Navarro, a management consultant from Redwood City, CA., was chosen from among 200 contestants at the event at a hotel in Palo Alto, CA.

And she and other competitors aim to turn the often negative term into a positive one.

Navarro says she proud to represent a new breed of woman: empowered, secure and willing to break boundaries.

"It's a new beginning for me," Navarro told sfgate.com. She'd been married for 20 years, recently divorced and ready for something - or someone - new. "I went from soccer mom with short hair, flat-heeled shoes and fanny packs to cougar."

The contest was produced by the Society of Professional Singles, billed as the largest singles organization in the world. The evening, which included a keynote address by Internet radio host and author Francesca Gentille and her boyfriend, Tahil Gesyuk, 14 years younger, drew a racially diverse crowd of men and women who came from as near as Stanford University and as far as London.

The party included three hours of dancing, drinks and booths filled with items ranging from "Cougar Kits" to "Cougar kitty" T-shirts.

Miss Cougar America was selected by a vote of the men in attendance.

"Older women and younger men? It doesn't matter nowadays," said one of the men. We're past that barrier. It matters what you bring to the table."

So what do you think -- does the event (and the winner) get a growl of approval?

(Hey, it seems to be working for Demi Moore.)