Friend’s nudge inspired
Narcissus queen

Darah Dung didn't really want to participate in the 2005 Narcissus Pageant.

No disrespect to the pageant. The 23-year-old was already too busy.

"(A friend) was the first to mention it to me. I said, 'No, I have school. I just got a new job.' ... I was doing a lot of modeling at the time," Dung said.

But thanks to her persistent friend, Dung relented and was crowned the 56th Narcissus Queen at the Blaisdell Concert Hall Saturday.

With the crowning, Dung became the first woman to win both the Chinatown and Narcissus Pageant. In 2003, she received the local and national titles of Miss Chinatown Pageant.

Soon after she won her Narcissus title this weekend, Dung thanked her friend, who attended the event.

"I was honored that she thought of me to do it," she said. "It was just overwhelming."

The Chinese Chamber of Commerce created the Narcissus Festival in 1950 to preserve Chinese art and culture. The festival and beauty pageant were named after a flower called "sui sin fah" in Chinese that blooms in the spring and symbolizes the lunar new year.

Dung is a 1999 alumna of Roosevelt High School. She is currently a senior at the University of Hawaii, and she is majoring in speech.

Her prizes include a vehicle for a year, a $10,000 scholarship to Hawaii Pacific University and a round-trip ticket to China. Dung said she can't wait to take her first trip to China.

Dung also has two older sisters who have won pageants in Hawaii. Her oldest sister, Denby, was crowned Miss Hawaii in 2001. Her other sister, Dana-Li, was crowned Miss Petite Hawaii USA 2002, Miss Kauai 2003 and Miss Chinatown 2004. In 2001, Denby and Dana-Li were the first sisters to compete at the same time for the title of Miss Hawaii.

Along with her Chinatown and Narcissus titles, Darah was also crowned Miss Hawaii Teen 2000 and Miss Kauai 2002.

"She glowed last night," said Denby, who describes her sister as a selfless person with a good heart. "She is such a wonderful representative for the Chinese community."

"I'm excited beyond words," her other sister, Dana-Li, said.