We are in the beginning of a new year and with new years come the chances and the motivation to start something new. Therefore, we have decided to start this wholesome series of remembering our queens of pageantry on or around their birth anniversaries. Starting with the very start of the year - January 1st. 

The queen owning this date in the land of pageants is - Winfred Adah Omwakme - Our very own Miss Earth 2002. Hailing from Kenya, Winfred belongs to the Abaluyia tribe. The Abaluyia tribe is mostly present around western Kenya. She was born on 1st January 1981, to Kenyan parents. Her family comprised 5 people, including her parents, two younger siblings and herself. 

Miss Omwakme is  professional model who also holds the record for being the first ever woman representing Kenya to ever win a major beauty pageant. 2002 was the year of dethronement and ascension of queens in the pageant world as we saw not one but two major queens being dethroned and getting replaced by another queen from their court. Winfred is also one of the queens that faced this fate. She originally won the title of Miss Earth Air during the Miss Earth 2002 finale. Dzejla Glavovic - the winner of this competition was dethroned on 28th May 2003 and the reason stated by the Carousel Productions was her not being able to fulfil her duties as a Miss Earth. Winfred was crowned as the reigning queen months later - on August 7th in the same year. Before entering pageantry however, Winfred had quite a rough childhood. Her father passed away when she was around 10 years old and her mother died two years later. Being orphaned at the age of 12, the only support system she was left with were her elder siblings, a sister and a brother, who then took up the role of her parents in her growing years. Both her siblings went on to become lawyers in the future. She grew up and pursued a career in the medical stream. She graduated from the institute of Healthcare Management and went on to become a physiotherapist. 

Her first attempt at pageantry was in 2001 when she participated in the Miss Universe Kenya 2001 pageant. She managed to make it to the finale of the competition but could not take home the crown. She then participated in the Miss Tourism World Kenya pageant in 2002 and finished as the first runner up there, giving her the right to represent Kenya at the second edition of Miss Earth. Winfred finished as the first runner up at Miss Earth in her year of the competition and was given the yellow crown of Miss Air. Having been crowned late, Winfred only had a few months to reign as Miss Earth, but she tried her level best, and beyond to maximise all the resources and opportunities provided to her by the platform of Miss Earth. She also worked towards the environment - the motto that Miss World proudly carries and works for.  

Apart from pageantry, Winfred, also called Winnie by her loved ones - is very private about her personal life. Very little is known about her current life or her relationship status. Winfred is one of the most well known Miss Earths because of the dethroning in her year. She is also known for being the first ever black winner of Miss Earth and also the first African to ever wear the Miss Earth crown.  

IMAGE Facebook/Araneta City, Instagram/laraquigaman

Born on 3rd January 1983, Precious Lara San Agustin Quigaman-Alcaraz is a Filipina actress who won the title of Miss International 2005, becoming the fourth ever representative of the Philippines to be declared victorious at Miss International. She also became the third Miss International winner from the Binibining Pilipinas family. She stepped into the world of pageantry at the age of 15, when she became a part of TV Babe - A beauty contest telecasted on GMA-Channel 7. She was also one of the finalists of Calender Girl, telecasted on  ABS-CBN-Channel 2. Her first major pageant was back in 2001, when she participated in Binibining Pilipinas, at the age of 18. She remained Unplaced in the competition and also failed to win any sub contests. The edition was later won by Zorayda Ruth Andam who represented the Philippines at Miss Universe. The other queens crowned were Gilrhea Quinzon who was sent to Miss World and Maricarl Tolosa who participated in the Miss International pageant in the same year. All three however remained unplaced at their respective international pageants.  

Precious took a break for several years after the setback, not participating in any pageant until 2005 when she made a comeback at Binibining Pilipinas. As commonly stated, Comebacks are always stronger than setbacks. She was better and more determined to take home one of the crowns. And she did. During the competition however, Quigaman could not bag any of the subtitles. She emerged as the winner of Miss International Philippines at the end of 19th March 2005. Her preparations for the international contest began. 

Prior to entering the world of pageants, Precious spent almost her entire life jumping from Laguna and Bahrain, the two places she spent most of her childhood in. She completed her graduation studies from England in the field of media production and communication. She participated in 2005’s Miss International pageant and won the crown ultimately. Owing to her own experience in the world of pageantry and what she has acquired from her fellow pageant sisters, she has written and published one of the most famous handbooks in pageantry - The Secret of Beauty Queens. 

In 2011, she got married to her long time lover Marco Alcaraz privately and a year later they had a ceremony in church where they got married again, this time in public. She also has a little son Noah Alcaraz who recently turned 10 years old. The Alcaraz family now vlogs their daily life and their day to day shenanigans on YouTube with the channel name of “The Alcaraz Family” and have gathered around 185K (185000+) subscribers on the platform. We are happy to see our reina enjoy her life and share her happiness with us. Wishing only the best for Queen Precious!