Local Graduate To Compete For Miss Pennsylvania Title

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Jenna Martorana, a 2013 graduate of Owen J. Roberts High School (OJR), recently won the title of Miss Red Rose City 2021, which qualified her to compete for Miss Pennsylvania. Martorana will represent the city of Lancaster during the state pageant, to be held in York in June.

Because she was a college student in Lancaster County, Martorana first competed for the title of Miss Red Rose City in 2018 when she was a senior at Millersville University.

She graduated from Millersville University in 2018 with a degree in applied disability studies. She is currently a graduate student at Kutztown University, where she is studying for her master’s degree in school counseling.

For the talent portion of the upcoming pageant, she will perform a dance routine from color guard, complete with flags, that she perfected while a student at OJR. “I started baton twirling when I was 4. In the ninth grade they no longer had twirlers in the band, so I switched to color guard,” she said. “I am the only person doing color guard (as my talent).”

For the recent pageant, Martorana had to find a venue for the livestreamed program. She noted that four of the other competitors were singers, so they were able to perform at home.

“May 1 was the competition, and on April 23 I found out that the competition would not be in person; it would be virtual,” she explained. “I had to find a venue. I needed to have a lot of space for my talent. Schools would not let anybody in. (But) I was able to use my old church - Christ Church of the Valley - in Royersford.”

Because she has struggled with depression and anxiety, Martorana’s platform, which is now called a social impact initiative, is to bring awareness to mental health issues. The motto is “It’s Okay To Not Be Okay.”

“I started partnering with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) when I was Miss Red Rose City in 2018,” she said. “From that point on, I partnered with six local chapters of NAMI and NAMI Keystone, the state chapter, and I am president of the NAMI Club at Kutztown University. I am also a presenter of the NAMI ‘Ending the Silence’ program.”

“What I do the most with my title is share my story,” she added.

At the upcoming pageant, which will be held at the Appell Center for the Performing Arts in York from Thursday, June 17, through Saturday, June 19, the contestants will take part in a private interview, share their talent, model red-carpet wear and take part in an onstage interview, during which time they will talk about their social impact initiative.

If Martorana wins at the state level, she will advance to the Miss America pageant, to be held in Connecticut in December.

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