BRADES – No doubt about it Miss Montserrat 2015 Sharissa Ryan has been one of the hardest working pageant queens in recent times.
Community on Her Mind
Since winning the crown in December 2014, Sharissa has modeled in a New York Fashion week show in February, hosted a free tennis weekend event for youth on island in March, performed with her violin at St. Patrick’s festival activities and chaired the Annual Inter-Primary Schools’ Sports Meet.
She’s also made appearances at the 2nd National Awards ceremony, the National Trust’s opening exhibit, the cultural day for visiting Guadeloupe tourists, and the 1st Montserrat Volcano Catch Fishing Tournament.
She is sharing her passion for books with children on island with the Trailblazers Reading Club in collaboration with the Montserrat Public Library. A summer reading program is also in the works.
Although now a US resident, since winning the competition Sharissa has moved home to be closer to the people and the island where she spent her earliest years. “I’d already decided that whether I won or lost I wanted to return home. Since I did win, I have decided to stay in Montserrat for the year and see where it takes me from there,” the queen told Discover Montserrat.
“As the reigning Miss Montserrat, I really want to make a significant contribution to my island. I’ve always wanted to but wasn’t sure how. Now, with my title I have an established platform for the year which allows me the flexibility to contribute and be a positive role model and ambassador to my country,” she added.
The Trailblazers Reading Club
Every other week, children meet with Miss Montserrat to enjoy reading time.
“For the past three sessions I have been reading the novel Percy Jackson and Lightening Thief. At the beginning of the session we read predictions that the children made about the story from the previous session. Afterward, I start reading the next section in the novel and children listen to see if any of their predictions came true. At the end of the reading my sister and I ask the children questions about the section that we just read to see how closely they listened and follow the story. Then I go around the room ask the children what their predictions are for the next section in the reading.
“To conclude we share with the children a “word of the day.” We give the definition, use it in a sentence, and give then synonyms as well. We encourage the children to try and use the word at some point during the week in their conversations with their friends and family.
Lastly, we end a game of charades that the children always look forward to playing. In the game one person is selected from the group to act out a person, place, or thing while the rest of the group has to guess what they person is acting out.”
The Trailblazers Reading club will continue to meet every other Saturday and runs for an hour and a half.
Upcoming Pageants & Events
Traditionally, Miss Montserrat attends two pageants annually and Sharissa will do the same. She will compete in the Jaycees Queen Show on July 26th in Antigua and the Caribbean Culture Queen Show, August 3rd on Nevis. Her team has added the Caribbean Commonwealth Queen Show on August 22nd in St.Lucia.
You will also be able to catch her at the New York Montserrat Progressive Society’s Mother’s Day event on May 10th and
Caribbean Dreamers Live event sponsored by VicRae Promotions on May 12, 2015. Both events are in New York.
Follow her journey on Facebook by liking her Miss Montserrat page.
