Opinion: Miss Rotorua pageant wonderful opportunity

Miss Rotorua contestants team building day at Motion Entertainment. Photo/File

Eighty per cent of contestants in the Miss Rotorua 2017 pageant are Maori. A good reason for me to support the event. Like many others I have worked over the years to encourage young Maori women to step out of their comfort zone and seize every opportunity to realise their unlimited potential.

I have encouraged them to make their own decisions and take control of their lives as early as possible. To be empowered to take a planned approach to their future. Why take the long way around, with all that entails, when a well thought out plan will take you to your desired future, sooner rather than later. Unplanned, the journey can be time consuming, energy sapping and often costly. Life has taught me "do it right the first time around".

The pageant includes leadership development and career coaching along with other laudable goals. And although it doesn't specifically identify breaking down old stereotypes this will be one of the positive outcomes. Young Maori women, not just from Rotorua, will know what I'm talking about. Over the years they have told me that the expectation they will be successful in life and have a bright future was pretty low. Not anymore. Expectations have been raised and there are now many Maori women role models who are achieving in a wide range of jobs and careers.

They are prepared to mentor younger women as they gain confidence and the necessary life skills to move into areas previously thought to be "not for us". I enjoyed my speaking engagements in the past when I travelled the country talking to Maori women. I would tell them "never travel second-class through life", you are not the B team, you have unlimited potential. I would watch their reaction. I suspect they hadn't heard such a thought-provoking and challenging address often, if at all. I also added they should remain single until after turning 30. That helpful suggestion went down like a lead balloon.

The Miss Rotorua 2017 pageant was oversubscribed with beautiful hopefuls wanting to be a contestant. Twenty-one made the final cut. They already look beautiful and composed.
But being in the public eye can be unnerving. They will learn coping skills and how to handle stress, public speaking, deportment and how beauty on the inside is just as important as beauty on the outside.

It's not easy to put yourself out there in the public glare. The contestants know not all people agree with beauty pageants. Some have made nasty comments on social media. But the contestants say they are having too much of a good time to let the comments get to them. And they haven't been sitting idle since they were named as contestants in July.

One of their first public appearances was at the successful Harcourts Dancing with the Stars Hospice fundraising event that raised a whopping $150,000. The contestants were introduced to the public that evening. The pageant promotes charity work and volunteering. Already it has raised $20,000 for Rotorua charities. They are hoping to double this amount before the crowning event on September 16.

Girls and young women come in for unwarranted scrutiny from an early age. We already know many have self-esteem problems. They are bombarded daily with advertising depicting "the body beautiful". Some will try to get as close as possible to being a carbon copy. I hope the contestants learn there is beauty in being yourself. It's what I find most appealing in my friends. Friendships enhanced by authenticity. They'll learn too about emotions and how these can play a significant role in promoting optimum health.

Uplifting, pleasurable experiences are good for our health. And lifestyle matters too. Research has shown that people who have a good time accomplish more. As we get older we get caught up in everyday living, surviving, trying to keep our heads above water, improving our lifestyles, relieving stress, achieving goals, finding and keeping personal relationships intact. No one gives you a blueprint "here follow this". We all embark on our own journey.

The Miss Rotorua 2017 pageant is a wonderful opportunity for young women to delight in being beautiful. They will find out there is no need to waste energy on what they don't want. They will learn how to enjoy and live life.

Merepeka Raukawa-Tait is a Rotorua Lakes Council councillor, Lakes District Health Board member and chairs the North Island Whanau Ora Commissioning Agency. She writes, speaks and broadcasts to thwart the spread of political correctness.