David Colburn
COOK- Rachel Betterley has been referred to as a past Miss Minnesota and past Mrs. Minnesota. But for the upcoming year, she can now be referred to as the current Mrs. Petite USA.
Though Betterley is best known locally as the visual arts teacher at North Woods School.
Betterley won the national competition in the Petite USA family of pageants two weeks ago in Milwaukee, Wis. The Petite USA pageant was founded in 2009 by Hazely Lopez-Alvarez with a focus on celebrating the accomplishments of petite women 5 feet, 6 inches and under and provides them opportunity to be a voice and spokesperson for petite women around the United States while engaging in philanthropic service. The pageant has multiple levels of competition, awarding crowns in the categories of Teen, Miss, Ms., Mrs. and Elite Ms.
“It’s one of the most diverse systems actually in the nation,” Betterley said. “We have women competing in wheelchairs, we had a woman who won the national crown with an arm deformity, but it’s like they don’t let their adversities hold them back. The core message of what Petite USA wants is empowerment, authenticity, and philanthropy. You might be short, or adversity might have happened to you, but you wear it like a badge of honor and you own it and you thrive. That’s why I love the system so much. There really is such a sisterhood with it. Never in my years of pageantry have I ever experienced such a supportive sisterhood.”
All five Petite USA crowns were up for grabs in Milwaukee, creating an environment that Betterley found particularly unique and encouraging.
“At first, I wasn’t sure how it would go, but I actually really loved that,” Betterley said. “I was able to meet so many different ages and I love that. But I also feel like as a result, you got to see more women just like thriving that were loving it – the energy there was just contagious. And for me it was important to set an example. In the Mrs. division we have a lot of life experience, we have families and kids of our own. If there are teens competing, you want to make sure you’re putting your best foot forward to make them feel inspired to be their best self, too.”
That feeling of being one’s best self is what’s kept Betterley involved in pageantry for the past decade.
“I naturally love the spirit of competition. It’s just embedded and rooted in who I am. I really want to shine a light on how pageantry just feeds a fire for women and makes them be the best version of themselves. It makes them do things they never thought they’d be able to do. It makes them meet people who they’ve never been able to meet in their life. It builds the best communication skills, it increases your philanthropy, and I could go on and on about what I’ve gained through pageantry. Of course, it’s hard to get to that point, but once you’re there, it’s such a thriving place to be in in your life.”
And there was little question in Betterley’s mind that this was the time and place where she would shine.
“I really felt solid in the work that I was doing, and in my heart, it was like, I could feel I’m the winner,” Betterley said. “I can’t even explain it, but when you feel so prepared, you’re so ready, you feel so drawn to that title that, you know, the moment was just right. It was just this feeling that I know I’m meant to be here and be a part of it.”
Rachel’s platform
As with most pageants these days, Mrs. Petite USA places a high value on the philanthropic work contestants want to promote as the title holder, and it’s no surprise that for art teacher Betterley, art was at the core of her platform.
The overall thrust of Betterley’s platform was “Art With Heart,” which emphasizes helping people heal from personal trauma by educating them about the healing benefits of art.
“It’s about helping people heal by inspiring people to express themselves by creating, however it may be, whether it’s through talk, photography, ceramics, painting, drawing, pageantry, journaling, writing, whatever it may be. Express yourself, do it, it fuels your fire and it feeds your soul and I just want to champion that message.”
As part of that, Betterley highlighted for the judges her Sketchbooks for Kids initiative.
“A lot of the time kids who are really creative have experienced the most trauma,” Betterley said. “I’ve had quite a few kids at school who have asked me randomly for a sketchbook. Kids who aren’t even in my class will come to me asking for one. And, so, I with the help of donations through businesses and personal donations purchase art supplies, and I prepare these sets with sketchbooks. I donate them to schools and foster care organizations, any kind of kid-based organization. They choose who they want to give it to or what kid needs it most. For example, I donated sketchbook sets to all of the schools in the St. Louis County School District, to the school counselors and family advocates.”
Betterley knows all too well the value of art for personal healing, as that’s been her pathway to health after a traumatic childhood.
“The one thing I always had though, was art,” she said. “And I always had my sketchbook. It was the one thing that never judged me, the one thing that made me feel like this is who Rachel really is. Through that kind of trauma as a kid I wanted to do a little bit more and give back to kids in need.”
Betterley brought her singular focus on her philanthropy to the fore in the judge interview segment of the competition, the largest part of the scoring, which included fitness, evening gown, and on-stage questioning.
“You only have a few minutes to get those judges on your side,” Betterley said. “The art of pageantry is also the art of communication. If you don’t have that established core of who you are and how you’re helping people every day, you’re never going to win. I felt really solid in the work that I was doing.”
Indeed, today Betterley infuses her passion for art in every aspect of pageantry competition, something she said she was reluctant to do in past competitions.
And now, as the new Mrs. Petite USA title holder, Betterley has a conduit to spread that passion across the nation. She said she’s currently working to turn Sketchbooks for Kids into a formal 501(c)(3) organization, and she’s ready to engage the Petite USA sisterhood in her cause.
“I have a lot of people on board,” she said. “In states across the country, I can go ‘Hey, Mrs. Hawaii Petite, do you know a place where sketchbooks are needed,’ and she’ll be like ‘Yes, absolutely, get me the sketchbooks.’ It’s that grassroots effort where we work together that I’ve never had in pageantry. In all my years of pageantry I’ve never seen that, and it’s really cool.”
Betterley said her husband Brad has been a steady source of support throughout her pageantry journey.
“If anyone ever meets Brad, they’ll know he’s one of the most humble, relaxed, chill guys you’ll ever meet,” she said. “He’s been with me since before I won Miss Minnesota back in 2015, so he’s seen the journey and he’s used to it. He knows how much it fuels my creativity. I’m kind of the wild energetic artsy one, and he’s the one who keeps me level-headed and collected. At the end of the day, he’s going to be supportive, no matter what.”
It will be a busy year ahead for Betterley as she makes appearances and promotes her philanthropy and the Petite USA organization.
“I feel like I’m ready to be their leader,” she said. “I also feel that the women in the system are going to gain a lot of insight from me. I want to share my knowledge of pageantry and share the things that I’m passionate about. At the end of the day, being a national title holder is not about me, but it’s celebrating the women who are in the organization, celebrating philanthropy, and just uplifting people.”
This isn’t the end of Betterley’s pageantry, as she’ll be competing in the Universal Petite Pageant next July.
“I do actually have to prepare for another pageant,” she said. “It will be my very first international pageant, which is pretty cool. The message still stays the same. It’s just continuing to expand that outreach.”
Betterley hopes that her experience will serve as an example of what can happen when small town girls dream big.
“It doesn’t matter if you live in the woods on 80 acres, it doesn’t matter if you come from a small town. If you are dedicated and you get creative with how you do things you can find success,” she said. “I just want to encourage people to not let location define their dreams.”
Those interested in supporting Betterley’s philanthropy can follow Sketchbook for Kids on Instagram, where they will find a link to an Amazon wish list to purchase kit supplies. A donation can also be made through Venmo. Betterley is also available for appearances by contacting her through email, rachelbetterley@gmail.com, or messaging her through Facebook or Instagram.
“If there’s an appearance idea where you feel like I’d be a great fit, or if they want me to speak at an event, or if it’s something involving the arts and they feel like I can contribute, I’m always willing, especially up here in the Northland,” she said.
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