By Stephen H. Cowles

Special to the News-Herald

Young girls will have an opportunity to display their sweet natures at the Southeast Miss Cupcake Pageant this spring. The inaugural event takes place in the Suffolk Center for the Cultural Arts. Directing will be the pageant’s founder, Brittany Cobb, a former Windsor resident.

“Since I have family here, it’s easy for me to coordinate an event,” said Cobb, whose parents, Karla and Timothy Cobb, still live in Windsor. Cobb, who lives in Las Vegas, added that the program is open to girls from infants to 15 years old, and living in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.

The pageant originally started in Las Vegas, she said, and has benefited a food bank in that city. At one event, a weekend was devoted to cupcakes that included a bake-off and an appearance by Justin Willman of the TV show “Cupcake Wars.”

For the pageant in Suffolk, there will be several categories in fun fashion wear, formal wear, photogenic, best personality and best smile, said Cobb, adding that the prize packages are valued at more than $7,000.

Ten different queens will be recognized, including Ultimate Cupcake Supreme. That winner will be able to compete in the contest in Las Vegas this summer.

Cobb knows all the steps for competing in pageants.

Her titles include Tiny Miss Suffolk 1990, Miss Isle of Wight County Fair 2000 and Miss Virginia American Teen 2001.

For girls who have never done a pageant before, Cobb stressed that they should go for a natural look — not a lot of glitz, just as they are.

“They should be well-groomed, of course,” she added.

Just before graduating from East Carolina University with a bachelor’s degree in hospitality management, Cobb got a summer internship in Las Vegas. She decided to move there and began her business, Fit for the Crown, in 2009.

She specializes in helping girls and young women develop resumes, modeling and interviewing.

But in her view, participating in pageant isn’t all about what the contestants can get, but what they can contribute to their communities.

“A crown on your head creates a bigger platform to have a presence in the community,” said Cobb. “Not that you can’t do great things on your own.”

The Southeast Miss Cupcake Pageant will take place April 12. The deadline to register is Monday.

For more details, visit Cobb’s website, www.fitforthecrown.com or call 702-629-6929.