TC PAGEANTS

Wow, what a weekend! My daughter had such an amazing experience in the Junior Miss Newfoundland and Labrador Pageant!

When you think of “Pageant” many of you might think “Beauty Pageant” and all the stigmas that are attached to that label... comparing girls by how pretty they are and whatnot! But I promise you it is nothing like that! This pageant is an uplifting experience for every participant. It teaches the importance of self esteem, confidence, friendship, and community involvement.

This past weekends she has met new friends that she will have for life.  Immediately following the pageant today, she announced to me that she absolutely HAS to come back next year because she loved it so much! That says a lot for the overall experience this gives to each participant. She didn’t win a title, be she won so much more!

Thank you to everyone who helped her in anyway with this journey
See ya next year!

 

As I grew into a young woman, I wasn’t sure of who I wanted to be. I was confused, nervous, maybe even embarrassed. So I followed whatever my friends were doing. Whatever they liked, wore, acted like. I did this for a while and soon realized it wasn’t me. After the realization hit me I was left in a void, I was lonely, scared, and unsure of what my future would look like. Luckily I made some new friends who helped me, but it wasn’t enough. Then I was introduced to TC pageants. On my first day as a junior on the car ride to orientation I told myself, “be as outgoing and extroverted as you can, everyone will want to be your friend.” Luckily I was right. I met so many lovely girls and felt genuinely happy and excited for the weekend ahead. Throughout that weekend I realized you don’t need to be the loudest, or the most outgoing. You just need to be yourself, and the amazing contestants and comity members taught me that. The next year I came back, so happy to see my friends and compete again, and then of course the year after that. I could never be more thankful for these experiences, they taught me it’s okay to mess up, it’s okay to be a little weirder then everyone else, it’s okay to be funny and outgoing, but most importantly it’s okay to be yourself. If I could give every girl one piece of advance, whither your bubbly or quiet, girly or not, or your just curious about what it may be like, join a pageant.

This Pageant has genuinely changed my life in ways I never expected. When I entered my very first competition, I didn’t place, but I was honoured to receive People’s Choice. At the time, I was coming out of one of the hardest years of my life, a year that took a real toll on my confidence and mental health. Even though I didn’t place that first year, the support I felt from the community and the experience itself meant everything to me. It reminded me that people believed in me even when I was struggling to believe in myself.

By the next year, I had grown so much as a person, and earning 1st Runner Up was an incredible moment. But truthfully, the real impact of pageants has always gone much deeper than placements or titles.

Pageants helped me rebuild myself from the inside out. They pushed me to find my voice, strengthen my confidence, and rediscover the parts of myself I thought I had lost. The interviews, the mentorship, and the constant encouragement showed me what I’m capable of. They helped me heal, gave me purpose, and reminded me that I am stronger than anything I’ve gone through.

And beyond all of that, pageants gave me something irreplaceable: lifelong friendships. The girls I met became a family,  people who understood me, supported me, and lifted me up during every high and low. We cheered for each other, shared our nerves and excitement, and created memories I’ll carry with me forever.

Pageants didn’t just improve my mental health; they helped me grow into a more confident, grounded, and resilient version of myself. They showed me what happens when you don’t give up on yourself, and for that, I’ll always be grateful

For many people, the word "pageant" brings with it some negative connotations. In fact, this pageant was quite the opposite. It was about celebrating young women - their achievements, their accomplishments, and their diversities. It was about building them up - their confidence, their self-esteem, their self-worth. It was about fostering life skills, building meaningful relationships, and teaching life lessons. It was about supporting - not resenting - the competition, and cheering LOUDLY for their successes. It was beautiful, and meaningful, and life-changing...especially for my girl

To Sabrina and the committee: THANK YOU for your unrelentingly efforts to break the stigma; for all the work you put into building these young ladies up year after year. I could never express what it has done for my heart and soul to see my girl so smiley, social and HAPPY; so BRAVE. Thank you for helping her realize her worth. We are eternally grateful.