Guyana’s Akilah Fredricks, 19, made her mark at the recently concluded 2023 Hanes Smith Miss Caribbean Talented Teen Pageant.
Fredericks did not capture the crown but copped the second runner up spot at the pageant held at the St Kitts Marriott Resort on December 30, 2023.
The 1st runner up spot went to the delegate from St Maarten while Takyla Hart-Johnson of St Kitts and Nevis won the crown.
Pamela Vaughn, Franchise Holder of the Miss Guyana Teen with a Purpose Pageant, said it is an achievement for all of Guyana to be proud of.
Fredricks won the first-ever Miss Guyana Teen with a Purpose Pageant in March 2023. That was a rebrand of the Miss Region Four Teen with a Purpose Pageant.
Vaughn and Crystal De Jesus of Enmore, East Coast Demerara participated for the first time under the franchise in the 2019 Hanes Smith Miss Caribbean Talented Teen Pageant.
Guyana was previously represented at the 2016 Hanes Smith Miss Caribbean Talented Teen Pageant by Aliyah Wong under the Miss Guyana Talented Teen franchise.
Vaughn said she was happy to be invited to participate in 2019 and though her delegate did not place she was determined to use the experience to rebrand her local pageant and return with eyes set on the crown.
The pandemic stalled those hopes until 2023.
“Being a secondary school teacher, I want young girls to be brave and have their voices heard.
“I believe doing it through pageantry showcases their intelligence, beauty, talent and craft all at the same time,” a passionate Vaughn, who has been hosting village pageants along the East Coast of Demerara for many years, told the News Room.
Now, she wants to continue pushing young girls from all over Guyana to aspire for representation not only at the national level but regionally and internationally.
Vaughn has a team of young people supporting her, including local designer Mwanza Glen.
Glen designed both at the local level of the pageant and regionally for Fredricks who went up against nine other girls and won the best gown segment in St. Kitts.
Glen, a dancer himself, also helped choreograph the talent piece which was a dramatic poem written by Vaughn that addressed the misconceptions of a teenager’s life.
The theme of the regional pageant was: “Awaken by Technology” and the team wanted to embody that in the costume worn at the pageant. Eventually, they decided on one that depicted the use of Guyana’s waterways to produce electricity and reduce the cost associated with energy.
“We looked at Guyana being the land of many waters and high electricity charges and how water can reduce those charges… so we depicted the Amaila Falls Hydro Power Plant and the evening down was a flower that blooms,” Vaughn said.
The 2024 edition of the Miss Guyana Teen with a Purpose Pageant will be held on April 20 and Vaughn said she is already looking for potential delegates, aged 15 to 18.
The application form is available on the pageant’s facebook page and the deadline for applications is January 28, 2024.
