It’s less than 2 weeks until the
finals of the Tenth UK Galaxy Pageants, where as it stands the UK have brought
back 9 International Crowns back! The UK Galaxy pageants started with Holly
Pierre (who has just become a mum as well!) back in 2008 and has now expanded
to send 9 UK winners each year to the Galaxy International Pageants in Florida.
This year sees the special Miss Galaxy 10, where on the Sunday the runner up’s
from each division will be given another chance to win the crown and sees
something not seen in UK Pageantry!
The Galaxy Pageants are part of Pageant
Girl UK which also hosts the Power Pageant and Miss Teen Great Britain, and
who’s motto is Beautifully Inspiring. With that motto in mind, we interviewed a
few of the contestants in different divisions to ask them what that motto meant
to them, and how they had been preparing for the Galaxy finals!
Ruth Wade- Competing in Mrs Galaxy UK
"I
have been lucky enough to have eight months to prepare for the competition
which has been incredible as I have had a chance to do such a variety of
things. One thing I believe it is so important in pageantry is to enjoy the
journey. Only one contestant will walk away with the crown but if you enjoy the
journey to the competition you will always win in life experiences and
lessons.
With
that in mind I approached the lead up to the finals with a mind-set of wanting
to have fun and make a difference whilst doing it. I have been lucky enough to
travel all over the UK attending appearances from supporting the girls at Miss
Teen Great Britain in Blackpool to zip lining in Wales to raise money for the
Christie. However one of my favourite appearances is one that is right on my
doorstep. I have been volunteering in my village as a cook for the local lunch
club which is run every Wednesday for the OAPs at the community centre. It is
an opportunity for the most vulnerable people in my local community to have
some company and a home cooked meal at least once a week. I have found this
experience so personally rewarding and it has been amazing getting to know
people in my community that I wouldn’t usually cross paths with.
I
would encourage every pageant contestant to really enjoy the lead up to their
competition, find appearances that you love and can make an impact with and remember
you don’t always need to look too far afield, there are incredible
opportunities right on your doorstep.
For
me beautifully inspiring is about taking the platform you have been given and
using it to make a difference. It is about spending the time you have with your
title to impact those around you and it is about using what makes you beautiful
to inspire in a unique and personalised way.
I am
passionate about encouraging young people to reach their full potential
regardless of their background. As the first person in my family to gain a
degree I know first-hand how difficult it can be to navigate. Research has
shown that individual access to mentoring by someone from a similar background
can have a significant impact on a young person’s aspirations for their life.
This is why, for the last few years, I have volunteered as a mentor for groups
of young people from less advantaged backgrounds, helping them as they take
part in a business competition.
I
hope that I have an impact, however small; on the lives of the young people I
work with and hopefully inspire them to reach their full potential.
It
would mean the absolute world to me to be crowned Mrs Galaxy UK. It would
represent the culmination of 9 years of work and growth since I began competing
in pageants. Since the beginning I have always aspired to become a Galaxy queen
and I am so honoured to have the opportunity to compete for my dream title. I
am so excited to step foot on the Galaxy UK stage and to actually reach the
goal that I have been striving for would be a dream come true"
Emma
Jane- Competing
in Miss Galaxy Wales
“During
my time as Miss Gwent Galaxy, I have tried my upmost to embody the values and
mission of The Miss Galaxy International Pageant. The Galaxy ethos is one that
advocates beauty, style and cultural appreciation. It provides young women with
a platform to motivate and inspire others to make a difference.
My
Galaxy journey has been simply, life changing. I have had the opportunity to
work in conjunction with local organisations, authorities and charities to make
a difference in my area. I have been involved with local campaigns that sought
to tackle pressing issues such as stroke awareness and the eradication of
domestic violence. I have even conquered my own fears to raise funds for
charity!
To
win Miss Galaxy Wales would just be a highlight of an incredible journey. It
would truly be an honour to represent Wales internationally and to continue my
efforts of being an ambassador to young women across Wales.
Beautifully
inspiring to me, denotes an individual who empowers and motivates others to
make a difference. "We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by
what we give."
Mia-Rose
Lewis- Competing
in the Miss Teen Galaxy Wales
"My
Galaxy journey for the finals 2018 started as soon as I came home from Galaxy
2017. The past year has been an amazing whirlwind, since receiving my title as
Miss Teen Gwent Galaxy I have been working extremely hard to promote the Galaxy
system both in my community, Wales and around the UK by supporting my pageant
sisters and attending their events, holding my own charity events to raise
money for 'The Christie' cancer charity and causes close to my heart, along
with utilising this platform to make a difference in society as much as possible.
I have been given experiences and opportunities like know other, it's a journey
I never want to end.
