Aces & Queens goes to Cebu
Producing queens with the caliber of Pia
Alonzo Wurtzbach, Kylie Verzosa, Megan
Young, Venus Raj, Shamcey Supsup, Janine Tugonon, Ariella Arida, Gwen Ruais and Ann Colis, who were all able to win
international crowns—Aces and Queens, the training camp who groomed them into women of the world, is at the top
of their game.
This Sunday, ladies from the Visayas and Mindanao area will have the shot of a lifetime as Aces and Queens visit the Queen City of the South for a one-day only screening event.
Starting at 2 p.m. at the Golden Hall of the Golden Peak Hotel and Suites, Aces and Queens will have sifted through and added gems in their esteemed group by the end of the day.
Before we know it, a Cebuana might become once again part of the group and eventually become a queen and join the ranks of other celebrated strong and intelligent women of the country.
Interested participants need not appear in an evening gown, with a full face of makeup. On the contrary, the ladies are to wear a casual day dress, a pair of sensible heels, and light makeup as Aces and Queens searches for newcomers and even seasoned pageant hopefuls to take under their wing as official queens-in-the-making for the Class of 2018, in preparation for Binibining Pilipinas next year.
For anyone who still feels wobbly in their heels, and unsure around people, or even the regular kontesera, beauty queen maker Jonas Gaffud, who was able to bring out a Miss Universe, Miss International, and Miss World with over 30 stunning titlists under his wing, has a treat for any beauty pageant hopeful.
With his recently launched book, “The Crown: Your Essential Guide to Becoming a Beauty Queen” under ABS-CBN Publishing, Inc., Mama J, as Jonas is fondly known in the world of pageantry, offers a crash course and inspirational manna in the form of his stories, the prowess of the trainers behind Aces and Queens, and anecdotes about their beauty queens and how they remained gracious through highs and lows in the industry.
The book will not be complete without advice, and notes on pageant basics like preparation, slaying in heels, the notorious question and answer portion, and even height problems.
At the end of the day, Gaffud, who heads Mercator Artist and Model Management, says that being “vessels for these young girls to be better individuals, thinking individuals, who reach their dreams and do something that make our nation proud” is the best and the most fulfilling part of his career.
“The Crown: Your Essential Guide to Becoming a Beauty Queen” was launched alongside other Aces and Queens pillars – Arnold “Mama Ruffa” Mercado and Nad Bronce, and shows Jonas flanked by his muses Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach, Miss World 2013 Megan Young, and Miss International 2016 Kylie Verzosa on the cover.
Inarguably one of the premiere training camps for beauty pageants, a lot is in store for Gaffud and the rest of the Aces and Queens family, but none of it would be realized if not for the women who brave screenings and interviews, and trusted the said camp who, as Pia Wurtzbach puts it, “found potential in me at a time when I didn’t see it yet.”