(Amber Trillo was award the title of second runner-up, received a community service scholarship and was voted Miss Congeniality by the other contestants in the 2006 SEAFAIR Scholarship Program for Women last month. She is a Highline High School graduate, attended Highline Community College, and now is a photographer for Robinson Newspapers,)

Archaic, sexist and trite.

There are programs for women across the globe that I would describe this way. The SEAFAIR Scholarship Program for Women is not one of them.

While the program originated when a woman's success in life was tabulated by her bustline and oatmeal cookie recipe, the tradition of the scholarship program has always been to support diversity and community in the Puget Sound region.

For over 50 years, SEAFAIR has produced its annual scholarship program, growing and changing with the world around it.

During the heat of the women's movement, for example, the program allowed contestants to wear a pin instead of a tiara.

For decades, SEAFAIR Queens have represented many different backgrounds and nationalities.

Long before Vanessa Williams was crowned Miss America, or Halle Berry became the first African American woman to earn the Oscar for best actress, SEAFAIR was promoting diversity.

Former Miss Seafair 05-06 Melissa Parks was from Burien. She was voted most likely to succeed in my graduating senior class. But do I believe that is why she was successful in the SEAFAIR scholarship program? No.

Will she be more successful in the future because she was Miss Seafair? In my opinion, no.

Parks became Miss Seafair because she is already a success. She is successful at being herself, which is a stunningly beautiful person inside and out.

Her strengths outshine any title she may inherit and she is not confined by the social definitions of what makes success.

Parks will succeed, not because of who she was in the past but because of who she wants to be in the future. She has the power to achieve her dreams and positively influence those she meets along the way.

I am proud in knowing the SEAFAIR Scholarship Program upholds the mission of celebrating diversity and community spirit.

You see, I wasn't voted most likely to succeed. I didn't belong on the student council. And I was far from being an honor roll student.

When I graduated, I was the only girl in the senior guys' club, the KC's, because I didn't have "girlfriends."

I have not taken the "normal" path to my education or career, and I don't have a "performable" talent bone in my body.

However, I do know that, like Parks, I am not bound to any labels or titles from my past. I am collection of experiences and opportunities and I have strong goals for my future.

It is an honor to have been awarded a position on the SEAFAIR Royalty Court. This affirms my belief in-and support of-a program that seeks out diversity in personality, experience and lifestyle, not just heritage.

At this point I may sound too much like a SEAFAIR recruitment pamphlet. And I do take pride in my brutal honesty as a writer. So to get it out in the open, I would like to address what you, as the reader, may have seen during the course of this year's SEAFAIR Scholarship Program.

As participants we were given beautiful Jessica McClintock gowns at no cost to us, and Chevrolet graciously donates SSRs and Corvettes for our transportation.

We appear at local parades and festivals, waving, smiling and posing with small children (after fighting with one another over who will get to rip their crown off first and place it on the child's head).

I am currently the reigning SEAFAIR Miss Congeniality, and at this year's coronation ceremony I did adequately stitch a contestant into a dress, apply false eyelashes to another, and continually curl a third's hair until achieving a perfectly coifed concoction.

We were required to buy a pair of ostentatious clear pumps that will never again leave the depths of my closet, and I did wear pantyhose outside of my bi-annual Christmas and Easter routine.

I can see some of you rolling your eyes right now, but I assure you that none of the aforementioned events are any different than young women getting ready for their senior prom.

The coronation was only one night out of a summer of activities and growing experiences. I also assure you that during none of these events did I feel objectified as a woman, or that I was being traditionally oppressed by a societal-imposed gender role.

Why?

By dressing up, curling our hair, or riding on the back of a convertible, we have not lost any of who we are. We have only proved who we are-the embodiment of a modern woman.

We have not forfeited our power or surrendered our intelligence at the clasp of a Victoria's Secret push-up bra. We are powerful, goal-oriented individuals who happen to enjoy dressing up (even if it's only bi-annually for some of us).

