ExclusiveBeyond the Crown: Miss California’s Real Journey

And I turned around and my skirt knocked over the whole podium. The crown flew across the stage, I'm not even kidding. Chairman of the board, so Donna Jones, State Director for Miss California, they looked horrified. The whole audience was silent, pins and needles, because I had just knocked the 100th anniversary crown on the ground. Our Bay Area Innovator today is the current Miss California 2024, Kimberly Vernon. From growing up in Santa Clara to performing across the country with the Santa Clara Vanguard, Kimberly's journey is as inspiring as it is unique. She won the state crown on her fourth try during Miss California's 100th anniversary and used her platform to champion dance, theater, and access the arts for all. In this episode, she opens up about what really happens behind the scenes in pageantry, how setbacks shape her path, and what keeps her grounded under pressure as she works to inspire the next generation. This is Bay Area Innovators, and I'm your host, Steve Esparza. Kimberly, welcome to our program. Thank you for having me. Well, first, congratulations. You're the current Miss California. Big thing, big, big deal. You've been running for four years. You showed a lot of perseverance to actually get this title, and now you have it, and you'll still have it for another month, I think. Can you please tell us a little bit about your journey? How did you end up doing the pageant? Oh, okay. So if I'm going to talk about my journey, I have to start back when I was 16. I never saw myself as someone who wanted to compete in pageants. And at the time, I was a junior in high school, and my performing arts program, my color guard program in my high school had just been cut. And so I really... The dance program was cut? It was a color guard. So it's flag dance, tossing rifles and sabers in the air. And our winter guard program was cut due to lack of funding my junior year. And so... Was it in Santa Clara? Mm-hmm. It was at Santa Clara High School. We didn't have that program for a couple years. Another story is I helped coach on the other side years later, but that's not part of this journey. So I also danced outside of school. And so I was leading dance class one day when I was 16, and my dance teacher, Miss Linnea, came up to me, and she asked if I'd ever be interested in competing in a pageant. And I was very, very hesitant. I really... I'd seen toddlers in tiaras. I was like, I don't think that's for me. And she's like, well, just so you know, it's a scholarship program. Like you can learn... You can earn thousands of dollars in scholarship. You love to perform. You're really involved in school. I think you'd be a great fit. So I talked to my mom about it, and this was right before my first year of competing in drum corps that summer. So I was going to be gone all summer. And so I knew that I couldn't even win the pageant, because if you win the local level, you then go on to the state competition. So I talked to my mom about it, and we thought, you know, let's just try it. Let's just try something new. And so I competed at 16 years old. I went into the interview phase of competitions. I looked at all the judges and said, just so you all know, I can't actually win this. I'm just here for fun. They looked at me like, wait, what? But I had such an amazing time. And then at that local competition, this was the Miss Santa Clara, Miss Silicon Valley competition. I met Crystal Lee, and she won Miss Silicon Valley. So there's a teen division and a Miss division. So she won Miss Silicon Valley. And then in the span of four months, she then won Miss California. And then three months later, she was first runner up at Miss America. And for 16-year-old me to see another Asian-American woman who also was a ballerina, who was a double or triple major at Stanford University, and was just such an incredible role model for me when I was 16, pretty much every misconception I had about pageantry at that point shifted. And I knew that I wanted to come back and compete. And I didn't come back for seven years. I went, marched drum corps every single summer. And then once I aged out of marching with the Santa Clara Vanguard, I decided, you know, I've always had this inkling of wanting to compete in a pageant again. So I competed in 2020 for Miss Santa Clara. And I won Miss Santa Clara County. And that was on May 15, 2020. So it was the day before everything shut down. But it really opened so many doors for me. And then in 2021, that year, the pageant was put on hiatus because of COVID. I went to Miss California for the first time. I didn't place. I didn't walk away with any awards or any trophies. But I had such an amazing experience. And I thought I was aging out. But then they increased the age. So I competed three more years. Miss Santa Clara County, Kimberly Vernon. And our first runner up is Miss San Fernando Valley, Michaela Harris. She came as Miss Santa Clara County. She is leaving as your Miss California 2024. Three more years and I won in 2024. So it was a long time coming from 16 to winning at 27. Please tell us, what was it that you liked the most when you competed? Was it the camaraderie, the