Fine Chinah: Miss Smith Mountain Lake vies for title of Miss Virginia

Erica Gentry | Special to Laker Weekly

Chinah Helmandollar, Miss Smith Mountain Lake, is vying for the title of Miss Virginia.

• Related: How she keeps that body

For Chinah Helmandollar, holding the title of Miss Smith Mountain Lake is about more than getting her own name out there (and it's a name one isn't likely to forget). It's about putting the lake on the map and taking pride in the community in which she was raised.

Helmandollar, 22, won the inaugural Miss Smith Mountain Lake pageant in February. She will compete for the Miss Virginia crown on Saturday at the Roanoke Civic Center.

"I was thrilled to find out about the Miss SML pageant because I thought, hey, this would really be me," said Helmandollar. "The lake is so close to my heart. I've lived here for all but 10 months of my life. I've worked here, I have so many friends here. I hope that taking my Miss SML title to the Virginia pageant will help put the lake on the map even more."

Helmandollar, who grew up in Hardy and graduated from Franklin County High School, studied theater and received a bachelor's degree in May from James Madison University in Harrisonburg. She credited her theater background for her desire and passion for competing in pageants.

Helmandollar was introduced to the pageant world by a family friend who was involved in the Miss Roanoke Valley Pageant in 2007.

"It seemed like something I could do. After all, I am a performer," she recalled. "I was tired of writing essays for scholarship money, so I gave it a shot. I won Miss [Greater] Franklin County last year, and I had so much fun that I thought, why not go back?"

Helmandollar won the swimsuit competition and was fourth runner-up in the 2008 Miss Virginia Pageant.

A recent incident involving another titleholder, Miss California USA Carrie Prejean, brought negative publicity to the pageant world. During the 2009 Miss USA pageant, celebrity blogger and judge Perez Hilton asked Prejean whether she thought same-sex marriage should be legalized.

Prejean's answer, that she was raised to believe marriage should be between a man and a woman, and another controversial issue involving semi-nude photos of Prejean released online, may have contributed to her dethroning.

Helmandollar said she didn't think Prejean meant to offend anyone, and that the incident was "way hyped" by the media.

"Perez Hilton was way out of line with the way he reacted to her answer. He asked her a question about her personal beliefs and she answered it honestly. I do think the whole incident could have been avoided if she had been more articulate," Helmandollar said.

Since graduating and returning to the lake in May, Helmandollar has had a seemingly never-ending to-do list. When she isn't working her regular job at The Cottage Gate at Westlake, she packs her day full of pageant-related preparations.

"If I'm not working, a typical day for me is very busy. I'll usually work out from 8 until 10 a.m., and after that I'll go to the tanning salon. There's usually something involved with clothes or shopping, like picking up or dropping off a dress for alterations. Some days there are fundraisers I need to be at or appearances to make. I always fit in time to read the USA Today, check my e-mail and pack. Before I go to bed every night, I use whitening trays on my teeth," she said.

It's hard to imagine how she has time for work, but she said her job actually is very calming because she loves the people she works with.

"They've been very understanding about my schedule," she said. "Last week, I only had to work two days because of everything going on."

After all, preparing for a beauty pageant at the state level is almost a full-time job.

Competing for a cause

In addition to being a role model for girls who want to be physically fit and healthy, Helmandollar said she wants to show girls how to be their best selves in other areas of their lives. She said it's important they have someone older to look up to and talk to -- someone who stands up, volunteers and cares about what is going on in the world.

Helmandollar said she has relied on friends and family for support throughout the pageant process.

"My friends and family always remind me to have fun. My mom [Jan Helmandollar] is so supportive, she calls herself my personal assistant. My friends tell me they voted for me or they bought a fundraiser ticket, and them rooting for me makes me push harder. They help me remember that this is something I do for fun, " she said.

Helmandollar said her platform, Serving Virginians with Disabilities, is a huge motivator in her desire to win. The cause is important to her because, she said, her mother, grandmother and late grandfather all were afflicted with hearing disabilities, and she has a paraplegic friend who has struggled in many ways.

Looking ahead

If she wins Miss Virginia, Helmandollar will compete in the Miss America Pageant, which would involve filming a four-episode reality TV show involving pageant-oriented challenges, with the other contestants. Viewers will be able to vote for their favorite contestant to win one of the top-15 finalist spots.

If she wins, she would like to move to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career in film and television after her reign ends, adding that the Miss Virginia title would make it easier for her to break through in the business and get an agent.

If she doesn't win, she plans to stay at the lake at least until February, when she will pass the crown on to the next winner.

But Helmandollar is concentrating on getting through the pageant and beating out 28 other young women. She said she's most nervous about the 10-minute interview, where she will be asked a number of questions about current events and about her platform.

"I'm confident in my ability to talk to the interviewers, but it makes me nervous because it's the one part of the contest that I can't control ... I don't know what the questions will be," she said.

Despite her uneasiness about the interview, Helmandollar said she thinks she has a better chance of winning than she did last year.

"I'm very confident I will be in the top five and maybe even in the top three. My talent this year, performing a monologue, is much better than what I did last year, which was singing."

Helmandollar said no matter what happens with the pageant this year, competing has been a great learning experience. She is, however, in it to win.

"I really want this. I think I'd be great at the job because I'm a performer and I love to speak in front of groups. I love talking to people in the community, and I'm so excited for this weekend," she said. "I'm ready for this."