Achieving a purpose
Alexis Sue-Ann Seow had one goal in mind when she chose to participate in Miss World Malaysia 2019 – to win a platform to speak out and be a champion to teen mothers.
SOME people may dismiss beauty pageants as being fluff and think that it doesn’t mean anything beyond a title, but for Alexis Sue-ann Seow, it is so much more than that. The recently crowned Miss World Malaysia 2019 joined the pageant with a clear goal in mind.
“Miss World focuses on beauty with a purpose, and I had a purpose to be at this competition,” says Seow, who is a TV host and actress.
Beauty with a Purpose, the pageant slogan, was created in 1972 by Julia Morley, chairman of the Miss World organisation and it is the heart of Miss World. Seow, 24, was brought up by her mother who taught her to give back to the community since young.
“Since I was 12, I followed my mum – who worked for a foundation – to old folks and childrens’ homes regularly and I saw what it was like to have less. There were so many stories of people who have less and I was blessed to have the life that I have.”
When she was 16, she participated with her mother in the Climb of Hope (2010), climbing Mt Kinabalu and raising RM50,000 for the National Cancer Society Malaysia.
“Miss World correlates with my beliefs and I felt it would give me an incredible platform to give back to the community,” says Seow, who also won the People’s Choice, Top Talent and Beauty With A Purpose Subsidiary Awards.
The finalists were each required to present a Beauty With A Purpose project proposal and the best projects could be adopted by the Miss World Malaysia Organisation.
For her project proposal, Seow – who is passionate about children and elderly, education and animal welfare – came up with Chance4change in collaboration with Orphancare which focuses on educating youths on baby dumping, and helping single and teen mothers by creating sustainable ways to earn income for themselves. The idea came after a lot of research Seow did following a visit to Rumah Kita, an NGO shelter for single pregnant women. “When I visited Rumah Kita, it was filled with babies that were dumped. There were extremely sad stories from teen mothers who were abused by their family member or husband to babies who were found in their dead mother’s hands. Rumah Kita is a safe haven for them.
“I wondered if baby dumping is a big issue, so I did some research and found that it is one of the biggest issues in South-east Asia and Malaysia is ranked in the top five in the world (cases of abandoned babies). I felt I needed to do something, so educating these girls is a priority. “Chance4change works in two phases: creating awareness and sustainability. For awareness we are talking to youths between 17 and 24. This year we are reaching out to university students. I work with Orphancare Foundation and they will give talks on what they do, that is, provide a baby hatch for unwanted babies, while I will talk about the consequences of baby dumping.”
Seow explains that Orphancare’s main purpose is creating a baby hatch where girls can place their unwanted babies, anonymously, in a fully air-conditioned hatch. Once it is locked, a sensor triggers an alarm to the caretaker and the baby is immediately taken to the hospital.
Seow says she is also looking at giving talks to girls in government schools while the boys will be addressed in a separate talk.
“We want to create awareness for these girls on what sexual grooming is as many of them are forced into unprotected or non-consensual sex. A lot of girls don’t know how to say no, so we want to focus on communicating with the girls to let them know that baby dumping is a crime, while placing their baby in a hatch with Orphancare is not.”
“I just want to bring awareness to youths on what is happening in Malaysia now, and I think with more awareness we would do much better.”
Along with tenacity and determination, Seow won the title because she was able to think on her feet.
During the Q&A session, Seow was asked, “If you could have one wish to change something about the world, what would it be?” and her response was, “Overall, I would like to change how we view each other, to have social acceptance in general, as a lot of people are not respecting each other and there are a lot of bullies online especially.”
To the girls who are aspiring to join Miss World Malaysia, Seow says, “You have to know your main purpose for joining and it can’t be about gaining exposure, but more about your goal in life. You only have one year as Miss World and if it’s fame that you’re after, it’s not going to impact lives.”
After her one-year reign, she says, “I will continue working for my Chance4change project and make it an NGO. I also want to be a successful entrepreneur and continue in the entertainment industry.”
A first runner-up at an earlier national pageant, Seow is a seasoned contender.
She was crowned Miss World Malaysia 2019 on Oct 6 after defeating 19 other contestants during the Miss World Malaysia 2019 Grand Coronation Night held at Mega Star Arena in Kuala Lumpur.
She received the coveted crown from Miss World Malaysia 2018 Larissa Ping and was awarded RM30,000 cash, a Ceres diamond ring worth RM20,000, a one-year artiste management contract and coaching sessions by renowned Malaysian model and actress Amber Chia.
Seow will be representing Malaysia at the Miss World 2019 Final in London on Dec 14.