There will be no Miss Burien 2008.

A new Miss Burien was scheduled to be crowned Nov. 17 at the Highline Performing Arts Center.

However, executive director Janie Bakke resigned in June and volunteers have decided to pull the plug on the pageant.

Lack of local financial support and a new requirement by the state Miss Washington and national Miss America organizations are the reasons cited for the Highline pageant's demise.

The Miss Washington and Miss America programs have teamed up with the Children's Miracle Network and are requiring that each local contestant raise $100 for the network.

In turn, the winner of the Miss Burien contest would then have to raise or donate $250 to the children's charity to be eligible to compete for Miss Washington.

The state winner would then have to contribute even more money to enter the national pageant.

Bakke, a former Mrs. Washington and mother of Miss Burien 2004 Stacy Bakke, took over as director in September.

She found "it is very difficult to make a go of it. It's been an uphill battle all year.

"It requires a lot of time to find a larger volume of sponsorships," Bakke noted. "I don't have the bandwidth to do that."

Working a full-time job along with the volunteer position made it even more difficult, she added.

Previous director Diane Kennish said her flexible schedule as an airline flight attendant had allowed her to schedule many face-to--face meetings with potential sponsors.

A less flexible schedule at the airline after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks forced Kennish to resign as director but she continued to volunteer.

Kennish, who revived the Miss Burien program in 1989 after a decade-long absence, admitted, "It was struggle every year to get monetary support."

But Kennish emphasized that the pageant received a lot of "in-kind" donations of services and products from specific businesses.

Steady monetary support also came from certain businesses.

The Miss Burien group organized a performance featuring Elvis-impersonator Danny Vernon this spring in the performing arts center to raise money.

Burien businesses allowed volunteers to hang posters in their stores but only about 200 spectators attended and the benefit lost $1,000.

"Either people are for Miss Burien or they are not," a disappointed Bakke declared. "Actions speak louder than words."

Bakke and Kennish agreed that "the last straw" was the mandate that contestants raise money for the Children's Miracle Network.

"It boiled down to an entrance fee," Kennish noted. "We were proud that the thing that set us apart from other pageants is no entry fee."

Added Bakke, "The whole premise is we fundraise so we can offer scholarships." Some of those scholarships have gone to low-income young women in the Highline area.

Participants who do not place in the pageant receive $200 scholarships.

If they must pay $100 to win $200, "the whole process is not very enticing," Bakke said.

Both she and Kennish say the requirement is not as difficult for pageants like Miss Auburn, which averages 20 contestants instead of six and raises about $60,000 per year from local businesses.

Kennish estimates about 300 local pageants throughout the country will fold because of the requirement.

With the partnership between the national pageant and the children's network, local contestants' platforms must focus on children's issues.

Yet Kennish points to a former Miss America who was instrumental in getting legislation passed in Congress to aid homeless veterans. A former Miss Washington helped get state drunk driving laws changed.

"They are taking away what the program is about," she lamented.

Miss Burien contestants have done well in subsequent competitions.

Amelia Gilbert, Miss Burien 2005, was named third runner-up in the Miss Washington pageant last year after placing as first runner-up the year before.

Her younger sister, Miss Burien 2006 Melody Gilbert, was picked as fourth runner-up.

Miss Burien 2006 first runner-up Jackie Graybill was also among the top 10 in the state contest.

Melissa Parks was crowned Miss Seafair in 2005 while Amber Trillo was named second runner-up in 2006.

Bekka Simmons is the reigning Miss Burien.

Bakke hopes for a broadened "Miss South King County" pageant in the future. The Burien program was open to young women from throughout the Highline area.

However, Kennish said the idea was tried in the 1980s but not supported by area businesses.

So after restarting the Miss Burien program and nurturing it for 18 years, is Kennish sad to see it shut down again?

"I'm being philosophical about it," she said. "Everything has its season.

"We have everything to be proud of. We jump-started many girls into getting back to school.

"Girls who didn't think they would ever be in a pageant found out it was more than the stereotype and they experienced personal growth."