Katherine McQuade, a Whitestone resident who was crowned Miss Vermont USA 2026 last month, is officially on her way to compete in the Miss USA Pageant in Miami, Florida, on Aug. 27 during the pageant’s 75th Diamond Anniversary competition — a dream come true for the once extremely shy young girl.
The annual event will be broadcast on the CW Network, where audience members from Queens and around the country can watch Katherine compete against 50 other contestants, representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Whoever wins the title will reign for one year, becoming a Miss USA ambassador and attending charity events, public interviews, brand endorsements and various industry functions. The Miss USA organization also provides business grants and scholarships to women and girls around the country.
While Katherine and her mother, Karen McQuade, always described her as a timid child, pageantry has not only led to an insurmountable rise in Katherine’s confidence, but now a once-in-a-lifetime shot at representing the United States in the Miss Universe Pageant in Puerto Rico this November.
It is statistically more likely for a parent to have a son who plays in the National Football League than a daughter who competes in the Miss USA pageant.
“It’s a full circle moment,” Katherine said. “Now, I’m competing at the Super Bowl of pageants. It’s a very, very big deal. It’s really special, and I’m just so excited.”
If she wins, Katherine said she hopes not only to create an “endless scroll” of kindness on her “Katherine’s Kindness Campaign” initiative on Instagram, but to utilize the crown and banner as a microphone to advocate for things important to her community.
McQuade has dedicated over 6,400 hours to community service, spreading awareness about pancreatic cancer, dyslexia and childhood bullying. Photo courtesy of Katherine McQuade
Katherine — a model, author, advocate, four-time national titleholder and professional working as a client relations specialist at a New York City national law firm — is a 16-time President’s Volunteer Service Award Gold Medal recipient, as well as a recipient of the Lifetime Presidential Award for Volunteer Service for completing over 6,400 hours of community service.
Despite holding the title of Miss Vermont USA, Katherine is a lifelong resident of Whitestone. After a change of directorship at Miss USA this year, the organization couldn’t host pageants in some states and instead posted a casting call allowing women around the country to apply.
Women must be at least 18 years of age, a U.S. citizen, medically recognized as female and, normally, must be a resident, full-time college student or retain full-time employment in the state in which they compete for the title.
However, this year’s rules removed residency requirements for certain state titles, which Katherine said was very unusual but allowed her to compete for one of eight open spots representing those respective states.
She elicited the help of her work colleagues, childhood and college classmates and even previous dance teachers to vote for her throughout the competition.
“It was extremely inspiring to see how many people truly do support me and are in my corner,” Katherine said. “To see people rally around me and support this dream and journey to the Miss USA crown really made me feel so loved and seen in such a unique way.”
After making it through multiple rounds of voting, which were cast by citizens across the country, she finally made it to the judges’ panel review.
She submitted an introduction video where she spoke about herself and what she believed in, and then a walking compilation video, which were judged by former Miss USA title holders.
She then waited for what she described as the “longest four days of my life” before receiving an email that said she was selected to represent Vermont on the national stage this year.
“The two of us were jumping up and down,” Karen said when she and Katherine found out. “I was getting ready to cry because that’s my child’s dream and it actually came to fruition. It’s such a surreal feeling. She ran across the floor in the house like 16 times before she laid down in my bed, face down with her arms outstretched, and said, ‘I need a minute.’”
Jackie Watson, retired founder of the USA National Miss scholarship pageants, who has known Katherine since 2015, said she was “not at all surprised” Katherine won the state title.
“I honestly always knew this was her journey,” said Watson. “She’s just such an incredible human being and title holder. Her work ethic is just beyond anything I’ve seen in pageantry.”
While many think pageantry is all about the glitz and glamor, focusing only on beauty standards, Katherine said it’s a different story these days. Instead, competitions focus more on a holistic approach to the girls and women who compete, highlighting community service accomplishments and their aspirations for the future.
For example, Katherine said she is a proud ambassador of the Lustgarten Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research, as well as creator and founder of “Promoting Hope — Potholders for Pancreatic Cancer Awareness.” She founded it in honor of her grandmother, Genevieve Bonura, with whom she was very close with, but who eventually died of pancreatic cancer in 2005 when Katherine was still a child. She has raised over $10,000 for the cause.
Katherine herself has dyslexia and recently published “Dexter the Dyslexic,” a storytelling coloring book about a cat that just learned he has dyslexia, which she said is intended to show children that sometimes what they think are weaknesses can actually be their superpower.
She even created “Katherine’s Kindness Campaign” to encourage volunteerism, dispel bullying and instill kindness in young children today.