friendship, the competition itself? What did you like the most? I love, I've loved every single year I've gone to Miss California. I feel like every year I've gained something different out of it. In 2021, so that was the pandemic year. It was pretty much only focused on competition. We didn't have many events and as much production behind the scenes as we did. So I really got to know a lot of the girls in that year. And I grew a lot in myself. And I grew a lot in my able to brand and market myself, especially since I wasn't able to go out and do the in-person appearances that typically you do when you're a title holder. Because of COVID. Because of COVID, yeah. And so that first year, I kind of just thought it'd be my one and done. You know, I always had this dream of going to Miss California. I finally made it to Miss California. Even in a pandemic year, I just tried to make the most of it. And then my second year, I didn't think I would have that year because they increased the age. So I was suddenly eligible to compete again. And so that year, I feel like that year I was the most relaxed. My first year, I put a lot of pressure on myself. Like, this is my one year. Like, I've got to, I got to do this. I have to do everything. I have to put so much pressure on myself to perform well in the competition. And then the second year, I was like, I didn't think I was going to be here. And so I just was so calm that week. I made some really amazing close friends. We still have a group chat from 2022. And we chat every single day. They're all going to my wedding in a month. And I just really got to create such close bonds with, again, the women I competed with. And then in 2023, I won the title of Miss Santa Clara. And that year was really special because specifically the title, the city title of Miss Santa Clara was the one I always wanted. Because you're from here. Because I'm from Santa Clara. And that's where we are right now. Yeah, that's where we are right now. But yeah, so just to go back to in 2023, I won Miss Santa Clara. I'd always wanted to win that title. There's a great lineage and sisterhood of women who've held that title. Miss Linneo, who I talked about earlier, my dance teacher, she was a Miss Santa Clara back in 1997. And so I just really dreamed of having that title. And it wasn't really about becoming Miss California. I wanted to do well at Miss California. And I made top 12 that year. So that was extra special. And so that title holds a really special place in my heart. And I thought I was done. I was like, I got my dream title. I was Miss Santa Clara. I got to do every appearance I wanted to do as Miss Santa Clara. I went to the Art and Wine Festival. I did the dance recital that I always grew up seeing the Santa Clara at. I'm good. And then it was announced that the 100th anniversary competition for Miss California was happening. And I thought about it for a long time. And I was really going back and forth thinking like, you know, I made top 12 last year. I had a really good run the past three years competing. Like, do I really want to go back a fourth time? And I knew I just didn't want to miss out on that opportunity and live with the what-ifs of if I didn't go back to Miss California. So at that point, the competition for the local season was over. But they do have an opportunity to apply to go at large. And so that's what I did. I applied to represent Santa Clara County. I couldn't be Santa Clara again. I really didn't want to have that title again. But I applied to represent Santa Clara County because, again, representing my roots and my community was really important to me. And that year they didn't have a Miss Santa Clara program because the director, her son, was unfortunately going through some health issues. And so I applied to represent Santa Clara County. And this year I went in thinking like, OK, my fourth year, I'm really going to give it my all. This is officially my last year competing because I will be aging out and I am now engaged and I need to get married next year. But I'm going to give it my all. And I'm really going to try to go for the Miss California title and represent our state at Miss America. So it was really a different mindset of going into that competition of wanting to make top 12 or just wanting to make the most of the experience and having a really specific goal of wanting to walk away as Miss California that I think really helped change my preparation going to Miss California. And you won. And I won. And you won, yeah. Yeah. And well, first of all, you said May 15 was the first time you won in 2020, right? March 15th. Oh, March 15th, March 15th. Yeah. OK. And then the next day I was at work and they said, go home, everybody, we're working from home. And I was like, yes, for two weeks. And I was like, OK. And then it was for a couple of months. Everybody worked from home. Tell us about the pressure. How do you how did you deal with the pressure? Because, you know, sometimes, of course, you were 16 the first time. But even in your 20s, right, there's so much pressure. And, you know, to do well, to perform well. How do you and other girls deal with it? What's what's the best way to do it? I mean, we all