Sophia Ng started competing in pageants to raise awareness around mental health, especially among the Asian American and Pacific Islander community. In addition to those ideas, there are lots of other possibilities related to you skills at doing hair and makeup. Welcome to Ginger Chats, our collection of original stories from artists, athletes, industry leaders, and more. Photo: CMN. This Beauty Queen Uses Her Platform to Ease Mental Health Stigma in Asian American Community. Can you find 5-6 items on that list that you can honestly say, someone would be willing to pay you to do for them? Now, that weve got that cleared up. Back Chat: Miss Utah USA, Rachel Slawson, on Mental Wellness. Of course, you dont have to start your own non-profit to help make a difference for the homeless population. During her Miss USA reign, Cheslie Kryst went out of her way to support her fellow pageant queens, including former Miss Utah Rachel Slawson. She shows up because she believes that she can make a difference. And, they have increased the percentage of the talent score, so talent has become an even more prominent feature to that competition. Make sense? Or, is it your mission to ensure that no animal should ever be abandoned by their owners? Now a mental health worker and living in Surrey, she said the bullying led to depression in adulthood. 10900. When Kira was a young college student, she experienced an abusive relationship with her then, boyfriend. She was named ambassador for the Unicorn Childrens Foundation and works with this international organization to help people with neurodiversity. Add To Favorites California Pageant Queens Will Use Their Voice to Raise Awareness About Mental Health Los Angeles Sentinel - 4/20/2022 The reigning Miss Black CA USA Autumn Rae and Miss Black CAUSATalented Teen Nasreen El-Shabazz are coming together to use their pageant platform to bring awareness and resolution to depression, suicide, and mental health as they represent the state of . They support Smile Train, GMHC and AID FOR AIDS, and the winner of Miss Universe spends her year traveling overseas to spread messages about the control of diseases, peace, and public awareness of AIDS. Part of your job if you win the pageant, is being responsible for attracting new contestants, potential sponsors and business partners. Everyone either has a cause or has heard a story that pulls on your heartstrings and makes you want to help as much as humanly possible. abortion, legalization of marijuana N. With the recent deaths of beloved pageant competitors, many within the community are reeling and wanting to shed light on the larger, global mental health crisis.. Jennifer Lloyd, who is well . Do you find yourself helping them on a day to day, hour to hour basis in fighting their situation? If you have your mind made up on the topic of bullying for your platform, take some time to get clear on why this is so important to you. In this paragraph, you should talk about how you have pursued your platform and how you have begun to tackle the issue your championing. For example, if you have a family member that has suffered with autism, you may want to create a platform about autism awareness in their honor. After all, it is a cause, mission or charity that you have a deeply personal stake in or a deep affinity for. How have you been able to overcome and get through the difficult aspects of being bullied? Because that is what it really boils down to. Get out some paper and a pen and find a nice, quiet place where you can reflect without interruption. It truly is endless! It is 5 o clock in the morning! BMI values were generally within the normal range (between 20-25) among contestants in the 1920s, but were below normal (less than 18.5) among more recent contestants. around the country. Listen to Steven and Jesse break it down for you in the podcast, "What is a Pageant Platform and How Do You Develop It?". But, its nothing to get worked up about. Were not talking about starting a new career here. However, it needs to be customized so that it looks like it was made for you as well. You have so many options through these places, too. A few of the organizations that you might volunteer with if you want to get involved in this area and meet other people who share your passion are Paws, Petsmart or your local animal shelter. Just because a pageant labels itself "natural" doesn't necessarily mean no makeup; and casual wear does not mean jeans and a T-shirt. Are you motivated to save an endangered species? Childhood beauty pageant contestants: associations with adult disordered eating and mental health Eat Disord. Tragically, during the Miss World America pageant in Las Vegas, she collapsed just as she was preparing to go onstage for the final round of the national competition. Having such a platform can bring meaning to your time in pageantry, and can get you started on the path to volunteerism if you werent involved before. Even if you all three volunteer your time at your local Red Cross, I bet that what you do, how you do it and what you really care about is very individual to each of you. Youve certainly noticed issues in your town and