St. Charles resident crowned Mrs. Illinois American, will compete for Mrs. American

St. Charles resident Alicia Manzanares will head to Las Vegas to represent Illinois and compete in the Mrs. American pageant Aug. 27.

Manzanares became the first Latina to hold the title of Mrs. Illinois American in June and she uses her platform to inspire struggling young people to achieve their goals and pursue an education.

Growing up, Manzanares struggled with body issues, had trouble fitting in and never felt like she had a role model to look up to outside of her family.

“After I moved to this country as a child, I struggled a lot fitting in at my school. I didn’t look like a lot of the other students,” Manzanares said. “Along the way I’ve learned that there are people who have very similar stories to mine that don’t fit in or don’t see a lot of good role models that represent them.”

Manzanares’ platform is focused on empowering and encouraging young people to pursue their goals through education. She said the struggles she faced growing up are what pushed her to be a role model for kids in America who have a similar story and are facing the same challenges.

“I feel like my story is somewhat unique, but at the same time I know there are others going through the same thing and I want to make sure that I’m a good representative for my community,” Manzanares said. “Part of what inspired me to compete in beauty pageants was just being able to provide some hope to these young women and students. For them to have somebody that represents them, that looks like them, that knows their struggle, that can go out and inspire them to pursue their dreams and their education – that’s what drives me to do everything that I do.”

Manzanares’ mission to change the lives of young people began long before her aspirations of becoming a beauty queen.

After graduating from Niles West High School in Skokie, Manzanares was a coach for the school’s dance club while she was in college. She said there was a young man who was having a hard time in school, so she pulled him aside during practice one day to ask if everything was OK.

Manzanares said the student opened up about how his father recently had gone to jail and he was about to graduate but didn’t really have a plan for what to do with his life after high school. She said they brainstormed some different tracks he could take and he ended up enrolling in the military where he excelled and now has a family of his own and is doing very well.

Years later, Manzanares reconnected with the young man who told her that without that extra push or her just caring enough to ask about what was going on in his life, he may never have veered from the path he was on.

“Just seeing the amount of growth and how you can really change a life by just caring and being there, mentoring and listening to them,” Manzanares said. “I take so much pride in that and it makes me so happy that even if it’s just one person that you can make a difference for, it means everything to me to be able to do that and change someone’s life for the better.”

Manzanares said her mother always has been her biggest inspiration. She described her as a hardworking woman and the person who inspired her to continue her education when she was struggling with the decision.

“Her words of encouragement made such a big difference in my life and not giving up on my own dreams,” Manzanares said. “I honestly think that without her I wouldn’t be where I am today, and not everybody has that in their life. Not everybody has a role model that they can look up to, so I try to pay some of that forward and be that little light of hope to at least one person whose life I can change.”

Manzanares said if she could give one message to young people it would be to not give up hope.

“Sometimes life is not fair and life is not easy. We all struggle with something in our lives, however, I do believe that there is a brighter day that will come. Sometimes it requires hard work and a little bit of patience because most times it is not overnight success and we go through a lot to get to the other side, but I am a firm believer that there is always light at the end of the tunnel,” Manzanares said. “Just don’t give up. Keep that dream going, keep trying and keep showing up because just showing up is literally half of success.”

Manzanares was crowned Mrs. Illinois American on June 15. It was the first pageant she had competed in.

Manzanares was born in Mexico and immigrated to the U.S. when she was 9 years old. She grew up in Skokie and attended Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago where she earned a master’s degree in business administration. She is an assistant vice president at a bank. She moved to St. Charles in 2020 and married her husband, Jaime, a few months later.

Before she began competing, Manzanares already was using her platform as a business woman to be a positive influence on young people.

For the past seven years, she has been an education advocate, going to high schools and talking to students in order to encourage and inspire them to continue their education. She said she hopes her new title will provide her with a bigger platform and open up more opportunities to speak at bigger events and reach larger audiences.

“When you are able to win such a prestigious title, you have a bigger platform to be able to reach a lot more people and make a bigger difference. So, for me, that was my main motivator,” Manzanares said.

Mrs. American pageants are similar to Miss American pageants, but for married contestants. Mrs. American is a separate division from the Mrs. America pageants, though they are held by the same agency. Mrs. American contestants must be at least 21 years old, a U.S. citizen and live with their spouse.

“I believe that this particular pageant system is a good fit for me because it encourages having a good marriage, a strong connection with your partner and family values,” Manzanares said. “Just being there and competing with all these beautiful women from all these states is such an honor. I’m excited to go out there and hopefully I can bring the title home to Illinois.”

The new Mrs. American will be crowned Aug. 27. The winner of the Mrs. American pageant will go on to compete on the global stage in the Mrs. World pageant next year.

To stay informed about the contest and Manzanares’ performance, visit the Mrs. Illinois American social media pages on Facebook or Instagram or visit the Mrs. American website.