Moose Jaw’s Justine Farago has overcome her nerves and is eagerly anticipating the Miss Teen Saskatchewan pageant she is set to compete in next Sunday.
“A while ago, I was nervous, because there was all of the little details to be stressing about,” 16-year-old Farago told the Times-Herald Friday. “Now it has all kind of fallen into place, and I’m just excited to go, have the experience, meet new people, and everything.”
The initial inspiration for Farago, a Peacock Collegiate student, to get in to modelling and eventually toss her hat into the Miss Teen ring was watching then-Peacock senior Siera Bearchell win the competition in 2009, she said.
“It took a while to decide whether or not I was going to do it, but my friends were really supportive. They said, ‘You should do this. It would be great,’” said Farago. “All of a sudden, it was there and it was my opportunity to go and do it, and I thought, ‘Well, why not?’”
While she doesn’t know how many girls she will be competing against, Farago said she is excited to meet them and promote her particular cause.
“Each of us has our own platform that we promote while we’re there. Mine is to raise awareness for Spinal Muscular Atrophy. It’s a disease that my best friend has,” she said.
“I’ve been friends with her for a while and I’ve learned about the challenges she faces every day that the disease has brought here, and I want to raise awareness so that people will support the cause and get the research done,” added Farago.
The Miss Teen Saskatchewan Pageant will be held in Saskatoon on Sunday, Feb. 24. The winner of that pageant will advance to compete in the national competition in Toronto this July.
