1. Risen Magazine: How did you go from being raised in a conservative Baptist background to competing in beauty pageants?

Dustin Leigh Seltzer: I was home-schooled, did not have a television in my house, and grew up on a farm with five younger brothers. So I suppose it is very ironic that I ended up in beauty pageants. I don’t remember anyone raising their eyebrows about me competing in pageants.

2. RM: Were you bummed about being home-schooled?
DLS: Some people say home-schooling doesn’t prepare a child for the real world, but I think I had the best of both worlds. Maybe some home-schoolers don’t get out enough, but my family and I participated on sports teams all year round, plenty of extracurricular activities, and of course we had the family band. I’ve traveled all over the world with our band.

3. RM: It seems as if women who compete in beauty pageants have an odd dose of ego. After all, they are putting themselves out there to be judged on their physical beauty.
DLS: Sometimes I do wish that the swimsuit competition would disappear because I don’t think it is a good way to measure someone’s worth or beauty. But it is important to be physically fit, to take care of yourself, and to be healthy. I