While she was enrolled at the US Air Force Academy, Marsh was drawn to pageant competitions as an extracurricular activity from her desire to do community service and public speaking.
"As a freshman at the academy, you might have a hard time finding your identity in a very new and challenging environment," Marsh told the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT). "My cousin had competed in pageants for a long time, and one of the big things about it that I love is the community service aspect and the focus on public speaking."
Three years later, she was crowned Miss Colorado just days before she graduated from USAFA and received her commission as a second lieutenant. The 22-year-old is attending Harvard Kennedy School with the AFIT's Civilian Institution Programs to study public policy. She also will participate in research on early detection of pancreatic cancer at the Harvard Medical School and Dana Farber Cancer Institute.
Her mother died from pancreatic cancer in 2018, prompting Marsh's advocacy for patient care and research through her non-profit named after her mom, the Whitney Marsh Foundation.