BY NADIA PERSAUD
There is little else that a contestant in the Miss Caribbean Canada Pageant dreams of than being crowned the Miss Caribbean Canada Queen. For Jahail Darby, Miss Jamaica, the dream became reality.
After several months of preparation, practice and anticipation, Darby competed in the Miss Caribbean Canada Pageant 2016 on July 24, 2016, at the Jamaican Canadian Centre.
Lloyd Dwyer, the President of the Miss Caribbean Canada Pageant, created the pageant as a platform to help young women in the community build self-esteem, and to expose them to experiences that would help mould them into confident and informed members of society.
The reigning Queen of this year’s pageant, Jahail Darby, was radiant and confident as she competed in all three rounds of the evening, particularly as she sang soulfully in the talent portion and recited a beautiful poem dedicated to Jamaica.
However, what won Darby the crown and the title of Miss Caribbean Canada 2016 was her thoughtful and perceptive response to one final question posed to the top five contestants.
After chatting with Darby, there is no doubt that she is an intelligent, caring soul who is all about helping others and supporting her family.
On pageant night, there were several rows of seats filled by Darby’s family members who came out to support her and to cheer her on, including her mother, brother, nieces, nephew, aunt, grandparents and church members. Darby commented, “It’s always great (to have my family) because whenever either one of my siblings is doing something, they’re always there to support us just so that we know we have a team behind us. It’s just comforting because whether you win or lose, just to know that they’re there to support you is great.”
It is no surprise then that with her love of family, Darby is an aspiring family lawyer and is currently pursuing a sociology and law degree at Brock University. She is going into her fourth and final year of university in the fall.
Darby explained that when she was at school in St. Catherine’s, she would come home every other weekend to attend to her extra-curricular activities, such as helping her church out with various programs, like the choir.
Recently, Darby was employed at RE/MAX and has been working as a receptionist since then.
Darby stated that as the new Miss Caribbean Canada Queen, she is looking forward to attending community events where she will be able to interact with others and have the “chance to give back” as she is someone who loves helping others, especially the youth and younger children.
Darby and the two other finalists in the Pageant, Princess Aye Asentewaa and Tiana Knight, will be attending the Sickle Cell Association of Ontario’s 35th anniversary on November 5th, and helping out with the event.
Along with the title of Miss Caribbean Canada Queen, Darby was also awarded a trophy, $1000 cash, and a three night trip to Montego Bay. Being of Jamaican heritage, Darby explained that once the details are straightened out, she would love to go back to go back to Jamaica as she loves travelling and meeting new people. However, the prize money will likely go towards her school fees.
Miss Jamaica, Jahail Darby is undoubtedly a bright, compassionate and intelligent individual and this, along with her title as Miss Caribbean Canada Queen, will surely take her to great heights as she moves forward in life.
