ORMOC City Government on Saturday, June 16, presented to the public the 20 lovely candidates for this year’s Miss Ormoc as part of their month-long Piña Festival in honor of patron saints Peter and Paul on June 29.
These year’s contestants are Charo Galicia Dayandayan (1), Daniela Lois Tariman (2), Karen Joy Hawkins Degorio (3), Gia Leigh Maris Chu Carreon (4), Shanice Kae Omega Suarez (5), Micah Andrea Duarte Abarquez (6), Fhern Alyanna Magada (7), Alexa Shane Holanda Dolina (8), Kassandra Mayol (9), Meljoy Dacera Cairlang (10), April Rose Tabudlong Elejorde (11), Alexa Marie Saavedra Matuguina (12), Lyka Mae Barbac Torcende (13), Roijane Fae Paje Plazo (14), Allyza Shen Pesabille Bartolini (15), Maria Nathalia Parilla Veloso (16), Micah Maglasang (17), Nica Zosa Nabua (18), Trixie Alvia Ong (19), and Princess Donah Ortega Paraiso (20).
“I want to join Miss Ormoc not only to showcase my beauty, talent, and wit but also to prove everyone that Ormoc indeed is a city of beautiful people,” said 18-year-old Mayol.
Twenty-one-year-old Ong said that she wanted to join the pageant “because I want to improve myself as a person and as beauty pageant goer.”
“I also wanted to share my advocacy which is the preservation of our environment and to reduce the use of plastic in Ormoc City,” she added.
Incidentally, Ormoc is one of the few cities in the country which has an ordinance that bans the use of plastic.
During the event, the city also presented its 10 Piña Festival Queens 2018 and Piña Festival 2017.
Evangeline Chu, president of Kiwanis Club of Geo-Ormoc and chairwoman of Miss Ormoc working committee, said the pageant is their one way of looking for a millennial Ormocanon who has the beauty and intelligence that will match their advocacy and who has the heart and the passion to serve the people.
The pageant will be held on June 28 at the Ormoc Superdome with KC Montero and Karla Henry as hosts.
Meanwhile, as evening approached the city on Saturday, residents were being entertained by the lighting of the Giant Piña and the “Parade of Lights” with 10 floats decorated with movie themes like Frozen (Ormoc Chamber), Beauty and the Beast (Century Pacific Food Inc.), Cars (EBR Group of Companies), Avatar (Ormocanon Youth), Turbo (Kiwanis Club of Geo Ormoc), Little Mermaid (MLHuilier Financial Services Inc.), Lion King (Leyte Council Lions Clubs), Avengers (OSPA Farmer’s Medical Center), Tinker Bell (Coast Resto Park), and Moana (COGEA).
Anna Louisa Bumagat, the chairperson of Parade of Lights, thanked the various sponsors who supported their event.
Meanwhile, Jude Abenoja, chairman of the Ormoc City fiesta executive committee and Estrella Serafica-Pangilinan, president of Ormoc Festival and Cultural Foundation, also invited the public to witness this year’s “beautiful and grand” Piña Festival on June 24 at the city’s main thoroughfares.
Ormoc Mayor Richard Gomez and his wife-Leyte Fourth District Representative Lucy Torres-Gomez earlier assured the public that they have lined up various activities for all the visitors to enjoy in this year’s fiesta celebration.