Showstopper Kerrie Baylis of Jamaica was crowned Miss Jamzone 2012 on Tuesday evening at the National Cultural Centre after an incredible performance throughout the pageant, garnering the strongest support from the Guyanese audience.
The 23-year-old Insurance Underwriter impressed the audience with not only her striking beauty and flawless body but her captivating confidence during each presentation.
However, Baylis sealed the title when she was asked the final question: “At the end of life, what would you like to be most happy about?”
“At the end of life, I would like to think that I had made a difference in the world,” Baylis began before the cheers of an enthusiastic audience rang through the Cultural Centre.
After about a minute of urging by the hostess, Shonnet Moore, the crowd became quiet again, allowing the Jamaican to give a complete response. “At the end of life, I would like to think that I had made a difference in the world,” she reiterated, adding, “I think one of the main reasons we are here is to help the less fortunate and make a difference in the lives of others so if I can touch a life I’d be happy,” she concluded.
“That’s our queen, that’s our girl right there,” many patrons were heard shouting and minutes after she was indeed crowned Miss Jamzone 2012.
Coming in as first runner-up was Miss St. Lucia, 21-year-old Louise Liza Victor, 2nd runner-up was Miss St. Kitts and Nevis 21-year-old Trevicia Adams, 3rd- runner-up was Miss Guyana 23-year-old Ayanna Harris and the 4th runner-up was Miss Trinidad and Tobago 23-year-old Renee Bhagwandeen.
Radio Personality, 23-year-old Jasmine Perez of the British Virgin Islands was also favoured by the audience throughout the pageant but unfortunately she did not qualify for the finals.
Other contestants were 23-year-old Ivany Guzman of Venezuela, 18-year-old Elisa Tolud of Suriname and 22-year-old Shemon Baptiste of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Throughout the competition, Jamaica and Guyana competed strongly for the title as both delegates put on an almost flawless performance but by the intermission, Jamaica had stolen the hearts of the audience and later, the judges.
Responding to the final question, Harris told the audience, “I’d be most happy about the fact that I would have gotten a degree in Business Management, fulfilled my dream to be an Executive Marketing Consultant, a wife and mother to three kids… that’s what would make me happiest.” Her nervous delivery could not be ignored and the audience did not express satisfaction with the answer.
Special prizes
for Guyana
However, Guyana managed to walk away with the special prizes for Miss Congeniality and Best Fantasy Wear which was indeed impressive. The subtle brown and cream mixture of shell pasted on the two-piece swimwear hugged her small frame with strings of shell along her back and stomach as well. It was said to be a representation of the beautiful sand beach and turtles of Guyana.
Taking away all the other special prizes was Miss Jamaica which included Body Beautiful; Best Evening Gown; Best Cultural Dress and Best Country Presenta-tion.
Miss Jamaica wore a stunning forest green gown which flowed from her body into a short trail. The top which appeared to be a laced, brown material was heavily sequined and adorned with beads of various shapes, sizes and colours.
She also earned the prize for the best country representation with dance pieces to songs dating back to the 1990s, progressing to contemporary Jamaica dancehall style of dance. Amused by this, the audience screamed loudly, prompting the confident delegate to continue.
She made reference to icons coming from Jamaica like the legendary Bob Marley and the now fastest running man, Usain Bolt, even going as far to imitate his signature archer pose, as roaring approval echoed through the Cultural Centre.
Guyana’s representative sold her country by speaking of the beautiful capital city, the rich rainforests, the finger-licking food and the diverse culture of the six races.
Harris later showcased a beautiful gown which bore many handcrafted designs including a small model of the St George’s Cathedral on her train. It also had representations of the Kaieteur Falls and the Demerara Harbour Bridge. It was decorated with brown and green leaves on the sides and had much hand painting.
There were a few letdowns in the show along the way, some of which saw Miss Suriname admitting to being nervous during her country presentation. The delegate dressed as a tour guide in khakis, a yellow t-shirt and a red cap and offered to take the audience on a tour around her beautiful Suriname. Unimpressed by her calls for the patrons to “come along over here” and her aiming at invisible canals and fauna, the audience burst out in laughter before cheering her on again. She failed a second time to make her presentation more attractive and subsequently walked off the stage almost in tears.
Miss Trinidad and Tobago also drew much negative energy during this segment as at the very beginning of her presentation she greeted the audience with “Good Afternoon Guyana!” She too was left speechless for some time and upon resumption, stammered uncontrollably.
Loud thump
However, the biggest bump along the road had to be after the pageant was concluded and the newly crowned queen was taking her walk across the stage with her $US10,000 cheque, waving to patrons as they made their way to the exits. A loud thump which echoed throughout the venue turned the attention of patrons back to the stage where the Jamaican Queen lay flat as persons rushed to her assistance. It was said that a sheet covering the drop of the stage had fooled her and after stepping in the area, she fell facedown.
As persons held their hands to their mouths in disbelief, someone from the stage announced that the queen was okay.
Judging the pageant were Simone Beckles, Ulex Atwell-Fung, Steve Ninvalle, Christa Simons, Joel Ghansham and Chandini Ramnarain.
The new queen disclosed that she will be using her prize money to further her studies in law. She said that she had recently graduated from the University of Surrey with a degree in law and wishes to pursue a career in this field.
