Brampton beauty queen Miss Teenage Peel heads to national contest

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Published July 15, 2022 at 12:59 pm

Brampton's Jiya Kaemra has been crowned Miss Teenage Peel and is headed to a national competition.

A Brampton beauty queen has her sights set on the national title after being named Miss Teenage Peel.

A newcomer to the world of pageants, 17-year-old Jiya Kaemra from Brampton decided to enter the circuit after seeing a post on social media.

She was crowned Miss Teenage Peel in June, qualifying her as one of the finalists for the Miss Teenage Canada national competition.

“This is actually the first pageant that I’ve done, so it was definitely sort of nerve wracking at first,” Kaemra said of going up against some 40 other teens in the Ontario qualifier last month.

The top 10 from that contest, including Kaemra, are now preparing for the national competition coming up in August. Contestants will spend a week in Toronto and a Canadian winner will be crowned.

Kaemra says she will use her title to advocate against substance abuse in teenagers and has co-founded a student-led organization called “Tea not Tequila,” which helps build awareness and educate youth in Peel on the negative health impacts of underage drinking.

“We wanted to make sure that everyone knew the negative health impacts of underage drinking, because in our society it’s become so normalised,” Kaemra said.

The 17-year-old is also active in the local charitable community as president of the Interact Rotary Club, volunteering at the Anida Food Bank, and has plans to raise funds for the Make a Wish Foundation.

If Kaemra wins the Canadian crown, she will qualify for an international competition. The win would also give her a larger platform to spread her message on substance abuse “from just the Region of Peel to a national level,” she said.

“I think Miss Teenage Canada would give me such an amazing platform to voice all my concerns and just be there for teenagers and youth all across the nation,” Kaemra said.

But pageants aren’t the end of the line for Kaemra, who has plans to attend medical school and become a cardiovascular surgeon after graduating high school next year.

Last year’s Miss Teenage Canada was Jaclyn Bowdery from Bradford, beating out 39 other candidates to win the crown.

The final judging for the Miss Teenage Canada pageant will be held on Aug. 21 in Toronto.

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