An Idaho native and graduate of Boise State University has been named Camp Pendleton's spouse of the year by the Marine Corps.

Kristine Schellhaas is now a candidate for national Military Spouse of the Year, which will be announced Feb. 21.

Schellhaas met her husband, Ross Schellhass, then a Marine sergeant, while competing in local beauty pageants in Boise. He was escorting women during the evening gown competition when she asked him on a date, according to a news release.

The couple married in 2002 after they graduated from Boise State. They have three children.

Kristine Schellhaas volunteers with the Marines, including a stint as a full-time family coordinator for a battalion that had had lost 20 members and suffered more than 100 casualties in Fallujah, Iraq. Ross Schellhaas is now a major with the Marines.

Kristine Schellhaas also founded USMC Life, which provides resources and Marine base information to make military life easier for families