Known for her flair in pageantry, and having earned kudos for the annual Miss Guyana Talented Teen, Dillon is collaborating with Mc Neal Enterprises, owned by Odinga Lumumba who has the Miss Guyana/Universe franchise, in the hosting of the Miss Guyana Universe pageant. Nine girls will compete for a chance to represent Guyana at the Miss Universe pageant at the National Auditorium in Mexico City, Mexico on May 29.
The local pageant is billed for April 8 at the Splashmin’s Fun Park.
Dillon recently told The Scene that the delegates would showcase Guyana’s culture and international artistes are expected to make appearances.
Prior to pageant night there would be the usual question and answer segment where the girls rather than being grilled will be put at ease and may well be carrying on a conversation with the moderator instead of having questions thrown at them. Dillon said the eventual winner would be the delegate who is very competitive and the best of the lot. Some of this year’s delegates have been in other pageants, but she does not see this as placing the novices at a disadvantage, since she feels they can hold their own on stage.
The delegates are being trained by Le Classique Dance Troupe head Clive Powell and Marvin Pierce, a member of Dillon’s Simple Royal team.
Dillon said there were some 30 applications and there was a screening process through which the nine delegates were selected, all of whom have a good shot at winning the crown. She said they were looking for a package as it is not just beauty alone that is needed for Guyana to make a good showing in the Miss Universe pageant.
Dillon said over the years she has been on the Miss Universe committee as she feels the inter-marrying of Mc Neal Enterprises and Simpli Royal, her company, is a good combination that would see a successful event. The queen is expected to win $500,000 in cash and other prizes.
The delegates:
This is 23-year-old Teannie Causway’s second shot at the Miss Guyana Universe title. She has also competed in the Miss Amerindian Heritage pageant in 2003 and Miss Jamzone in 2004. The St. Cuthbert’s Mission resident said she has entered again to showcase her Amerindian heritage which she says is rich and cultural. She is hoping that through her more Amerindian women would be willing to display their many talents. She is employed at the Lifetime Real Estate and can speak the Arawak dialect. She says she has mastered traditional Amerindian dishes such as pepperpot and cassava bread.
Nakita Archer, 20, is a fourth-year Spanish student at the University of Guyana and is fluent in Spanish. She is a part-time teacher at the Language Institute in both Spanish and English and wants to be an interpreter when she graduates.
She is a novice in the pageant world but has what it takes to grab the crown. She is a member of the National Dance School and says her mother is her pillar of strength. She regrets that she did not get to spend enough time with her grandmother whom she was very close to.
To say that Melissa Payne is no stranger to pageantry would be an understatement. The reigning Miss Jaycees Caribbean was also a contestant in the Miss Guyana Talented Teen, in which she placed second; she has also placed second in the Miss African Heritage in 2003. She was fourth runner-up in the Miss Ecstasy pageant in Anguilla and nabbed the same position in the Miss Guyana World 2005. She said pageants are the platform for girls to showcase their talents and she hopes to become the role model for young women. Children being close to her heart, Melissa provides food, clothes and other medical supplies to children of the Beacon of Hope Foundation, which she has set up.
Eighteen-year-old Ayana Harris is a sixth-form student at the St Rose’s High School and says she has been modeling since she was four years old. She is a former Central High School student and is proud of her academic accomplishments as well as her experience in pageants. She is a former Miss Central High and Miss Junior Guyana and also once participated in the Miss Guyana Talented Teen. She has the honour of being the first female to be recognised on Central High’s honour roll.
Twenty-two-year-old Shevon Mc Garrell is first and foremost a cricket fan and she, like so many others in the Caribbean, hopes that West Indies lifts the Cricket World Cup trophy. She wishes to meet the entire team when they travel to Guyana to play. Shevon revealed that she was raised by grandparents in Mahaica and has been an introvert in the past but is now ready to conquer the world. She became an introvert after losing the only parent she knew, her father, and has entered the pageant in memory of him. She is a former Bygeval Multilateral High School student and wants to win this crown so she can go on to be a ambassador for Guyana.
Twenty-one-year-old Latoya Bailey, fresh from the 2006 Miss Guyana World pageant, hopes the experience she gained there would propel her to being crowned queen of this pageant.
Last but not least is Lynn Ann Medford who has been described as, “the spunky, energetic dance choreographer”. She is on the quest to become an ambassador in the fight against HIV and AIDS. This Berbician is a dancer and she uses this art form to sensitize persons to HIV and AIDS. The 21-year-old is a member of Dance Alive, Crystallite Dance Group and an HIV and AIDS youth project in Berbice. She also described herself as a former introvert who became outgoing after she discovered her dancing ability. She is a role model for her six siblings and is open to the world and all its potentials.
The other two delegates are Michelle Sampson and Jonelle David.