Women in our society should not feel they have to choose between being beautiful and being powerful. One does not negate the other despite our societal perception.

None of the scholarship program coverage you may have seen this summer fully entails the experience each contestant was given or the core of what being a participant is really about. It is what happens behind the scenes that truly defines who we are.

That being said, I promise to reveal the top five things you can learn from a SEAFAIR participant, and I can tell you now, they don't involve a can of hairspray, the position of your hand while waving, or how to date a Blue Angel.

So please don't ask us about such things, because that, my friend, is oppressive!

I hope I am not the first person to tell you that electing the right representative for your organization is based on more than the physical image of that person.

Thankfully, SEAFAIR knows this. The representatives they choose each year coincidently happen to be attractive, but the real reason they are selected is because of what lies beneath their exterior.

Contestants competing for the Miss Seafair title are judged on their ability to be well balance, caring, intelligent, and active individuals in their communities who are wise and successful beyond their years.

The first lesson the illustrious Miss Seafair can teach society about life is balance.

In their early twenties, many of these contestants have achieved the ability to balance work, school, volunteerism, relationships and life. A goal that most of us incarcerated in the daily grind of life can only wish to achieve.

The second lesson you can learn from Miss Seafair is passion.

When was the last time you were asked not only to state but to prove your passion for something you believed in? As contestants, each young woman supports a platform or community service that she personally believes in and actively supports.

The third lesson from Miss Seafair is first impressions.

In real life scenarios, first impressions are everything. There is no coursework on the real world in college. No one informs you that after attaining your degree, you will be forced to prove yourself to future employers in 15 minutes or less. And no one tells about the pain you endure after bombing an important interview.

They also don't tell you that the real world will not offer prearranged internships with college affiliates for your academically proficient personality.

The fourth lesson is overcoming our jealousy.

I recently read a syndicated column that discussed women's secret hatred for other women. The columnist defined herself as a "chick-hater."

One significant reason why women have been less successful in the business world than men can be attributed to this jealousy. It is a feeling that many women in our society struggle with their entire lives. It is the feeling of inadequacy.

We feel that the success of another woman undermines our own personal attributes. That if the door is opened for one woman, her hips may magically expand to fill the door jam, thus keeping us from squeezing ourselves through.

We see this every day in our society. You are either team Jolie or team Aniston. In a situation that is not so discreet or masqueraded, such as a scholarship program, you are forced to deal with the fact that there will only be one winner and you may not be it.

But most contestants know they aren't any less of a person for not being that one winner. By participating in the program, the contestants are learning a lesson it takes some people their entire lives to accept.

The fifth lesson is not something the contestants possess as much as the overall program does. It is investing in our youth and supporting their success.

Teen crime rates have declined, teen drinking and teen pregnancy nationally are the lowest they have been in three decades, yet so many adults in our society still use youth as scapegoat for our society's problems.

We as a nation are so fortunate for today's youth because they represent a better future for America. We should applaud both the older generation of Americans for raising us, as well as our younger generation for exhibiting so much hope and ambition for a future with less prejudice, less anger and less distrust in one another.

The SEAFAIR participants represent the face of America. We are a blend of cultures and backgrounds, religions and beliefs. We are athletes, dancers, philosophers, journalists, karaoke superstars, and self-proclaimed geeks.

SEAFAIR is content with us just the way we are.

While we don't need the validation of SEAFAIR to continue being successful in our lives, it is nice to know someone cares, is listening to our voices, and supporting our goals.

It is amazing to stand among 16 of the most talented, intelligent and powerful young women in the Puget Sound region and visualize our future, knowing the opportunities truly are endless.

Congratulations to all the contestants on an amazing summer!

West Seattle should be so proud to have helped raise Miss Seafair, Erin Waid.

She exemplifies the type of leadership America needs. She is the girl next door, and she is a well-blended goddess of confidence and sincerity, with a genuine heart that will lead her to greatness.

Next time you see Waid be sure to shake her hand, because someday she will be Doctor Waid and if you're lucky your life may be in her hands.