The Saint Lucia Tourist Board is again demonstrating its robust support for Saint Lucia’s premiere cultural showpiece with a ringing endorsement of one of the seven contestants vying for the coveted title of 2013 National Carnival Queen.
The island’s lead promotions and marketing agency has given the nod to the talented and beautiful 19-year-old Amy Stephen from the charming west-coast village of Anse La Raye.
The soft spoken yet energetic and witty Miss Stephen, on Monday evening June 17, officially became Miss SLTB when she was presented to her sponsor at a sashing ceremony at the Alliance Francaise De Sainte Lucie.
Miss Stephen is a past graduate of one of the top performing learning institutions in Saint Lucia – the Leon Hess Comprehensive Secondary School. Demonstrating a keen interest in the arts through her passion for singing, Miss Stephen has been affiliated with the famed choral group The Cecilian Rays and the Charles Cadet Youth Orchestra.
“Who I am today is largely as a result of my family which comprises a mix of teachers and musicians,” says Stephen. She credits her interest in the arts to a combination of her family’s tradition as well the influence of the late cultural icon Petronilla Deterville.
The talented teen admits to being no stranger to pageantry, as in 2005 she participated in the Mr & Miss LHCSS Pageant and placed first. In 2008 she represented Saint Lucia in the Haynes Smith Caribbean’s Most Talented Teen Pageant in St Kitts and placed second runner-up.
Tourist Board Director Louis Lewis says, “Miss Stephens will be presented to SLTB staff and will no doubt be welcomed into our dynamic family. We are involved in more than just carnival and in fact are hosting a number of exciting summer promotional campaigns like Staycation/Summmerlicious, along with a major US/Saint Lucia showcase happening in the midst of the carnival season and can already foresee valuable avenues where we can spotlight Miss Stephen. On the flip side, Miss Stephen through not only her charm, but talents and captivating appeal, can provide us with invaluable marketing mileage.”
The 2013 National Carnival Queen Pageant is set for June 29 at the National Cultural Centre. Carnival celebrations will peek in July and will conclude with the traditional parade of the bands through the city circuit on July 15 and 16.
