[7.04.11] This past Canada Day weekend was also the culmination of months of hard work put together by 41 young women of British Columbia. The Miss BC pageant is an annual competition that celebrates young women, community, and charity. It takes place each year at the Chief Sepass Theatre in Fort Langley, British Columbia. With girls from all different backgrounds, the diversity of the contestants was a perfect showcase of what makes up the multicultural country of Canada. Each of the contestants are encouraged to hold a fundraiser before the competition weekend in an effort to raise money for the Cops For Cancer / Canadian Cancer Society charities. This year, the total amount raised was $21, 205!
A few years back, the pageant courted controversy when it allowed single mothers into the program. Most pageants would not have permitted this, but leave it to Miss BC to change up the world of pageants yet again proving that this is not your typical beauty pageant! This year, the show introduced two new categories: Mrs BC and Mrs Lower Mainland – to be more inclusive of contestants who are married! Again, this gave an opportunity to women who may not have been able to participate in other pageants to have an experience of a lifetime!
“It’s not who you are that holds you back, it’s who you think you are not,” says Cheryl Dietrich of North Vancouver, winner of the overall Miss BC 2011 title. She hopes to help other young woman out there feel like they are “amazing, worthy, and enough.”
The Miss BC Pageant is a developmental program for young women. Each contestant received professional training in areas such as modeling, stage presence, manners and etiquette, self-esteem, interview skills, public speaking, self-defense, and assertiveness.
Other winners of the evening included: Miss Northern BC – Amanjit Minhas Miss BC Interior – Cindy Duerst Miss Vancouver Island – Sabiha Zafar Miss Fraser Valley - Nadine Mross Miss Lower Mainland – Melissa Muirhead Miss Charity BC – Alyssia Tang People’s Choice Award – Mina Khtaria Miss Okanagan Valley – Natalie Rivard Mrs. Lower Mainland – Tara Nakano Mrs. BC – Carla Wayes Miss Congeniality – Karly Keshavarz
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