Barceló Bavaro Beach Resort to host 2014 Miss U.S. Latina Pageant

PRLog (Press Release)

The Miss U.S. Latina™ Pageant returns to the Dominican Republic for its 26th edition, this time to take place at the luxurious Barcelo Bavaro Palace Deluxe in Punta Cana. The Finals Show and Coronation will be held Saturday, August 30 at the Gran Teatro Bavaro. The event itself will begin on August 24 with the arrival of the contestants for the week-long schedule of preliminary competitions, rehearsals and other pageant and fun activities. “We are thrilled to return to this amazing resort which hosted our world finals in 2011 and it was an incredibly wonderful experience for all,” said pageant president and founder Acirema Alayeto. “This is our 15th anniversary with Barcelo Hotels & Resorts and we could not celebrate it at a better location than this one, where the first Barceló hotel in Latin America was built in 1985.” Ms. Alayeto went on to note that Barcelo Hotels & Resorts continuously play an important role in the travel & tourism industries’ worldwide environmental efforts.  For years, this luxury resort complex in Punta Cana has been dedicated to meet the highest international standards in regards to the environment, conservation and corporate social responsibility, earning it Green Globe certification in 2013. That same year, the Barcelo Bavaro Beach Resort received the Check Safety First (CSF) Award for its operations' high quality standards.

“We are proud to be associated with the worldwide Barceló hotel chain and the excellence they represent, given that our program also promotes high standards as we seek participants who fit our motto of “More than a model…a Role Model™,” added Ms.Alayeto. Miss U.S. Latina is the first national pageant system established in the country in 1983 exclusively for Latinas. It continues to be the only one whose winner advances to a world competition – the Miss Latin America of the World pageant. Single women of Latin or Hispanic heritage between the ages of 19 and 27 are showcased in this national competition that encourages academic pursuits, personal development, cultural awareness and community service. Contestants are selected from across the USA through affiliate state pageants.

Ashley Garner of El Paso, Texas is the current Miss U.S. Latina titleholder and she will be crowning her successor in Punta Cana. Ashley, who is of Mexican and Afro-American heritage, was crowned last summer at the Barcelo Maya Beach Resort in Riviera Maya, Mexico. She went on to win Third Runner-up placement at the world finals last year, so the parameters for the 2014 contestants are high.
Previous Miss U.S. Latina titleholders have come from Arizona, California, Florida, Kansas, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas, Utah and Washington, D.C., and they have been of Mexican, Cuban, Puerto Rican, Guatemalan, Costa Rican, Colombian, Brazilian, Peruvian, Bolivian, Nicaraguan and Dominican descent, reflecting the wide diversity of nationalities that comprises the large Latino population living in states all around this country.

Miami-based Organización Miss America Latina Inc. produces the Miss U.S. Latina national pageant, as well as the Miss Latin America of the World international pageant. Over the years, the Miss U.S. Latina Pageant has been hosted by various Latin American countries, such as Argentina, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Mexico.
All eligible Latinas are encouraged to participate in their state preliminary for the chance at living this amazing experience. Interested contestants can get more details visiting http://www.missuslatina.com. Find information on Barcelo Hotels & Resorts at http://www.barcelo.com.

Miss USA Nana Meriwether to Compete in Wildfox Model Beach Volleyball: "Maybe I'll Spread Rumors or Something"

By Kat Bein (New Times Miami)

Right now, New York City is floundering in icy, slushy chaos. The high hardly breaks 30 degrees Fahrenheit.

Meanwhile, everything here at home is perfect blue skies and sunscreen on sandy beaches. It's no wonder Miss USA 2012 Nana Meriweather can't wait to get her butt down here. The former Olympically-trained volleyball player will brush up on her spiking skills and try to lead her team of gorgeous bodies to victory in the fifth-annual Wildfox Model Beach Volleyball tournament. It's competitive sports for a good cause, with support for the Irie Foundation -- but watching all those models compete is worth it alone, right?

Meriweather is no stranger to good-deeds. Her family has been working with South African communities her whole life, and she recently founded her own foundation toward that goal. We spoke to her via phone to learn more about her philanthropic efforts, her sneaky game-plan, and her unfair advantage.

New Times: What have you been up to? Nana Meriwether: I was Miss USA last year, and I gave up my title in June. I continued to live in New York City, and I work in development and fundraising for Meriwether foundation which is a non-profit organization that I helped co-found. We work in rural and very urban communities in Southern Africa. We've grown now to five countries. We're in South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Malawi. I'm passionate about it, and I love to do it, so that's what I do during the day. But at night, I still do events and appearances out of New York.

I'd love to hear what drew you to that cause in the first place. My mom was born and raised in South Africa. My father is an American doctor and in the early 1980s, my mom was studying in the states and she met my dad. They moved to South Africa, they were supposed to stay a year and they ended up staying eight years. I was born during this time. My dad was working in the local hospital, and my mom would help empower women through small business, such as organic farming. They ended up helping over half a million people while they were there for eight years, and that's what this is based off of. We continued working, traveling back and forth, but we started work with the nonprofit in 2007.

Have you ever participated in this crazy Wildfox model volleyball competition? I have not. This is my first time. Actually, my first time in Miami was during Art Basel, this past one. I loved it. I'm very excited.

