De Yonte’ wins all judged categories in MISS SVG

For the first time in 16 years, a contestant in the Miss SVG pageant was able to win the national show and walk away with all judged categories under her belt.

Last Saturday, eight beautiful young women graced the Victoria Park stage and competed in swimwear, talent, evening wear and interview categories, {{more}}in the hope of earning the Miss SVG 2015 title.

Although all contestants performed commendably, it was Miss Mustique Company Ltd, De Yonté Mayers, who accomplished this goal, as she not only won the title, but walked away on top in all judged categories.

“I’m overwhelmed to be honest. I can’t believe I actually won all of the judged categories and I’m thankful to everyone who has helped me to get where I am today because honestly, a year ago, I was not this person,” Mayers told SEARCHLIGHT, minutes after she was crowned.

According to the 19-year-old beauty, her strategy on Saturday night consisted of channelling different personalities for each category.

“For introduction, I was to be De Yonté: fun, happy-go-lucky; for swimsuit, I was to be flirty and have fun on stage; for talent, I was to bring the spirit of Chatoyer to life on stage; and for the evening gown, which was so soft and elegant and queen like and I just had to think and keep my head on for interview,” she explained.

This year was the first year that the Beauty Shows Committee allowed contestants to appear in bikinis for the swimwear category.

While all contestants looked well in bikinis that showed off their exceptionally toned physique, it was the Victoria Village resident that earned the judges’ nod in this section. She wore a turquoise bikini which she accessorized only with a silver belly chain and bracelet.

During her first appearance, Mayers alluded to the history of Garifuna people in St Vincent and the Grenadines, but it was not until the talent segment that patrons understood what she meant.

Shrieks of excitement filled the Victoria Park on Saturday when the queen, in a perfectly timed, well executed and attention grasping piece, married dance with technology to depict the life of St Vincent’s only national hero, Paramount Chief Joseph Chatoyer and his battle against the European colonizers.

“I love history and I believe that Vincentians don’t know enough about their history and we don’t embrace the fact that we are so culturally unique. We are the home of the Garifuna and persons in Belize, in different countries all over the world call St Vincent home, but in St Vincent we are not, we don’t really know that. So I just wanted to help spread the message out there about Garifuna to persons and I hope I did that. I hope that Vincentians are more connected now with their history because of what I did,” she told SEARCHLIGHT.

In evening wear, the beauty first appeared on stage in a voluminous and dramatic black cover-up which was removed to reveal a shimmering gold and green mermaid gown, with a black, sheer and feathered bodice, entitled “Phantom of the Opera”.

The gown was designed by Mayer’s chaperone, Kimon Baptiste, who in 1999 won the Miss SVG title by placing first in swimwear, talent, evening wear and interview categories as well.

In the interview segment, Mayers had patrons screaming excitedly, as she eloquently answered two questions: a question based on her biography and a general question.

First, she was asked to indicate some of the ways in which she intends to contribute to the treatment of cancer in St Vincent and the Grenadines, as stated in her biography.

“I plan to become an oncologist when I finish my studies. My father died of cancer when I was seven and that is my motivation. As an oncologist I plan to take St Vincent into the new age of cancer research and cancer therapy, because I want my country to move forward and to grow in every way,” Mayers answered.

Her second question was: “Social media has become quite popular all over the world. What, in your opinion, are some of the advantages and disadvantages of social media?”

The queen’s reply was that “Social media has become very popular. I can say honestly that I am a member of Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter so I can tell you honestly that some of the advantages of social media are the fact that you can communicate faster and more efficiently with friends and family who are abroad, you can also market things easier. For example, we can market St Vincent via pages on Facebook and Instagram. Some disadvantages, however, are the fact that what you post on the Internet often can last forever, so if a person posts something that is detrimental to their reputation, it can affect them negatively in the future.”

Mayers was also awarded the Most Photogenic title.

The first runner-up title was awarded to Miss Lotto, Vickeich Charles, who was also named Miss Congeniality. Miss Lime, Anika Robinson, placed second runner-up and also won the LIME Viewers’ Choice award.

Other contestants were Miss French Verandah, Precious Abraham; Miss Metrocint General Insurance Ltd, Melicia Antoine; Miss Agricultural Input Warehouse, Chantal Dells; Miss Play 4, Deshia Murray and Miss Dipcon Engineering, Donna Nelson.

Mayers will represent St Vincent and the Grenadines in the 30th staging of the Miss Carival pageant on July 3.

While she acknowledged that preparations will be difficult, she is adamant on winning that title as well.

“I am going to try my best to bring the crown to St Vincent where it belongs. I’m told that Miss Carival is going to be eons harder than Miss SVG, but I worked hard to get here and I’m going to work hard to get there,” the 19-year-old told SEARCHLIGHT. (BK)