wondered, Who is going to get rid of this? As mentioned in the previous section, choosing a cause that has an emotional tie to you and your past or your future is the absolute best way to bring out this passion in you. Everything from how they look to what theyve accomplished is judged against someone else, and that isnt healthy.. Our show is dedicated to helping women in the pageant industry find and develop a strong platform, one that can be used when they exit the pageant industry. Keep in mind, the possibility of girls having the same platform as you is very high, there are only so many causes one can champion. They may even see things that you didnt think of. The other contestants raised money by holding their own pageants, gala balls, fun runs, quiz nights and cake sales. Photo: Lasopa. Another titleholder whose platform came from her own medical experience is Miss Washington World America 2019, Shree Saini. You have to know who you are, what your values are and what it is that you want to change in this world. If during the competition you never have a chance to speak about your platform, the essay needs to cover every single thing about your platform so that the judges have a semblance of what you have stood for thus far in your pageant journey. Public and private events and ideas that can help you raise money for your platform. Shrees platform is all about heart health and emotional wellbeing, and she is an incredible volunteer, logging an astounding amount of volunteer hours, and earning numerous awards for giving her time to many organizations including the American Heart Association and The Hope Heart Institute. This number represents 17 out of every 10,000 people in the United States. Meeya Francis, contestant number one in the 2023 Miss Dominica Pageant, explained why she chose the platform "Mental Health in Men," saying that her personal life experiences with the problem of. Another organization called the, There Is No Limit Foundation seeks a world free of poverty, inequality, and violence, where independent, networked individuals leverage their knowledge, skills and connections to uplift and provide for themselves, their families and communities. Miss USA 2014 and 1st Runner up to Miss Universe, Nia Sanchez says that she is probably the only Miss USA in history to spend more time out of her heels than in them, because she was always kicking off her shoes to give demonstrations in self-defense. Do you all have the same platform? Pageant Planet - that's right. She earned a Masters degree in Music Composition; she is a classically trained opera singer and she endeavors to use her voice and the power of music to transform lives through art. This is your time to speak about all of the fundraisers, events, and charity work you have done to further your platform. In a livestream on the Miss Universe YouTube channel, Catriona Gray addressed issues affecting mental health in the pageant world and called on fans, delegates, and international organizations to do their part to make the space safer and more positive for everyone. Reaching out goes a long way. Just recently, however, bullying has been recognized as a leading cause of concern . Best for boosting your mood: Happify. And, then the fact that you can sew, is a huge money maker! The Miss Michigan USA pageant is right around the corner: May 27-28 in Port Huron. A friend urged Ng to get the help she needed and it was through the transformative power of therapy that she found a new sense of purpose. Your platform is the foundation of your service work (whatever that looks like) and its the cornerstone of your strategic marketing campaign, so what you choose is of the utmost importance. Won the Miss Congeniality Title, Miss Visibility Title, Miss Photogenic Title, and the Peoples Choice Award at the Miss Voluptuous Ohio Pageant. As her story was covered by the local news, Nel-Peters received requests from other women to share the experience. Make sure it's the right pageant system for you before you invest hundreds of dollars. They provide professional clothing, mentoring and life-skills to help low-income men get the clothing and toiletries they need for job interviews. Kira worked alongside the organization, Safe Horizon and started her own movement, Put the Nail In It utilizing the hash tag, #putthenailinit. Between two girls with the same cause, a judge is more likely to choose someone with a personal connection to it and whos actually spreading awareness over someone who championed the cause because their coach told them to. What do they do?..and then. Facebook has set up a system where you can create a personal post on your Facebook account and you can check a box that will allow people to donate to a cause. Perhaps your Mom and Dad read to you because you could not read for yourself, and that one thing that they did made you feel so loved and accepted, despite the reality that you had a learning deficiency. child advocacy. You could of course tutor someone, like a student in Spanish. Photo: Instagram. If you have decided to work with an organization, you could begin to volunteer your time with these organizations if it is not