Young Reena Usher of Dangriga was chosen as the 64th Queen of the Bay at the Civic Center in Belize City as part of the continuation of a proud tradition that involves choosing the most talented, elegant and charming young women to hold up as examples of national pride .
Usher defeated a talented field of ten to win the crown, with second place going to Miss Jane Usher Boulevard, Kiasha Bevans; and third to Miss Belizean Heritage, Zeripha Arnold.
Rounding out the field were Queen of the West Millie Pulido (4th); Miss Orange Walk Melanie Codd (5th), and in order of appearance during the pageant: Belmopan’s Francine Francis, Teen Toledo Tracey Jacobs; Corozal’s Aracely Cahueque; Flowers Bank’s Deshawn Gamboa; and Esperanza’s Daniela Woolley.
After a series of talent presentations on various topics, such as the Battle of St. George’s Caye, societal ills, national pride and identity and even the migration of the Lebanese to Belize, and the always difficult formal segment, where each of the delegates had to perform a gracious curtsy to outgoing queen Karima Card and then to the packed Civic audience who cheered them on, the field was then narrowed to five delegates: Usher, Bevans, Arnold, Pulido and Codd.
In the question and answer segment, Usher, when asked to select a Belizean past or present whom she would like to meet and why, chose labour organizer and writer of National Anthem “Land of the Free”, Samuel Haynes, to general approval. (Haynes, now deceased, became an organizer for Marcus Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association in the United States and moved to New Jersey, U.S.A. in the 1930’s.)
Bevans said that Belizeans should celebrate in September because we were part of the victory in the Battle on the road to Independence. Arnold described the Queen of the Bay as “Belize personified;” the symbol of the Battle and of freedom. Pulido declared that the Battle’s significance was that Belizeans got an opportunity to fight for our home, country and people against the invading Spaniards. Codd said she was proud to be Belizean because she was born here in the Jewel and is therefore “100%” Belizean”.
Bevans, who lost in a close run to Usher to the dismay of her admirers, picked up the Miss Eloquence title. Most Talented went to the new Queen Reena Usher; Tracey Jacobs was named Miss Amity (most friendly) and Zeripha Arnold Miss Photogenic.
The pageant judges were Jane Menzies Bennett, Shadene Ottley (a former Queen), Ombudsman Cynthia Pitts, Rodney Neal, Herbert Panton and Rene Villanueva, Jr.
Usher won a wide variety of prizes, including a scholarship to the University of Belize (UB) from the Ministry of Education and a round trip ticket and 2 weeks’ stay in New York City from the New York Queen of the Bay Committee. Each of the other contestants also took gifts home.
Usher was formally crowned by her predecessor, Karima Card, at Memorial Park on September 10, as is traditional, during the official ceremonies for the Battle of St. George’s Caye Day.