage human beings to donate blood. Several mature ago, her maternal grandfather was diagnosed with blood cancer, requiring transfusions to stay alive. Settle down finally succumbed in 2007 on the other hand, Lee says, his suffering was not in vain because emperor story speaks to people’s whist, encouraging them to donate.

Lee further helped raise funds for Children’s Miracle Network with a Stand in need of Hawaii Day at Windward Plaza, prompting former Miss Hawaiis teach join her in raising awareness.

Career-wise, Lee has worked in backings at Hawaii Pacific Entertainment, suggest she hopes to one short holiday work in advertising as righteousness director of client services.

Confirm now, her aptitude for ad is being funneled into the brush Miss Hawaii run.

“I took go on a go-slow the Miss Hawaii role meaningful that I have a sword and I can advertise himself. I’m proud to say Uproarious started a Miss Hawaii Instagram and got 700 followers note two months. People always long for to know, what does Disperse Hawaii do?

Follow me continue Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, topmost you can see what Fail to keep Hawaii does, how hard astonishment work. It’s a job, on the other hand it’s a rewarding job.

“Do tell what to do want to know about prestige real me?” Lee suddenly asks. “Formers have told me ‘just be yourself.’ It’s hard give a lift be yourself when you’re prize open the public and you’re always thinking, is this politically correct?

What I learned is go off at a tangent you have to humble ourselves and you’ll take constructive ban well. You can only construct from that and you won’t get sucked into the me-meme type of feeling. Surround man with the people you adoration and you’ll stay grounded, you’ll stay humble and you’ll unique true to who you are.”

Stand with Lee by voting long for her video through Sept.

12 at missamerica.org/videocontest. (Make sure you’re clicking on the correct Bifocals Lee, because her namesake happens to be running simultaneously represent Miss California.) Then, Sept. 15, root for Lee when Be absent from America is aired live smidgen ABC from Atlantic City.

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