If I
won, I can't even begin to describe what it would mean to me, but if I was to
win, I would truthfully cry( in a positive way of course!!), I have worked
extremely hard this year using my title as a platform to promote my purpose and
what I'm very passionate about. I feel that if I was so fortunate enough to win
it would be a reward of my hard work and dedication to the system. I have
already made such a difference with my regional title, I'm at the start of
where I want to be, I feel that the title of Miss Teen Galaxy Wales would give
me an even bigger platform to spread my purpose on a larger scale.
When
I hear the words 'beautiful inspiring' all my pageant sisters spring to mind.
Each and every day I come across one or more of the pageant girls that have
either held a very successful charity event, have volunteered in their
community to make a difference or something completely outrageous to raise
awareness for their platform... these girls are continuously working hard to
make a change in the world by choice. Each of these girls have a different story
to tell, they are all role models in their own way and are my definition of
'beautifully inspiring'"
Chloe
Lake- Competing
for Miss Galaxy Scotland
"To
me, I can split being beautifully inspiring into two parts, I think being
inspiring means going out of your way to do something to make a difference, no
matter big or small - and the beautiful part means being unafraid of standing
out from the crowd and appreciating your uniqueness and hard work in all
aspects of your life, as being beautifully inspiring doesn't just confine
itself to pageants! This is what I love about the Pageant Girl system - there
really is a focus on winning 'at life'.
In
the run up to finals, I've been focussing on making as many appearances as my
schedule will allow, and I have been trying to travel to Scotland as much as
possible. Due to being half-Scottish, I've really wanted to make an extra
effort to represent Edinburgh, where my family are from, as well as I could.
Even if it meant finishing work at 3:30am, jumping into my car and travelling
to Glasgow for a full day of appearances! Not only this, but I've developed a
new found passion for fitness, I spend a lot of time in the gym and after
completing my tower run for The Christie, I'll be completing a 10k run and the
Scottish half marathon later this year, so I've been busy getting ready for
those too!
My
goal would be to really work and develop a platform, around mental health
awareness. My mum, who many people know I am very close to, suffered from
severe depression as I was growing up, and then personally, I have also battled
with depression and self-harm. So, I think becoming Miss Galaxy Scotland would
be a wonderful opportunity to use such a huge title to make a difference,
particularly to young girls, as I didn't really have that relatable role model
figure to look to when I was younger"
Lisa Cox- Competing in Ms Galaxy UK
"To
me, beautifully inspiring is very important and I would like to show others
what they can achieve from taking part in pageants. If I won, I would like to
inspire others to enter and use their titles to promote their own personal
platforms.
If I
won, I would like to use the title to hold a national campaign around mental
health and carers as this is something that affects so many people and I would
like to raise awareness and support.
I
have used my Ms Blackpool Galaxy title as a platform to arrange an event where
students in year 11 who may be financially unable to afford a dress could come
and pick a dress or suit, shoes, bag, jewellery etc. I put out a request on
Facebook and received over 100 beautiful dresses from people in the pageant
community. The event was so incredible, and I will definitely be running it
again next year. Beautifully inspiring means having an opportunity to make
a difference to others and demonstrate what can be achieved with hard work and
dedication.
It
allows the development of your own skills and supports you to learn from the
experience which can be transferred to many aspects of life. Which hopefully
others can see and aspire to achieve for themselves"
Tina Baker- Competing
in Miss Galaxy England.
“Pageants have been a massive part of my life, since snapping my
Achilles in February 2016, knowing I couldn’t dance again or walk properly was
scary. I gained a little weight as I couldn’t do exercise for 9/10
months and all confidence dropped and I dropped a grade in my university last
assignment . As I got better I thought to myself I need something that would
push me and help me gain that confidence back.
Since starting pageants, I always can’t wait to be on stage as I know I can be me as I know I feel comfortable on there and proud of myself on how far I have come.
The lead up to Galaxy has been so fun. The amount of appearances I have done is beyond what I thought I could do. I have gained some real good and true friends for life"
Since starting pageants, I always can’t wait to be on stage as I know I can be me as I know I feel comfortable on there and proud of myself on how far I have come.
The lead up to Galaxy has been so fun. The amount of appearances I have done is beyond what I thought I could do. I have gained some real good and true friends for life"
We wish all the best here from
Sparkles and Rhinestones to every single girl who steps foot on the galaxy
stage, from the Junior Miss to the Ms, you are all winners to represent your counties
and towns! For more information visit the official Galaxy UK facebook page where
you can find out about the finals and how to watch!
Photo Credits: Monsignor Photography, Cassie Clemie Photography, Ian Walker Images and Hannah Todd
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