deal with pressure differently. For me, let me think about this. I would say that centering myself and finding my breath before every phase of competition is a really great way to help relieve that pressure. And even before we go into the interview, that's I think one of the most nerve wracking parts of the competition. Every other phase of competition, whether it's the evening gown phase, the onstage question is also very nerve wracking. But my mindset, I'll think, OK, you know, it's a 30 second answer. It's going to be over. There's a beginning. There's a middle. There's an end. The end is near. But before the 10 minute interview, which is the very first phase of competition, you do that, I would say is when at least for me personally, my nerves are the highest. And so when we're in that room before we walk into the interview with the judges, I have my binder of my paperwork. I'll read over my paperwork. And for me, what I love about pageants, I think it's a really great opportunity for self reflection and self betterment. I've seen myself grow so much over the past five years competing in nearly every aspect of my life, from my health, from my ability to balance and manage a lot of different things on my plate to even my public speaking and my opportunities of networking. And so really having the opportunity to think about the growth I've had, to think about the work I've done in the community and the stories I want to tell is how I tried to gather myself before I went into that 10 minute interview. And now you're a big promoter and supporter of arts. Yes. Right. And you're involved with different organizations, different groups. But before I go into that, I want to talk about the moment when you and the other girl, you're holding hands, right? And they're announcing who's going to win. And of course, you became very emotional after you won. Can you walk us through what did it feel like? How are those moments? Before I get to that moment, we were one of 40 women or 44 women competing last year. So it goes from 44 to 12 to five. And when you're in that top five moment, they ask you an onstage question. So you have another onstage question. And so when I was in that moment, I answered my question and I walked around and you see my crown right here. It was on a similar podium that was a lot smaller. And I turned around and my skirt knocked over the whole podium. The crown flew across the stage. I'm not even kidding. And I was mortified. It was one of those moments where I looked out at the audience and at the judges. And the first people I locked eyes with were the chairman of the board. So Donna Jones and the state director from Miss California. They looked horrified. The whole audience was silent, pins and needles, because I had just knocked the 100th anniversary crown on the ground. Did that help relieve stress? Because I would think it probably would. I don't know. Oh, my goodness. That was just one of those things where I sit back and I know myself as a person. I'm a very relaxed person. I'm a very clumsy person. So it was surprising and also not surprising, because I was like, you know, this would happen to me. So then when we got to... That was the very last thing the judges saw before they wrote their final scores on the paper. So I was like, I feel like I did so well throughout this whole week. If that's the thing that stops me from doing well in this competition, I can't believe that just happened. And so going back to your original question of what did it feel like when we're in that top five and they're going from five to four to three to two. Once I hit that two, I was just like, I cannot believe I'm here. And it's a really interesting and intimate experience to have with you and that first runner up person, because we're just staring at each other like, what is happening? What is happening? I think any pageant you watch, girls are having those same experiences. And Michaela, who is my first runner up, she's amazing. She's very similar to me, where she's very bubbly, very go with the flow. And we were actually very close to each other backstage in the dressing room. It was her and then Miss San Francisco and then me. So it was really nice to get to share the whole week with her and then share that last moment with her. And she's amazing. Do you think she feels jealous? What do you think the feelings are at that moment? Because you're like best friends or you're kind of equal, but then something kind of changes, right? I mean, I haven't talked to her about the experience, but every time I've walked away from Miss California with or without the crown again, I competed for four years before I actually won. I actually, going back, I have a video. And for every year I've competed at Miss California, I happen to be in the back of the two girls getting crowned. And I think any crowning moment is really exciting. And it really is a sisterhood. There's a really negative stereotype of pageant women being snarky and mean, but it's kind of the opposite of the fact. And she's amazing. We've hung out after Miss California too. I had a small going away party when I was in SoCal and she was there. And she's awesome. Now, you were with Vanguard for many