A Hit with a Mrs.
From Corrections to the Crown: Meet the 2023 Mrs. Maryland …
…and she’s from Ellerslie!
Currently a student at Frostburg State University pursuing her Doctorate in Educational Leadership, Judith Kinnie has had a successful, nearly decade long career with the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Initially a Corrections Officer at FCC Hazelton she eventually worked her way up to Supervisor of Education. With the first eight years of her career spent at Hazelton, she first moved to Frostburg with her husband, Jason, taking a position at FCI Cumberland as Supervisor of Education. Last July, she began a new endeavor as an External Liaison at the Central Office in Washington, DC acting as liaison between external agencies performing audits and reviews on facilities within the Federal Bureau of Prisons and executive staff at the facilities being reviewed.
Her most recent success came in a vastly different setting, that of pageantry. On April 30, Judith was crowned Mrs. Maryland America and then competed for the title of Mrs. America in August in Las Vegas.
Now living in Ellerslie, Judith remembers when she was first “tricked” into entering a pageant.
“My mom came to me and asked me if I would compete in the Barber County Fair Queen Pageant for her birthday present. It was very sneaky because I grew up working in the garage with my dad. We built Go-Karts. I caught snakes. Whichever neighborhood kid caught the longest snake won. We hunted, we fished. When my mom brought up the word pageant, she knew it would be an absolute no, so she tricked me and asked me to do it as a birthday present.”
Judith competed. And lost.
“I went back two more times and lost. On my fourth time, I won Miss Barber County followed by Miss Snowflake.”
Then she gave up the world of pageantry to explore other pursuits and her career, until 2014 when one of life’s curveballs again opened the door.
At the age of five, her daughter Maddy was diagnosed with Juvenile Diabetes. After spending a week in the hospital, Maddy was discharged, and she was told to just “call the doctor” if she needed anything.
“So I’m home with my five-year-old, who is newly diagnosed, no idea what to feed her, how to keep her alive or how to inject her with needles constantly,” Judith says. Recognizing a lack of support and the need for stronger community partnerships, she became involved with the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. Then, at an event the organization was hosting, Judith was approached by a woman asking if she would be interested in competing in a pageant to raise more awareness for the cause. Initially laughing the invitation off, Judith have the idea more thought, prayed about it, and decided to compete.
And so, she donned her tippy tops again and competed for Mrs. West Virginia International. This was her first experience competing in a system recognized on a global level and walking with women who were “career pageant women” having held major titles. To her surprise by the end of the night, she was chosen to represent West Virginia at the Mrs. International Pageant later that summer.
As is custom with many pageants, Judith was asked to choose a platform – a topic that best represents her and a cause in which she would intend to support if given the crown. Judith says her platform chose her as was already proudly advocating for Juvenile Diabetes.
She even later published a cookbook Dining with Diabetics. Having access to a nutritionist and psychologist who were part of JDRF, she was able to include helpful nutritional information and carb counting as well as family photos and profiles of those who shared their recipes, information about Type 1 Diabetes, ways to combat hypo and hyper glycemia, healthy snacks and more.
Saying she felt as though she had reached a plateau in the pageant world, Judith decided it was time for other projects. She even began a sequel to her book. Then, last year, she had an epiphany and decided to enter the Mrs. Maryland Pageant.
“Ten years later, here I am again,” she says. “I’m able to stand on stage and tell people I’m just a small-town country girl who grew up in poverty and experienced some of the worst life experiences.”
This time around, her platform looks a little different. While her expertise in supporting Diabetes awareness will continue, she feels that life experiences have given her a voice to advocate for several other segments of the community. Born and raised in rural Ohio and West Virginia, she’s no stranger to life in Appalachia. She can personally recall having been the beneficiary of Food Stamps, Food Banks, clothing vouchers and other forms of state assistance growing up, and when she became a young single mother herself.
“We don’t like to talk about domestic violence, being a food bank or food stamp recipient, mental illness, suicide, sexual exploitation of children, but all of these are things that my children or I have been through so I’m proud to have the opportunity to be strong enough and proud enough to talk about those situations and help others, despite the heavy stigma associated with them,” Judith says. “I take great pride in that, in being able to build on being an author and on my life experiences to turn those into positive situations to help others. My goal during my reign is to reduce the stigma surrounding those topics and set the example that it’s okay to ask for help when you need it, you don’t have to be embarrassed.”
Not only is Judith Kinnie a crowned Mrs. Maryland, a wife, a mother, an author, and an outspoken activist, she is also a grandmother to two boys (Greyson, 3 and Broden, 1).
“I am an extremely proud granny,” she says. “They’re my world. Greyson walks around and says, ‘Granny’s my best friend’. Any grandma out there knows there’s nothing like that in the world. It’s a whole other kind of love that you never imagine and I’m proud of my children.”
A mother of three young women (Maddison, 22; Abbigail, 19; and Jillian, 16), Judith says all of her daughters are “extremely different but they all take up for the underdog, they don’t let people walk on others and they aren’t afraid to speak up when something isn’t right.”
As far as wearing the crown of Mrs. Maryland for the year?
“I don’t want to ever be unapproachable; I want people to still be comfortable talking to me when I’m in my gown, crown and sash. I grew up poor as dirt, on food stamps and clothing vouchers and I’m okay with that,” she says. “I’ve survived domestic violence, I’ve found one of my children lifeless of a suicide attempt at a very young age due to bullying. I will tell that story because she has allowed me to tell that story to help others. You got a good fishing story? I want to hear it! I really hope to convey that through my reign.”
And for “beauty pageants” in general?
“Don’t be so quick to judge. I know I look like I’m put together in public, but I promise you that I am a hot mess express inside. My ducks are never in a row, a couple of them are in a cop car, a couple are swimming in the pond, some of them are probably still asleep and some can’t find their glasses. Give everyone a chance and get to know them.”
“I’m as real as can be,” Judith says. “I can pick up a catfish and string a lure, teach kids self-defense and I can still throw on a pair of heels and convey to the world that it’s okay to be your real self. I have a crown as Mrs. Maryland but I am still just that small town down to earth girl.”
With photography by Gretchen Pingley
To book Judith for speaking engagements or appearances at your events, or to request a copy of “Dining with Diabetics”, you can email mrsmarylandamerica2023@gmail.com or find her on Instagram and Facebook at mrsmarylandamerica2023. The Mrs. Maryland American and Mrs. America program is an independent pageant program and not directly affiliated with the Miss Maryland or Miss America nor with the Miss Maryland U.S.A, Miss U.S.A. or Miss Universe pageant and scholarship programs.