McQuade has raised over $10,000 for pancreatic cancer research. Photo courtesy of Katherine McQuade
One thing Katherine said many people don’t know about pageants is that while the women look polished on stage, there are many long hours of campaigning, late-night workouts, interview prep and year-round volunteering that got them there.
Katherine said behind the scenes, the girls and women she’s competed with have become some of her closest friends. She met one of those friends, Kaylin Mouchawar, in 2007 and remains friends with her to this day.
“I’m so grateful to pageantry and meeting such incredible women,” Katherine said. “We’re very like-minded individuals and challenge each other to become better. Yeah, it’s a competitive sport, but everyone is just so supportive of each other. Sisterhood is a special thing within pageantry.”
But Katherine wasn’t always as outgoing as she is today.
Karen recalled Katherine’s very first pageant, National American Miss (NAM), in 2007. She said she received a letter in the mail for an open call for the pageant and promptly investigated what it was all about before presenting the idea for Katherine, who was 10 at the time, to try out.
“She was so painfully shy — if somebody asked her a question, she wouldn’t even look at them,” Karen said of her daughter. “But she did dance, and when she would go on stage to actually perform, I was like, ‘Who is this kid?’”
Katherine said she and her mother did not know what to expect, so the two made a deal. If Katherine didn’t like it, she would never do it again. “Of course, I loved it,” Katherine said.
NAM provides college scholarships to girls and women between the ages of 4 and 39. Competitions are broken up into age categories, and Katherine competed in the pre-teen category with 240 girls aged 10 to 12.
Girls were expected to deliver a bold personal introduction, after which they would compete in an evening gown competition and then take part in a round-robin-style interview.
Karen remembered Katherine getting nervous just before going on stage, telling her mother that she just couldn’t do it. She said she asked Katherine two questions — could she walk and talk? Katherine responded ‘yes’ to both.
Suddenly, one of the other contestants came over and assured Karen that she could talk Katherine through it.
Katherine eventually placed in the top 20, an impressive feat for her very first pageant. She even won the title of “Cover Girl,” after which Karen said she and Katherine locked eyes.
“I could see the wheels turning when they put the crown on her head,” she said. “She didn’t know what to do, where to put her arms out for the banner or accept the flowers because she was totally overwhelmed. But I read her little mind and thought, ‘Uh oh, this is her new happy place.’”
McQuade after being crowned Cover Girl at her first National American Miss pageant in 2007. Photo courtesy of Katherine McQuade
She said she and her daughter reviewed the tapes like they were “going to the NFL,” studying them to figure out what she was doing right and where she could improve.
From there, Karen said she financially supported Katherine through each competition, occasionally sacrificing things she wanted to do in order to support her daughter’s dreams — which she has no regrets doing. “It’s been such a bonding experience between her and I. It’s been our thing,” she said.
By the time Katherine was 19 — when Watson had first met her — she was a master at marketing and bringing good press to NAM.
“I can very confidently say that I have never seen a title holder out there literally every single day promoting the organization,” Watson said. “Whether it was through appearances, social media initiatives, her marketing and branding, it was just genius.”
Katherine eventually won the NAM beauty pageant, which Watson oversaw at the time. That is why Watson said she is confident Katherine would be the perfect choice for Miss USA — she is dedicated to each and every organization she campaigns for.
“I think she would be an incredible asset to Miss USA or any organization, whether career or pageantry,” Watson said. “I’ve never seen anything like it in pageantry.”
Watson, who has stayed close with Katherine and her mother for the past decade and has supported her through many of her pageant pursuits, said she is always in Katherine’s corner and will continue to be one of her biggest cheerleaders.
“I would love to see her take the Miss USA crown,” Watson said. “I think she would be an iconic title holder and would not only bring positive light to the organization, but also make it very impactful and meaningful for everyone because she’s so devoted to making others feel like the queen instead of her. She shines light onto others.”
When she first started competing, Katherine said she was very hard on herself and described herself as a “perfectionist.” However, since then, she said she switched her mindset and now pursues personal excellence instead of perfectionism.
Karen said that regardless of whether her daughter wins the title of Miss USA, she knows Katherine will still come back to Queens a winner.
“You’re always coming away a winner because you always learn something else about yourself or what you need to do to be better,” Karen said. “Each one is a learning experience.”
“You’re going to hear a lot of ‘Nos’ — and I mean a lot,” Katherine said. “It can be very disappointing and challenging. But through every ‘No,’ it’s kind of the fuel I use to really enhance myself and truly make myself into the best version of Katherine. Not a perfect version, but the best version of me. Someone I know 10-year-old me is proud of and hopefully future me will be proud of.”
Katherine McQuade. Photo courtesy of Katherine McQuade