years, and I wonder your experience there and everything you did, do you think it helped to do better with Miss California? Tell us about it. That's a pretty intense competition, right? So I marched drum corps with the Santa Clara Vanguard for six years. I marched for two years in the Vanguard Cadets when I was 16 and 17. And then from the age of 18 to 21, I marched with the World Class Corps. So what that looks like is they're actually starting the season right now. So you move in to a space to rehearse for all days in spring training. So we're having 8 a.m. to 9 or 10 p.m. rehearsals, so 12-hour rehearsals outside. It's a very physically taxing activity. And then once you go through your spring training, you're then on the road to perform the show that you've created across the country. I've been to nearly 30 states in our country. And a large part of that is because I marched drum corps. And just for the audience, the Vanguard is a marching band, but kind of more exciting than a normal marching band, right? It's a drum and bugle corps, so it marches under Drum Corps International. It's not affiliated with any university or high school. It's its own separate performing arts nonprofit. And so what Vanguard is, is there is a horn line, there's a drum line, and then there's a color guard. I was a member of the color guard. So that's dancing, tossing flags and rifles and sabers, all on a football field in the hot, hot summer. And my first year actually marching in the A Corps, so the World Class Corps, I was an alternate. And so that's essentially an understudy position where I was still there for the all days. I was still there through the hot, hot rehearsals in the sun when you're just over and you just don't want to continue performing. But when you have a position on the show, you at least have that to look forward to. For me, I never knew when I'd have that opportunity to perform. And so that experience specifically, that was the summer of 2015, was probably one of the most emotionally, physically, and mentally draining things I've ever done in my life. But I grew so, so much that year. I actually did have the opportunity to perform multiple times in the show. I was the most improved member that year in the color guard. And then come my last year of marching with the Santa Clara Vanguard, I was the soloist in their show. That was in 2018. We had a show called Babylon and it won the world championship for Drum Corps International. So that was a really great experience for me going from being in the alternate position, feeling like I was the weakest link on the team to then having this amazing dream come true, age out year. What I noticed a lot about the pageantry, the different girls who do this, is that they have a lot of different talents. Oh, yeah. Do you think it's always been like that? Or it's more recent that there's this amazing talent that happens? You know, I did a lot of research on Miss America and its history, leading up to competing for both Miss California and Miss America. And so the talent phase of competition, I don't remember exactly what year it was introduced. I can't even guess off the top of my head. But there have been incredibly talented women who've gone through this organization. I wouldn't say it's just been the past few years. I'd say it's in the past few decades. Just to name a few in my lineage as Miss California, Miss California 2007, Ariana Afsar, I believe 2007. She was Eliza in Hamilton in Chicago. And Crystal Lee, who I talked about earlier, she was a ballerina. And there have been multiple, multiple Miss Californias, because again, Hollywood. Women who've held the title and then gone on to be in movies. Leigh Merriweather, Miss California, I believe 1955. She was Catwoman, one of the original Catwomen. So it's amazing. What was your most exciting appearance in a performance or in a pageantry? Okay. I mean, I hope this counts. It's got to be going to Miss America. I went to Miss America over Christmas and New Year's. Last year, right? Yeah, this past year. So the turn of the year. It was in Orlando, Florida. And just having the opportunity to meet such incredible women from across our country and to learn about the amazing things that they've done in their lives. And then having the opportunity, you know, it is a pageant. So we got to get dressed up. We got to go do a lot of really exciting events while we're at Miss America. That was definitely a highlight of my year. And Abby Stockard, the young woman who won Miss America. She's from Alabama. She had a homecoming in February. So I also went over to Alabama in February. And it was kind of a really fun reunion with all the women who I met at Miss America. And now it was a very, like, low stakes, relaxed get together. And it was really fun. Now, you're also involved with dance, theater and choreographing. Are you still doing that? And tell us about your experience with dance. I went to college in Southern California at Cal State Fullerton. And I double majored in theater, cinema, television, arts and minored in American studies. So after I graduated, I worked in arts education. So I've worked with numerous arts nonprofits throughout our state. And a lot of my work