24-year-old Timiqua Deterville will represent Saint Lucia at the upcoming Miss OECS Pageant, where she will compete against four other women for a shot at the crown.
The event will unfold in Dominica on January 31, at the Windsor Park Stadium.
Lisha Beache (St. Vincent and the Grenadines), Mauricia Barzey (Montserrat), Shania Samuel, (Antigua) and Kyanna Dyer (Dominica) will also participate in the event.
According to the organisers, the pageant will give participants a platform to advocate for critical social issues and positively impact communities.
The pageant was conceptualised in 1984.
“The Miss OECS Pageant is a prestigious regional event that celebrates the grace, talent, and cultural heritage of young women across the Eastern Caribbean. After a twenty-year hiatus, Dominica revitalised this cherished tradition in 2019, reviving its mission to promote transnational integration, regional unity, and Caribbean womanhood,” oecs.int noted on their website.
This year, under the theme ‘Elysian Elegance and Empowerment,’ the pageant continues to highlight contestants’ intelligence, poise, and charm, oecs.int added.
Moreover, ‘Miss OECS’ “remains a beacon of empowerment and cultural pride”, the website stated.
Deterville ,who hails from Derniere Riviere, is no stranger to pageantry.
She has participated in a handful of local pageants including the National Carnival Queen Pageant in 2019 where she captured the 1st Runner Up spot.
She also received the prizes for Best in Swimwear and Best in Costume at the event.
She also won the 1st Runner Up spot at the Miss Independence Pageant in 2019.
And in 2018, she walked away with the awards for Best Talent, Best in Evening Wear and Best Interview at ‘Miss Mabouya Valley’ contest.
She’s looking forward to being on stage again.
“Representing my country is not just an honour, it’s a privilege that fills me with immense pride. I am committed to giving my all in every moment to make my country proud,” she wrote on Facebook on January 13.
The support she’s received “means the world to me and serves as a constant source of motivation”, Deterville told her followers.
Apart from pageantry, she also has an interest in dancing (which, of course, is an asset at any pageant).
“Timiqua discovered her passion for dance and embraced the art form like a child embracing candy. She divulged this love by becoming a member of C.A.M Dancers which made a tremendous impact on her life,” her biography on Facebook said, adding that “Her enthusiasm in the realm of entertainment propelled her in the direction of pageantry”.
Her educational journey began at the Ave Maria Girl’s School “where it was instilled in her that each task should be done extremely well. With that as her mantra, coupled with a personality that radiates optimism, she is destined for greatness. She began to display athletic potential at a very tender age and was initiated into the Cheeters Athletics Club in the year 2012. There she received accolades for her outstanding performances in track and field,” the biography noted.
She later attended the SDA Academy where she continued to excel.
“Despite her Catholic background Timiqua never turned down the opportunity to participate in the Sabbath celebrations. Ms Deterville successfully graduated from the SDA Academy having captured the awards for Sports Woman of the Year, Head Prefect of the Year and Application of Religious Education,” the biography pointed out.
It also noted that she’d faced her fair of challenges and that she wants to encourage others to remain steadfast when life gets tough.
Deterville will follow in the footsteps of Claire-Marissa Smartt who represented Saint Lucia at the pageant last year. Smartt walked away with the title of Miss OECS and the prizes for Best in Creative National Wear and Best Swimwear.
This year’s event will be a memorable one, the organisers hinted. ‘Miss OECS’ will be streamed online (for $USD 20.00) for those who can’t attend in person.