There will be no Miss Burien 2008.

A new Miss Burien was scheduled to be crowned Nov. 17 but 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. Then, the winner of the Miss Burien contest would 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."