was bringing arts programs to Title I schools or schools with lower socioeconomic communities. And so that is really what fueled my drive in competing. Because I started my service initiative of Arts for All and advocating for my students who I've seen have their lives be transformed through the arts. And so I love theater. And I love seeing how something as simple as a production of Aladdin Jr. at an elementary school can really change the lives of a group of children. What would you say you found out doing the pageantry, like stuff that happens behind the scenes? What was your biggest surprise? Something that you didn't expect is going to be there. Let me think about it. I can think of, like, funny little things. Like the camaraderie again with a friend, the friendships. Is that something that you expected or it was more than you expected? I would definitely say the camaraderie amongst the women was more than I expected. In 2022, the year Captain Leang won Miss California, that was the year I really formed such an incredible friendship with a group of women. We still have a group chat on our phones. I think we call it SF Queens because I think half of us live in San Francisco or near San Francisco. They are the sweetest group of women you will ever meet. And they really defy every misconception people might have about pageantry because the women who I've grown closest with in competing really did compete for the service aspect of holding a title. And we each have our own service initiatives that we advocate for, whether it's mental health or whether it's literacy or for me, it's arts education. But to be connected with a group of women who, again, we all have our different cause we advocate for, but we all advocate so strongly for them. It's something we definitely bonded over. What was the biggest sacrifice that you did in order to make it happen for the pageantry? That's a hard question. Because to me, again, That's actually a good thing. You don't think you have to sacrifice a lot. I would say it's hard to say I've had to sacrifice anything for competing because I've grown so much in the experience. Like I had to sacrifice a lot of free time. But why did I have to sacrifice free time? Because I was volunteering at these different service events or because I was trying to be really healthy and go to the gym or I was trying to connect with others. And so I think that's really how I view pageants as a whole is it's an opportunity to grow yourself in every facet of your life. And that's kind of what also kept me coming back because I saw how much growth I had the year before and I was excited to keep growing from where I was the year before. Give us a sense. How do you train? How do you get ready for a competition? What's the work you have to do? So the phases of competition, there is an interview portion that's worth I believe 30% of the score. There's a talent portion. There's a fitness portion. There's an evening portion. And then there's an on-stage question which kind of is very similar to the interview. And so you have to prepare many different aspects of your life. For the evening gown and the modeling phases for fitness, I went to the gym a lot. I really focused on improving my health. And then for the talent page, I'm a dancer. So I was in the studio a lot and I love dance. It's always been a foundation in my life. So as an adult, we don't have as many opportunities to perform like I did when I was in elementary, middle, and high school. I'd have a yearly recital and I was in dance class multiple times a week. So being able to fall back in love with dance was a really fulfilling aspect of preparation. And then for the interview phase, well, there's a lot that goes into that. Usually with directors or committee members, we'll set up mock interviews. It's a 10-minute interview where they can ask you anything. They can ask you political questions. They can ask you about your goals for the future. They can ask you about the future and current work you've done in your community and your goals as a title holder, whether that's a local title holder or as Miss California or as Miss America. And so to prepare for that interview, yes, you have to do a lot of mock interviews, but you also have to put in the work in yourself and improving yourself. So what that looked like for me was really volunteering a lot and getting in the communities. I previously worked in many schools doing arts education and theater and dance and teaching. And so being able to share the stories of the students I've had was a big part of my preparation and being able to put their stories out in the world so people know how important, at least for me, how important arts education is. What kind of dance do you do? Ooh, okay. So for my talent, I did a jazz dance. So I always think of jazz like fast-paced ballet. And growing up, I did jazz and ballet. I love ballet. It's been quite a few years since I wore pointe shoes, which is why I didn't do ballet for my talent. But for Miss California last year, I did a jazz dance to the song Proud Mary and I dedicate it to my grandma, Mary. She passed away a few years ago. She was the type of grandma who was at every single dance recital. One