Are you naturally sporty? Have you played volleyball before? I have. I played volleyball for UCLA, and then I played in Puerto Rico and trained for the Olympics. I retired soon after that, so I haven't touched a ball since 2006. We'll see how this weekend goes.
You could be the sleeper cell! You could just come through and wreck it.But I haven't played in a while.

Do you know what team you're playing on? Are you cooperating with a certain modeling agency? I think the first day, they randomly pick names out of a hat and then you're matched with that team. I think there's 12 teams, and all the people participating are models, not people.

Well models are people, too. Yeah, they're a special breed of people. That's what makes this event amazing. They're really competitive, and they'll bring attention, and it's all for a good cause. It's a very uniquely-structured event that I'm looking forward to.

You brought up a good point, that models are very competitive in nature. At first, you think of a bunch of models playing volleyball, you think all these skinny girls are going to be running around in their bikinis, but I bet they're going to be really serious and really go for the throat. Probably even more so than the coaches. All the coaches are pretty professional or current volleyball players. They have the same nature, I think, when it comes to competition. I think it's going to be a very exciting weekend.

There are coaches. Does that mean you guys are going to have a chance to practice with one another and come up with a game plan? I think so. I believe that we may even play a game against each other. This weekend is full of surprises. There's going to be a bunch of celebrities and volleyball players. It's a great mix of different worlds coming together for a god cause.

Last year Jamie Fox performed, and that was a big surprise. Anything can happen. There's a stage and a DJ. It's like five degrees in New York. I can't wait to go to the beach in the sun. It's going to be a fun weekend. Is there actually a champion team that will rise out of this competition? What do the winners get? Yes! I think the champions get a prize. It's a big gift with all the sponsors, so there's something to work towards.

Other than just bragging rights, which are pretty good.I think that's way more valuable than the prize package. The agency who wins can just brag for a year. I can't wait to see if there's briberies. I'll learn more when I hit the ground, start asking around. Maybe I'll spread rumors or something to bring the competition down.

The 5th Annual Wildfox Model Beach Volleyball Tournament. Hosted by Miss USA 2012 Nana Meriwether. Saturday, Feb. 8, and Sunday, Feb. 9, at 8th and Ocean Dr., Miami Beach. The event begins at 10 a.m. daily and is free and open to the public.

All Hail The Asparagus Queen!

by NPR STAFF

Forget Miss USA and Miss Universe. Think you've got what it takes to be the Asparagus Queen?
Mainstream beauty pageants still get tons of applicants every year (even after the dip in participation during the 2008 recession). The same can't be said for the rural festival pageant circuits, The Wall Street Journal's Lindsay Gellman tells Audie Cornish on All Things Considered. 

Be it pecans, asparagus or watermelons, many farming communities have also had a tradition of granting their prized commodity crops their very own monarchs. However, interest among young women is waning and the crop of candidates is dwindling, says Gellman, who covered the phenomenon in a recent story. The reason is partly financial strain — the tab for the dress, jewelry and professional makeup services can easily add up to hundreds of dollars. Gellman adds that there may also be a changing attitude toward pageants that makes them less appealing for younger women.

"The participation level is [also] an important indicator of the strength of the community engagement and pride in the cultural commodity it's tied to," says Gellman. Take, for example, the annual pageant held by the National Asparagus Festival in Oceana, Mich.But local communities aren't giving up on the traditions just yet. And many have turned to changing the rules to spice up the competition. For years, the title of Mrs. Asparagus was traditionally reserved for farmers' wives. But there wasn't much of a competition two years ago when one of only two participants dropped out at the last minute. By default, the crown went to the one remaining candidate.

"The goal of this pageant is to select a farmer's wife-type to represent the asparagus industry," Gellman says. "And so to not have a choice of women is very awkward." So organizers decided to throw out the wedding ring requirement, change the title to Asparagus Queen and open up the competition to both single and married women. They're not the only ones, though. Other pageants are also finding ways to garner more interest: The Ohio Beef Queen has become the gender-neutral Ohio Beef Ambassador; Ms. Kumquat is now crowned alongside a Mr. Kumquat in Dade City, Fla. And the board members of Louisiana's Shrimp and Petroleum Festival are personally calling up qualified young women to compete. The number of applicants for the Shrimp and Petroleum Queen rose because, Gellman says, "It's very hard to turn down a personal telephone invitation."

Miss USA Erin Brady, at Maxim party: 'Bummed' not to be attending Super Bowl

By Janelle Griffith/The Star-Ledger 

Miss USA winner, Erin Brady said she is "bummed" that she will not be attending the Super Bowl game at MetLife Stadium today, as the Denver Broncos face the Seattle Seahawks. Brady, a Connecticut resident, was a guest atMaxim's annual Super Bowl bash Saturday night at Espace in New York City.

"I will be cheering from hopefully, some kind of fun Super Bowl party with amazing food," Brady told The Star-Ledger. "I have a couple of options. I'm trying to figure out exactly what I want to do."

While in town this week, Brady said she took advantage of other Super Bowl-related activities such as Super Bowl Boulevard — a 14-block outdoor celebration — set up on Broadway between 34th and 47th streets. "I was there as they were setting up the big toboggan slide," she said. Brady also attended the NFL honors Saturday at Radio City Music Hall, which she described as "a really cool experience to be a part of."

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