After travelling the globe and making her own mark at Miss World 2009 in South Africa, Leah Marville has decided to share the life-changing Miss Barbados World experience with future contestants.
As the new franchise holder, Marville is working to make this year’s journey exciting and educational.
The contestants will have the full support of the Miss Barbados World co-ordinating team who will offer assistance in every aspect of the programme.
Unlike fellow Caribbean islands Trinidad and Jamaica, Barbados is not known for its attention to international pageants; and Marville hopes that the patriotic camaraderie inspired by the legacy of Miss World can be achieved right here in Barbados.
“The Miss World show is watched by over two billion people all over the world. During my reign, everywhere I went, people were asking me ‘Barbados? Where is that?’ It is unfortunate that Bim isn’t a more recognizable brand as yet. We ought to use several platforms to bring foreign interests to Barbados. Imagine if we won the Miss World competition. Now, imagine how many people would google Barbados!,” Marville told WE Magazine. The management of Miss Barbados World is also planning to raise the stakes with some amazing prizes as they work to turn this into a platform for academic and career advancement for the competitors, as well as one of global admiration for Barbados.
“What many of us do not realize is that the entire Miss World arena is about development – personal and national. We create better communities only by being better citizens. A nation’s greatest resource is, after all, it’s people. The Beauty With a Purpose element is an especially incredible opportunity to draw international support for a contestant’s personal cause,” she added.
Marville and her new team of coordinators – who are looking forward to support from corporate Barbados – said they would be meeting soon with interested applicants, and young Barbadian women between 18 to 24 may email [email protected] or send a message to the team via their website or Facebook page. (PR)
