Winners of the 2018 Miss Auburn Scholarship Program maintained a recent tradition of heading to Olympia as guests of Sen. Joe Fain to learn more about state government and represent the Auburn community.

“Thank you to Miss Auburn Whitney Van Vleet and Miss Auburn Outstanding Teen Olivia Thomas for serving as great ambassadors for our Auburn community and for visiting the Capitol with your families,” said Fain, R-Auburn.

Fain sponsored a resolution recognizing them, which can be found here.

Van Vleet, an Auburn High School graduate and a junior studying sociology at Pacific Lutheran University, captured the crown Jan. 20.

She won more than $7,000 in awards, gifts and scholarships and automatically qualifies for the Miss Washington Pageant later this year. The Miss Auburn program, sponsored by the Auburn Noon Lions Club, is one of the largest events of its kind in the country and serves as an official preliminary to the Miss Washington and Miss America Scholarship pageants.

Thomas, 16, a junior at Auburn Mountainview High School, beat nine other challengers to take Miss Auburn’s Outstanding Teen tiara.