County Council recognizes Miss Washington, Brittney Henry

December 5, 2011

Summary

Councilmembers highlight her work with low-income children

Story

The Metropolitan King County Council had the honor of welcoming Brittney Henry, Miss Washington 2011, into Council Chambers today. The Council recognized Henry for her work with low-income school children.

“I am very proud to present Miss Britney Henry with this recognition, not only for her pageantry talents, but also for her work as an advocate for low income children,” said Councilmember Julia Patterson, the sponsor of the recognition. “It’s not every day you see such a young individual working so hard to break the cycle of poverty and advocating for the success of Washington children.”

Raised by a single mother, Henry was one the first members of her family to attend college. She began competing in pageants four years ago as a way to help her pay for tuition, and since then, has been awarded over $25,000 in scholarship assistance and multiple pageant titles.

Henry was crowned Miss Washington at the 2011 Miss Washington Ceremony on July 2, 2011. Her talent in the pageant was the fiddle, which she had been using to help raise money for her college tuition by playing it at the Pike Place Market after graduating high school. Since she understands the challenges facing low income children, Henry’s pageant platform was “Promoting Higher Education for Low Income Families.”

Henry is an active volunteer for various Washington State nonprofit organizations, including her work as an advisor, motivational speaker and fundraiser for the Northwest Learning and Achievement Group. The Northwest Learning and Achievement Group is a Washington State non-profit focused on helping underrepresented students obtain higher education. Henry uses her success story as a tool to inspire underrepresented students to achieve academic success.

Henry thanked Council for the recognition and said the challenges she faced growing up are no different than the challenges that “40,000 low-income children in Washington State are facing today.”

“We need to continue to support low-income students, so they will realize that they can obtain higher education,” said Henry.

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RECOGNITION

WHEREAS, Brittney Henry was crowned Miss Washington at the annual ceremony on July 2, 2011; and

WEHREAS, raised in a single-parent family, Ms. Henry worked as a janitor at age 15 to help support her mother and siblings; and

WHEREAS, with the guidance of a mentor, Ms. Henry was able to pursue higher education and become one of the first members of her family to attend college; and

WHEREAS, in order to help pay for college, Ms. Henry played the fiddle at the Pike Place Market in the summer months and began competing in pageants; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Henry has since been awarded four pageant titles and won the talent portion five times in various competitions, including the preliminary talent award at the 2011 Miss Washington Ceremony; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Henry has received multiple academic honors and nearly $25,000 in scholarship assistance; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Henry has served as a member of the Miss America program, which provides personal and professional opportunities for young women to promote their voices in culture, politics, and the community; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Henry has volunteered at more than ten nonprofit organizations promoting higher education for low-income families; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Henry has been an advisor, motivational speaker, and fundraiser for the Northwest Learning and Achievement Group, a Washington State non-profit organization helping underrepresented students obtain higher education;

NOW, THEREFORE, we, the Metropolitan King County Council, recognize

BRITTNEY HENRY

for her many achievements, her dedication to promoting higher education for low-income families and her involvement in volunteerism benefiting Washington State, and we commend her as an example and an inspiration to youth throughout King County.

DATED this fifth day of December, 2011.

Councilmembers join Brittney Henry, Miss Washington 2011, after recognizing Henry's commitment to working for and promoting higher education for low-income families.