Mrs. Alaska

PALMER— Serena Lee was recently crowned as the 2019 Mrs. Alaska America, one of 50 married women set to compete for the Mrs. America title.

Lee lives in Palmer with her husband and four children. She’s going full force with her family oriented platform, remembering the smiling faces of her own family when she received the official crown and sash.

“I was overwhelmed with joy and I was happy they were there for me,” Lee said.

Lee was named Mrs. Alaska America on Aug. 13, a day after her birthday. Aug. 13 is Patricia Cook’s birthday. Cook lives in Anchorage and she’s the first ever Miss Alaska for America, ushering in a new era for the pageant. This year, officials added the “Miss for America” division to include all women, including those that are single, divorced or widowed.

“It’s the rest of the world,” Cook said.

Lee and Cook will both head down to Westgate Las Vegas in August, representing Alaska for the national competition. The last Alaskan woman to win Mrs. America was Vicki Sarber in 2013. Cook continuously expressed confidence Lee’s chances of winning this year.

“Serena will be the next one,” Cook said.

Lee and Cook will both be attending a variety of public events before and after the national competition. They both will rein a full year and both stated they have platforms they want to convey in their communities, even though it’s not required in this pageant. While it’s not required to have a platform, Mrs. and Miss for America contesters who are passionate enough about a topic are encouraged to run with it during their rein.

“We’re seasoned in life,” Cook said.

The two women have only known each other since 2017 but they acted like lifelong friends, laughing and singing each other’s praises. They have more in common than just having birthdays a day apart. They both lost a loved one in the month September (just a year apart) and they both went into this pageant with family/relationship focused platforms.

“We’ve got to set the precedent,” Cook said.

Cook’s husband Steven died Sept. 2017, leaving her with their two children Ana and Ethan. She was of course devastated by the loss but she said that she refused to let it get the best of her. That’s why her campaign is built overcoming the loss of a loved one, be it from a marriage, from a family member or even a pet.

Her platform tagline is “losing doesn’t mean lost” and it doesn’t merely mean loss by death. She said loss comes from a variety of things like divorce and other major life changes. She said that she rose from her own ashes by maintaining a positive mindset and giving it all up to her higher power.

“I’m a much better person for it,” Cook said.

Lee’s platform is about building childhood resiliency by strengthening families. Lee was born and raised in Alaska. She said that she came from a “broken home” and her parents divorced when she was very young.

“I’ve seen many families, including my own go through difficult times and I’ve seen and felt what adverse childhood experiences can do to those families,” Lee said.

Lee said that some of these adverse effects include: depression, drug/alcohol abuse, homelessness and even suicide. She said that she’s witnessed some of her own family members go through some of these adversities.

“I believe, if we can reach out to families with young children and help them during their time of need, we can help prevent our kids from becoming a statistic. I wasn’t able to help my family when I was a young child but now that I’m an adult, I’ve made it my mission to reach out to families and help them,” Lee said.

Lee is an executive assistant at the CCS Early Learning so she knows firsthand what challenges many of their clients face. She said that she regularly reaches out to families and offers support on a regular basis, doing whatever she can whenever she can.

“I mean, there’s so many statistics out there, especially in Alaska where we’re the number one in all the wrong places. Over 75 percent of Alaskans have either seen or been through domestic violence. My goal is to help prevent that, help create a safer environment for our future and for our children,” Lee said.

Lee said that over the last four years, she’s participated in a lot of community events and fundraisers, volunteering her time. She said that she plans to incorporate what she already does into her platform since most of her community efforts line up with supporting children and families.

She’s already attended a handful of community events like a pancake breakfast at the Wasilla Area Seniors Center on Easter. Looking forward, she plans on attending a variety events like the annual Alaskan Chicks Vintage Home Market and a community baby shower hosted by ROCK Mat-Su. She also coordinated with Sherrod Elementary to host a school assembly at the beginning of the coming school year.

“I’m going to talk about how important families are. I’m going to be speaking with the children so what their role as a child is and how they can help out in their home,” Lee said.

Lee said that ever since she was a little girl, she’s wanted to start a family of her own ad now she’s done it. She’s happily married to her husband Jason Lee and is the happy mother of their four children: Isaac, Aislyn, Kaylynn, and Champion.

She said that family has been a reoccurring theme in her life and she continues to be inspired by her late step-father Frank Carpenter. Carpenter died Sept. 2018 but he was Lee’s father figure all her life, instilling strong values and helping wake her up out of her troubled teenage years.

“If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be here today,” Lee said.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com