By Elesha George
The island of St Lucia, the Helen of the West, emerged victorious on Wednesday night when its representative Shan Lucien walked away with the 61st Jaycees crown at Carnival City in Antigua.
Appearing as the last contestant of the night, Lucien copped awards for Best Performing Talent, Best Modelling Skills in Evening Wear, and Best Dressed.
Excited about her win, Lucien told Observer, “Anything is possible as long as you believe and put your mind to it. There was a point in my life when I didn’t think I was capable of achieving this, but I took the risk, put in the work, and here I am.”
Lucien, who was crowned Miss St Lucia just a month ago, described her preparations for the regional pageant as “hectic” and emphasised the importance of her team’s support.
“It really was a team effort that made this happen, and I’m so thankful for everybody involved,” she said.
“It is a little bit unbelievable. I suppose it will take a little while for it to sink in but I’m just really excited. I’m looking forward to this new journey for myself,” she added.
The 25-year-old is passionate about music education and will go on to promote its improvement in schools.
Meanwhile, Antigua and Barbuda’s Desrie Markham took home the first runner-up title and an award for Best Swimwear. Markham, who just days earlier was crowned the Queen of Carnival in her home country, stepped out on stage with a completely new talent that no doubt brought her closer to claiming the crown.
The 25-year-old attorney sung beautifully to bring awareness to the often-hidden struggles with mental health and the stigma associated with it.
Markham thanked local playwright and dramatist Owen Jackson and Marvelyn McClean saying, “They were the ones that put the concepts together. We consulted with Malique Marsh as well and we got not only the concepts but the ideas and the messaging that we wanted to get across.”
Although Markham, like all the other contestants, wanted to win, she said she made sure to condition her mind “because in a competition with 11 girls you never know what way it can go, and I really did hope that I won but Shan is very talented”.
Miss Grenada Amonai Francis, the youngest winner at just 20 years old, walked away with the second runner-up prize and an award for Best Interview.
“I’m so proud. I was so happy to represent Grenada. The theme really stood out to me and fuelled me throughout the pageant,” Francis said.
“I can’t complain. I worked hard, I didn’t win, but at the end of the day, that’s all that matters. I’m satisfied with my performance.”
The other participants were Adacia Adonis (British Virgin Islands), Majestik Estrada-Peterson (US Virgin Islands), Tineka Francois (Trinidad and Tobago), Kayla King (Guyana), Estephanie Charles (Haiti), Desnarine Hanley (St Kitts and Nevis), Kyanna Dyer (Dominica) and Kaena Rangassamy (Guadeloupe).
This year’s Jaycees theme was ‘Beauty Unbroken’.
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