SEQUINS AND COMBAT BOOTS

Words

Alicia Underlee Nelson

Ms. North Dakota Laura Kleihauer is as comfortable in combat boots and fatigues as she is in a crown and heels. The Fargo resident won her title in Fargo in March and since then she’s balanced the demands of her title with her work as Director of Youth Development at YMCA of Cass and Clay Counties and her calling as a solider.

Laura has been a Military Police and Air Defense Officer with the North Dakota National Guard for three years. She also recently accepted a position as Family Readiness Group Lead for the North Dakota National Guard. So how do her fellow soldiers react to a beauty queen in their midst?

“It's funny seeing their physical reactions at first,” said Kleihauer. “When my soldiers first found out I was a title-holder they told me I did not look the part―until they saw my picture. But after they thought about it for a second they realized it was fitting for me, being that I am so involved in my community and a philanthropic individual. I just keep telling people life is always about new experiences and challenges and I am proud to be a part of an experience that is greater than me.”

Kleihauer had been a pageant contestant in the past, but hadn’t competed in eight years, concentrating instead on her education and her civilian and military career. She admitted that her experience is a little unorthodox for a pageant competitor, but sees her unconventional background as major asset.

“I do not consider myself ‘typical’ in the realm of pageant competition,” she said. “However, I believe that all my life experiences that have happened in the past eight years have made me more well-rounded and competitive.”

Her Ms. North Dakota platform―community connections with military service members and their families―will take her across the state in the coming months. She will work to establish relationships between communities, local business leaders and military units in their cities.

“Soldiers and their families need support not only when soldiers are away from home serving, but also when they are home and need to integrate back into society,” she said. “By establishing community connections, local businesses and organizations can help provide resources for soldiers cooping with mental and physical issues, help with financial and employment hardships and offer services and entertainment for their families.”

Balancing these very different worlds would be a challenge for anyone, but the new Ms. North Dakota takes it all in stride. “I am huge on priorities and I can thank the military for that!,” she said. “I would not take on anything in life that I could not handle. With that being said, everything has a place in life because life needs to be balanced. Everything makes me happy though. I love to stay super busy.”

Keeping busy won’t be a problem for Kleihauer in the coming months as she continues to add Ms. North Dakota engagements and appearances to her already busy schedule. She will serve as Ms. North Dakota until the spring of 2016. [AWM]