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23/01/2022
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Published January 23, 2022, 11:00 AM
by Stephanie Bernardino
Tracy Maureen Perez (Instagram)
Miss World Philippines 2021 Tracy Maureen Perez will be flying back to Puerto Rico.
This after she made it to the Top 40 list.
On the official Facebook page of Miss World pageant, Perez was named as among 15 fast-track winners along with delegates from Kenya, South Africa, United States, Paraguay, Cote D’ivoire, Mexico, Mongolia, India, England, Cameroon, Nepal, Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Botswana.
The 25 other candidates, who were the “judges choices,” were contestants from Poland, Hungary, Puerto Rico, Colombia, Czech Republic, Northern Ireland, France, Ecuador, Guinea, Bahamas, Malaysia, Brazil, Madagascar, Indonesia, Trinidad & Tobago, Argentina, Canada, Dominican Republic, Ireland, Somalia, Chile, China, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and Iceland.
The Top 40 contestants have been invited to go back to San Juan, Puerto Rico for the 70th Miss World on March 12.
“Julia Morley and her Miss World team would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the contestants from the 97 countries that have contributed so much to this year’s event. We are sad that you cannot all return for the finale, but we really hope that every country will join with us online on March 16th,” organizers said.
Last month, the 2021 Miss World beauty pageant was postponed after candidates and staff members of the organization were allegedly tested positive for COVID-19.
This is the second time that the Miss World contest was reset, the first one being in 2020 when the pandemic broke out.
Prior to the announcement, Perez proudly shared that her “Beauty with a Purpose” project for Miss World has been picked by the Miss World Organization (MWO).
Perez said she was one of the Top 6 finalists for Beauty With a Purpose competition whose project will be funded by MWO.
In her advocacy speech, Perez said: “Para kay nanay. For my mother: A single mother’s journey to love — that is my beauty with a purpose project, and it’s dedicated to my late mother and to all the single mothers in my community.
“Being a mother is the most important job. It’s the most important role yet oftentimes, they are neglected. We fight so much, we talk so much about women empowerment so why don’t we start with empowering our mothers, most especially those who go through so much difficulties having to raise their families all on their own?
“Here in Miss World, we are given the chance to fight for causes, to open up meaningful conversations about problems that are otherwise neglected. And here I am, hoping to bring light and to spark change – positive changes – in the lives of single mothers.
“Back in my community in Cordova, Cebu, there are 2,000 single mothers so imagine how much more there are in the rest of the world. But they are not given the support, they are not given the help that they need.
“With my project, we give them a safe space, a community for them to feel loved, to feel that they are heard and understood. More importantly, we give them continuous BPO and computer training that they can use to equip them with skills to land better opportunities out there, especially amidst the pandemic.
“It gives them hope that they can still go out there and learn new things and build a good life for their families because that is what I want for them. That is what they deserve. And that is what I would have wanted for my mom, too, if she were still here. That is my commitment and that is my dream. Thank you.”
In a video uploaded on Miss World’s YouTube Channel, Perez revealed how she came up with such advocacy.
“Sa bawat pag-dapa, wag matakot bumangon. I am Tracy Maureen Perez and this is my story of how I rise up to make others rise above.
“Growing up with just me and my mom, I’ve seen how challenging it was for her to single-handedly raise our little yet beautiful family. Despite all the problems, she always had this reassuring smile on her face, reminding me that everything was going to be okay.
“And so when I lost her 11 years ago, I lost a huge part of myself. I lost my direction even. But getting to know other single mothers just like my mom brought me back on track.
“My personal story is the very inspiration of my life-long commitment to honor my mother’s sacrifices – by standing in the front lines for solo parents, gather like-minded people who believe in this cause and amplify our purpose all across the world. In every smile and laughter, every narrative told in words or silently spoken in tears, I see a reflection of my mom, her tenacity to face obstacles and her grit to overcome them all. That is my driving force to fight for this cause. I know that by taking care of them, I’m also taking care of her.
“We have already taken small steps, but together we can take a leap. From organizing health and wellness activities to training for livelihood. Our unified efforts are making waves to uplift the lives, the mothers, and that of their children. Let us see more faces beaming with hope for the future, more feet running around playfully – unbothered of life’s complexities.
“I see beauty in many shapes and forms in life episodes, high and low, in people from all walks of life, in reaching out to others that they may reach their individual and collective dreams. This, to me, is the essence of true beauty with a purpose.”
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