Aarienna Ware proudly represented the State of Texas on the national stage as Miss Texas USA when she made the Top 10 at the Miss USA Pageant on Aug. 4, 2024.

Previously Miss Dallas, Ware was crowned Miss Texas USA in June and has been quite busy navigating work, travel and pageant duties since then. Upon receiving the Miss Texas crown in June, Ware went through an array of emotions on stage.

“I couldn’t believe I won for a second,” she recalls. “I think I finally realized it was actually happening when I looked down and saw my mom jumping up and down. So I ran over to hug her right before I was actually crowned. And that kind of made that moment real for me. I also had an amazing team, and so I got to work with the Dallas team, and they really got me up to speed with everything as Dallas was my first pageant, and Miss Texas USA was my second.” 

Pageant Prep

In preparing for Miss Texas USA, Ware had to undergo interview and physical preparation, including working with a personal trainer that helped get her into shape. During the competition, Ware had to learn how to confidently navigate one of her biggest insecurities – talking in the spotlight. 

“I know it sounds crazy, but I hate talking about myself as it can be uncomfortable for me. So in pageantry, you’re not humble bragging, but you have to be able to talk about yourself and your accomplishments in a very confident way. I think that was the biggest thing for me to overcome, and getting into the mindset of what I wanted to do as Miss Texas USA and figuring out how I wanted to utilize my non-profit.” 

Growing Up Overseas

Originally born in Shreveport, Louisiana, Ware lived in a variety of places and has experienced plenty of diversity in cultures as she’s traveled the world with her family due to her father’s military service. “I’m a military brat, and so my dad’s job kept us moving around the world,” she said. “My dad was stationed in Bosnia, and we were there for a few years but moved to Germany and lived there for five years,” Ware recalls. 

After living in Germany, the beauty queen moved to Florida and even spent some time in Nevada, Arkansas and New York before eventually settling in Texas. At one point, Ware was offered a modeling contract while walking in New York. “I did mostly runway, and it was a really fun experience. It’s nothing you make money doing, but more for exposure and fun. I also did some showroom work. But for me, it was just something that fell into my lap. I never really had a huge passion for it, but I really enjoyed the work, and I enjoyed working and collaborating artistically with photographers and with the creative directors. It was a great opportunity, and I think it really gave me tough skin, because you need to have that in the modeling industry. I think it gave me the grit that I needed to start in construction”

Embracing Texas Life

Ware has been living in Texas for the last eight years which was convenient since she had family here. “It was kind of natural, and I would come here every now and then,” she reiterated. “I always thought that Richardson was Dallas, and had no idea about downtown or any of the areas. One time, I was going downtown and trying to get to the Design District, and I tried taking public transportation because I had just moved here from New York. Well, I ended up getting lost and was wandering around in the Design District. I absolutely fell in love with the area, and now I shop there for my clients. So it was kind of a cool moment for me.” 

As for living in Texas, Ware can’t get enough of the hospitality offered in the Lone Star State. She loves the social interaction and friendliness from people. “I think that struck me because I’ve lived all over the world and people in Texas are genuinely kind and genuinely want to see you do well.”

Inspired by Miss USA: A Childhood Dream Realized

During her time living overseas, Ware was able to view and appreciate American culture from a different perspective. She was exposed to pageants by watching the Miss USA competition on TV. Reflecting back, Ware explains her views at the time. “I always wanted to compete in pageants, but I’m a military brat,” she said. “And so my dad’s job kept us moving around the world. There was never really enough time for me to take an interest in anything like pageants, but it was always in the back of my head. And I think what was special to me about Miss USA is that we would watch it every year. When we lived overseas it would come on super late, like around 11 at night, and so we would all sit down as a family to watch it together.” 

Inspired by the Miss USA Pageant, Ware realized in watching the competition that women are able to be both glamorous and intelligent while making a positive impact on the lives of others. “You can be both. There was one year in particular I remember sitting in front of the TV and I picked out one girl who was the prettiest. And my dad turned the TV off and told me he was disappointed in me because I fixated on the prettiest and was missing the point of the pageant itself. Eventually I realized that it was much more than the glamor aspect.”

When comparing life in the U.S. to living in Europe, Ware says,  “It’s a lot slower and there’s not a big rush on anything when living overseas in Europe. America is very convenient and everything overseas is very ‘we’ll get to it when it’s time’. One time, I actually moved from sunny Florida to England, and that was such a big adjustment for me. But yeah, even as a kid, I understood what a big opportunity it was that we were able to live in all of these different countries. I always understood how much of a privilege it was to travel the world. Now I’ve got the traveling bug and I always want to go everywhere.” 

A Career in Sustainable Home Building

Currently Ware is working as a sustainable home builder and completed a 4-year apprenticeship program. In this particular line of work, utilizing green (healthy) materials in building homes has been essential. “I wanted to distinguish myself, and I also know that construction is one of the leading causes of climate change,” Ware explained. “We are so wasteful in our industry, and do so much damage to the environment. We rip out trees and do all these unnecessary things and there is no one really to hold us accountable. With sustainable home building, there are regulations and different green codes we have to follow. And so sustainable means that we try to do as little damage as possible with the materials that we use.” 

Advocating for Women in Male-Dominated Fields

In addition to Ware’s career in sustainable home building, she has a non-profit titled “Build It Up” where she has partnered with the Boys and Girls Club in several locations. “Because I was Miss Dallas I got to go all over the Metroplex which was absolutely incredible,” Ware said. “The program I started was really a big deal for me because, working in construction, I have to deal with the fact that I’m not only a young woman but I’m a black woman. People were always very abrupt and aggressive with me. They would talk down to me. They never thought that I was the person in charge because of the way that I looked, and I think that kind of hurt my confidence for a long time.” 

Admitting the need to stay tough, Ware continued to build her knowledge and gained respect from her peers and contractors by the way she worked. Feeling the need to advocate for women, Ware believes representation is essential. “I wanted to help other young women who were in male-dominated industries that are going to go through some of the same things. I feel like as women, we go through so much, but the women who decided to tackle careers in non-traditional areas definitely need support. And so ‘Build It Up’ is a program where I’m teaching girls how to get comfortable in leadership roles,” she said. 

Representing Texas

Ware also wants others to know the huge honor she feels in representing the State of Texas and utilizing her platform for purpose and change,  “I love representing Texas, and being able to reach out to girls as I text and email them back. I want to encourage other girls and women out there to continue to aspire to reach their goals in the face of adversity.”

Some fun facts about our Miss Texas USA: Aarieanna currently owns six chickens at home, has Latin music on her playlist, and is really good at finding four-leaf clovers. 

Visit the Miss Texas USA website here. 

Follow Aarienna on Instagram here.

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Cover Photo Courtesy Miss Texas USA 

Originally from San Antonio, Jenny Castro has a passion for writing, travel, and discovering new topics. She loves Tex-Mex food, Tejano music and George Strait. Check her out on Instagram to keep up with her work and latest adventures.