National Carnival Queen Pageant Spotlight

Tonight is the big night for eight beautiful young ladies participating in the 2016 National Carnival Queen Pageant. The event will take place at the National Cultural Centre. Over the past two weeks we have been spotlighting the ladies in the STAR and today we present the final two contestants.

Sheris Paul
Sheris is Miss Bounty. Born on May 3, 1995 she describes herself as a fun-loving individual with a pleasant personality. At a young age Sheris embraced training in dance and drama affording her the opportunity to develop an immense passion for the stage. She attended the Ave Maria Primary School and then went on to the Castries Comprehensive Secondary School. During her five years at secondary school she continued developing her creative nature and flair for the performing arts.

Sheris participated in Miss Independence Pageant 2015 and Miss Queen of Gros Islet. “Since then my love for pageants has progressed and I intend on furthering my personal development by way of the stage and pageantry,” she says.

Her ultimate goal: “To make it on the big screen”.

Sheris intends to connect with young women like herself, to encourage and empower them, to set goals and work towards achieving them. She believes that young women should be more assertive and aware of their rights.
Presently she is a student at Monroe College, Saint Lucia Campus studying Business Management
Shartoya Jn. Baptiste Shartoya is Miss Super J. She was born and raised in the community of Ciceron, Castries.

Her fondness for pageantry emerged when she entered and won St. Lucia’s Most Talented Teen Pageant in 2012 and represented her country at the regional Hayne’s Smith Most Talented Teen Pageant later that year. This led her to participate in the Miss Independence Pageant in 2015 where she placed 2nd runner-up. At 20 years old, Shartoya can proudly say she has accomplished many things in life. She has represented Saint Lucia not only in pageantry but dance, both regionally and internationally.

Shartoya finds personal strength in the words of wisdom given to her by Harold Prince: “Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress and working together is success.” It is through this powerful quote that Shartoya was able to graduate with top honours in Hospitality Studies from the Sir Arthur Lewis Community College and captain the senior company in her dance troupe – The Silver Shadow Performing Arts Academy.

Currently she volunteers as a dance teacher for teens in Silver Shadow and is a Theatre Arts Drama teacher at the Castries Comprehensive Secondary School.

“I plan to further my studies in the Theatre Industry and later pursue a career as a Professional Dance Choreographer and a Certified Theatre Arts Lecturer film director,” Shartoya reveals.