something that you already have a personal connection with. Miss Montana 2012 Alexis Wineman, was the first woman ever with autism to compete in the Miss America pageant. The reason that you think this is because you had dyslexia when you were a child, and you could not read well until your problem was diagnosed. That would be such a helpful service to offer too! Get to know the people who you see everyday around town and listen to what they may be struggling with. So, first off, playing volleyball may or may not be a good money making idea, although, depending on your skill level, your experience and your desire, you may just make a pretty good volleyball coach. Social Media Challenge or Contest: This could be done privately within your circle of friends and family as well. The International Pageants system promotes community service with half of each contestant's competition score based on knowledge of and work with her platform. Miss Universe 2019 contestants volunteering at the Children's Hospital of Atlanta. In recent years, pageant platforms that promote the arts or art education in some form have become increasingly more popular. During her year as Miss America, Teresa travelled an incredible 20,000 miles per month, educating and counseling students and young adults about eating disorders, a platform that she advocates for to this day. Other organizations, such as Miss USA or Queen Beauty USA, have their organizations be open-ended as to where a contestant can decide if shed like to pursue a larger cause or have her title be more career-oriented. For instance, they decide that they should select a disease because they have a family member that suffers from that disease. Proceeds from Catrionas music helped to build a preschool and childcare center for Young Focus, and also provided meals for families and children so they could celebrate Christmas with food on their table. Its surprising how often contestants choose a platform just because it seems interesting or is something that shows up in their lives, and they impulsively act on it. Photo: White Collar Glam. Just start a fundraiser and share your page! In fact, she was even a recipient of the Gold Level Presidential Volunteer Service Award (the highest you can achieve) because she donated over 250 hours of unpaid acts of volunteer service benefiting others, within a 12 month period! Founded in 2011, Miss Global is an annual global beauty pageant for single women between the ages of 18 and 35 - and the significance of Ng being the first Asian to hold the title goes way beyond . She has gotten involved in a variety of levels and capacities with charities such as the Open Book Project, Butterfly Hugs, Knit a Square, Relay for Life, Give Kids the World, and Ronald McDonald House. Aside from pageant systems making medical issues a priority of service, titleholders around the world have always been drawn to supporting these types of causes because by and large, the type of people who get involved in pageantry are givers. Being able to speak about someone that you love facing a medical dilemma can be the inspiration for many passionate speeches and essays about how those battling the same dilemma can get through it. 378 practice beauty pageant questions for 2023 written by former Miss Universe coaches to ensure you do your best in the interview and on-stage questions. The Miss Universe pageant has allowed transgender participation since 2012, and the first trans woman competed in the global event in 2018. Youre going to be spending a lot of time with your platform, years perhaps. 1910 Thomas Ave Now that youve figured out what your platform is, and why youve created it, you must figure out how you will enact it. The vast media coverage and candid admissions of harassment and assault by countless celebrities has created an open environment to discuss issues that were off limits previously. Its an exciting time to explore volunteering in this area, and you will absolutely feel rewarded for your efforts, as you help other women achieve their own goals. Join Jesse Ladoue McMullen, our Queen of Customer Success, and Cara Mund, Miss America 2018, as they tell you everything you need to know about finding and starting your platform. Volunteer work has always been at the forefront of competing in beauty pageants, so be prepared to do as much work as possible! We know that this is a very extensive project, but these people are your current network, and every single one of them can help you in some way. Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray in the slums of Tondo. It is important to have a splash of personality and professionalism throughout the tone of your essay, as you want the judges to take you seriously, but you do not want your words to bore them as well. When you can key in to those personal details that motivate you, it then becomes so much more than a pageant platform. What specific ideas do you have for how people can combat the problem of bullying and become a kinder, more accepting society? Or, if you are more interested in expressing your inner Julia Child, you could combine your love of animals with your baking hobby.