of her favorite stories to tell was one of my first dance recitals ever where I walked on stage. I was probably like four. It was probably like ballet or tap. And I waved out in the audience. I said, hi, grandma, from the stage during a recital. Do you remember what was your interview question during your pageantry for Miss California? The last question I had on stage was the host pointing at the crown, which was on a stand on the stage. And she simply asked, there are a lot of great women competing in this competition, but why you? Why should that crown go on your head? Which is this one right here. This crown right here. And I looked at her and I said, the next Miss California needs to be someone with a heart of service. And that's exactly who I am. Someone who wants to use the crown as an opportunity to advocate, not just for herself and the program, but for a greater cause. And it would be my honor to be the next Miss California. And I said some other things, too, within 30 seconds. But I do remember talking about having a heart of service. And that's something that's really stuck with me my entire journey in competing in the Miss America opportunity. Now, I remember you said the very first year you really wanted to get the title so bad. And then later, you kind of relax more. And you say, if I get it, I get it. If I don't get it, it's not the end of the world. Tell us more about it. Because I think having that attitude seems like it helped you a lot. Oh, yeah. And I would think it helps others. Yeah. You know, for me in competing with patches, it is a very high stakes, nerve wracking experience. But also, the worst thing that could have happened in that opportunity was my life would be exactly the same as it was a week earlier. And best case scenario, I win Miss California and my life changes. And that's what happened this year. But the three years prior, I also tried to find the gold in every year. And so whether that's the friendships I made or just having fun performing on stage, there's always something to gain from the experience with or without the crown. And this year, when I went to Miss America, actually, Madison March, who was last year's Miss America, one of the first things she said to my class at Miss America was, only one girl is going to win the title of Miss America. But every single one of you can win in the experience of being here. And you do that by not putting so much pressure on yourself, because at the end of the day, the decision of who becomes Miss California lies in the hands of five strangers, of five judges. And they could be looking for something really specific. They could be looking for something that's not you. And that doesn't mean that you're not an amazing, beautiful, incredible person. It just means you're not what they're looking for. And that's something that I've carried with me throughout my life. I think also growing up in the performing arts, you have to audition for shows. You have to audition for roles. You're not always going to get your dream role. But you can have an amazing experience in the ensemble. And I've had amazing experiences in ensembles for many shows. And so those lessons that I learned in performing arts, I think, have definitely carried over in different facets of my life, like pageantry. I like that attitude. The worst case that can happen to you is that your life will be the same. That's a great attitude to have. What would be your advice to young girls out there who dream of accomplishing what you did? What would you say to them? I would say one of the most nerve-wracking parts of being in pageants is just taking that first step. I competed for the first time when I was 16 years old. And I didn't compete again until I was 20. Oh, let me do the math really quick. I didn't compete again for seven years. So one of the hardest parts of returning to pageantry was I just really grappled with the thought of, do I want to do this? I don't know. I'm kind of scared. And one thing that really helped me over that hurdle was finding really amazing mentors. My dance teacher, Miss Linnea, who I've talked about. I also had an interview coach named Tony Moises, who was a volunteer in the program. And I've had many different other pageant coaches who've helped hold my hand through this experience and helped me grow as a person. And so having a mentor really does make a huge difference when you're in pageantry. Kimberly, how do you think your experience, everything you gained through the pageantry is helping you or is going to help you in the future with your work, with your career, with your life? Yes. It's funny enough, I actually gained a full-time job with a startup from competing in pageants because being a woman in pageantry, you have to learn how to market yourself. I really leaned into social media my first year of competing because it was during the pandemic. And so being able to build my brand and build myself as a creator is one thing that I really grew in as a title holder at the local level, so much to the point that brands reached out and asked, hey, would you want to be a part-time content creator with us? And then that part-time role grew into a full-time marketing role. And so