Two Berbicians pageant walked away with the top titles at Saturday night’s Miss Earth Guyana pageant at the National Cultural Centre: Faydeha King was crowned queen, and Cintiana Harry copped the Miss Eco Guyana 2019.
They were among 8 contestants competing in the Costume, Resort Wear, Question & Answer and Evening Gown segments and for the top four, the Final Question.
Each woman depicted local flora and all of the costumes were lovely, but it was Annessa Van Sluytman’s shimmering red Hibiscus that caught the judges’ eyes and won her the gold medal. Silver and bronze went to Faydeha and Cintiana respectively.
For the Resort Wear category, the contestants donned beach wear that included a cover up. Phelicia Adams stood out in a knitted one piece of the colours of the flag.
For the Question and Answer, each contestant picked a question from a glass jar and these related to what they would do should they win, or how they can improve the earth.
The Evening Gown segment saw Phelicia in a turquoise gown decorated with crystals; it was designed by her mother. Faydeha’s Randy Madray red gown had pink ruffles at her shoulder and again in the trail that flowed behind her. Annessa’s simple yet exquisite silver gown drew ahhhs from the crowd. Amelia Bakhsh chose a burgundy strapless fishtail gown. Cintiana’s was a shimmering burgundy that fitted off the shoulders and carried a netted trail. Kataina Phillips shone in her silver and blue gown. Another piece that captured the audience’s interests was a lace, mint-green design worn by Marcia Meusa. Selena Guyadeen paraded in a lilac and purple beaded gown. But in the end, it was Faydeha’s gown that won the gold, while Annessa captured the silver and bronze went to Cintiana.
After the scores were compounded, Faydeha, Cintiana, Annessa and Amelia were named as the final four. Along with the points for their answers, they could also garner an additional ten, based on who was most favoured by the audience. The final question was, “Define the beauty of an earth warrior.”
Except for Annessa who fumbled only slightly, they all responded well. Faydeha said, “I am the definition of beauty of an earth warrior. You can also be a definition of a beautiful earth warrior. You just have to listen to what Mother Earth is telling us. Mother Earth is asking us to start using the five Rs. She’s also asking us to stop making her ugly and destroying her because she’s here to supply and provide for us. So, as an earth warrior I am an ambassador of the earth and I encourage you to be an ambassador of the earth also.” She received the most applause.
Though it was a stiff competition, many in the audience had their bets on Faydeha as she powered through each category.
“I am overwhelmed. I am extremely happy that I am given this opportunity to not only represent Guyana on the international stage but also to travel and meet persons so that I can educate them on all that Guyana has to offer…,” Faydeha said afterwards. “I am hoping to bring something different than our other representatives in the past. I know that Xamiera [Kippins] did a very good job but I’m hoping to bring back the crown for Guyana. The work has just begun but I’m willing to work as hard as possible.”
Asked whether she thought of herself as a front runner, she said, “Anything I compete in I first try to picture if it’s going to be something that’s beneficial for me. Going into this pageant I know that I had to work hard despite that I would have had experience or the support base… Additionally, pageants such as Miss Earth, Miss Universe, Miss World are of high calibre… I knew that my experience would have helped me, but I didn’t think that my experience was going to give me an edge over the girls.”
She said there was no particular contestant she thought of as her strongest competitor, as they all had experience and advantage in some area. She noted that in the run-up to the pageant she got to know the other girls better and knew that she was up for some tight competition. Realizing that every girl was working really hard, she knew she needed to work twice as hard. “There were persons who could have walked so beautifully. There were teachers competing who would have grown accustomed to standing in front of a crowd and presenting themselves so effectively. Each one of the ladies had their own advantage and likewise I had mine and I made mine work for me,” she said.
Faydeha, who is also the reigning Miss Black San International, made her debut in pageantry competing in the Skeldon High Pageant which she won. Later, she participated in the Miss Corriverton Pageant (Queen), Miss Region Six (Queen), Miss Jamzone 2013 (first runner-up), Miss Bartica Regatta 2013 (Queen), Miss Universe Guyana 2015 (second runner-up), Miss Caribbean Culture Guyana (Queen) and Miss Global International Guyana (second runner-up).
Cintiana, who was awarded the Miss Eco Guyana title, is also the current first runner-up for the Miss Berbice I’m A Big Deal Pageant. Miss Eco Guyana is significant to the Miss Earth Guyana brand as it comprises the responsibilities for the three elements air, water and fire. Miss Eco-Guyana 2019 will take on all responsibilities and projects alongside Miss Earth Guyana 2019. She will also represent the brand locally and regionally in the absence of the queen.
Cintiana will be the face behind environmental projects promoting eco-tourism, travelling across Guyana with the objective of making our country greener. She will also be a member of Miss Earth Guyana Organization’s entourage to Miss Earth’s host country.
In addition to her crown, Faydeha took home a number of awards including Best Talent, Best Resort Wear, and the bronze medal for the Recycled Materials category. Cintiana was awarded the bronze medal for her National Costume and silver for the Recycled Materials category.
Kataina took gold in the Recycled Fashion contest. She was assisted in the making of her piece by designer Carl Peterkin. Last year’s queen, Xamiera Kippins did Guyana proud when she copped the gold medal for her Ole Higue costume and the silver medal for her talent.
Faydeha will represent Guyana later this year when she goes head to head with representatives from 102 countries. The date and venue for Miss Earth 2019 are still tentative.
