Pageant selects glamorous 36 ahead of races
The launch of the third annual Berlin November pageant on Saturday night was a glittering affair attended by fashionistas and the who’s who of the East London party scene.
The 36 beautifully-attired contenders were revealed at Chairman’s Bistro and Lounge in Quigney to rapturous applause.
Ongezwa Mpambani, the 2018 Miss BCM second princess, was named as one of the finalists, and said the support shown in the Eastern Cape had been overwhelming.
“It was a great honour to see the premier [Oscar Mabuyane] at the launch,” she said.
Pageant director Yolanda Pietersen, of Lulutho Grooming School, said the event was not only about beauty. “Mentorship and grooming form a substantial part of the pageant.
“We are cognisant of the fact that our finalists are university students who are expected to join the working world soon, so we focus more on skill development,” Pietersen said.
The pageant final will take place at the Berlin November Traditional Horse Racing Festival on November 30 – but this year with a difference: for the first time in the short history of the pageant, a men’s category is included.
“We decided to expand the pageant to accommodate the guys as well because we are trying to build the mentorship alumni in the province,” Pietersen said.
“We want to build a space where boys are also groomed on the same platform of development as the girls.
“We are aware of the pandemic of boys who grow up without fathers, so we are trying to start a Berlin November family where we father our boys.
“The saying that it takes a village to raise a child is what we are trying to do here.”