before then, I actually worked in arts education. So I had a complete career shift. And that's thanks to pageantry because I learned how to grow as a marketer. And so I'm really excited that after this year, I was Miss California to continue in that career path. I didn't ask you this before, but is there a negative side? Is there something that through the pageantry that either too much stress or competition or jealousy? Is there anything that you encounter? And how were you able to get over it? You know, I like to say that I think pageants bring out the best and worst people and how someone might act if it's in a negative way, especially during a pageant week, because we're all really stressed and we're all really tired. We really don't get that much sleep. When I was at Miss America, I would get back to my hotel room probably around midnight in full hair, full makeup. You still have to shower and wash it all off. So I probably wouldn't get to bed till 1 a.m. And then I was up at 5 a.m. for a 6 a.m. makeup call. So we're running on empty throughout that week. And so any time I've had a negative experience with a woman in pageantry, I don't take that as a judge of their character by any means, because we're really tired and we are really stressed. And so with that, I've had also really beautiful experiences with all the women I've competed with, but not getting a lot of sleep. That was very hard, especially at Miss America. I actually got a really big cold while I was at Miss America. So that was also really hard, the health aspect of it. How would you differentiate yourself from the other kids, the other young people? There's a lot of kids right now who mainly just play video games. They stay home, play video games. They don't really get involved with activities with the community. What made you be different? What made you go out and not just stay home and play video games? My mom. And don't get me wrong, I did stay home and play video games too. But I've always been that kid who wanted to try everything. That's also why I competed in the pageant for the first time. I just wanted to try something new. But growing up, my mom would get the activity guide from the Santa Clara Rec Center and sign me up for different classes so I could find where my passions were. So I remember taking gymnastics. I did soccer. I did pottery. I did theater. And I did all these different activities. I found what really I loved, and that was performing, the performing arts. But it's greatly thanks to my mom. She also instilled in me at a young age that I'm not a quitter. So when I was playing violin in the third grade, and you know, the first time you pick up any instrument, it's not going to sound good. You're not going to be very good. But you learn to practice and you grow. But when I first picked up the violin, I told my mom, I don't want to do this anymore. She's like, no, you can't quit. You just started something new. You're going to continue doing this. And so I stuck it through until fifth grade. And then I switched instruments when I went to middle school. I played flute throughout middle school. And then when I went to high school, I did color guard. So I was still part of the marching band. But instilling that mindset of trying new things and don't be a quitter, just keep going, keep practicing and growing. It was lessons that my mom taught me from a very young age. Now you have Japanese. Your mom is Japanese. And I think the Japanese people are amazing. They have a very strong culture. My mom's a very perfectionist. And funny enough, tomorrow night at the Giants game, it's actually Japanese Heritage Night. And so I'll be throwing the first pitch. And I'm doing it in honor of my Uncle Earl, my mom's brother. He passed away a few years ago. But I'll be wearing his jersey. He was a huge baseball fan, huge Giants fan. I think his family, they have their name on a plate outside of Oracle Park. But yeah, both him and my mom, big perfectionists. And they're very detail-oriented people. Kimberly, thank you so much for your time. I really appreciate it. Any closing thoughts, anything you want to add to the audience? Yes, I would love to continue to see this program grow. My life has changed so much from being Miss California. I mean, I didn't get to talk about it. I won $20,000 in scholarships. So this really is an opportunity for lives to be changed. And so I would love to continue to give back to this California organization. And I'm really excited to pass on the crown in, oh my gosh, in about a month. And see who's the next lucky girl whose life gets to get changed. Again, thank you so much for your time. Congratulations. Best of luck to you. Have fun at the baseball game tomorrow. Thank you. I hope I make it to home plate. In my throat. Again, I was a performer. I wasn't an athlete. So we'll see how it goes. Thank you. Great having you on the show. Thank you for your time. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you for watching another episode of Bay Area Innovators. If you enjoyed this episode and you know someone who should be on our show, please send us an email at sfbay at epochtimes.com. We would love to hear from you. Thank you and see you next week.