KRISTIE Emily Rambharat didn’t initially believe that she was ready to take on any major pageants, especially as she was preparing to write CSEC (Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate) but a little nudging from her village folks in Karrau went a far way in motivating her to represent them in the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs’ “Miss Amerindian Heritage Pageant 2022.”

The beautiful 16-year-old, who hails from the Region Seven (Cuyuni/Mazaruni) village, has been living on the West Coast Demerara for some time now, but it was a visit back home that inspired her to want to pursue a career that would help the people in Karrau Creek, more so the youths who have been dropping out of school.

A former student of Uitvlugt Secondary School, Kristie described herself as an Arawak who loves dancing, cooking and pageantry. As for being on stage, it all started when she was just 13 years old and achieved the second runner up place in a beauty pageant in school.

So when the most recent competition came on stream, her cousin Shane Cornelius, who is the Toshao of her village, encouraged her to participate. He told her that there was no one to represent their village in the pageant and that she should consider doing so. Due to her busy schedule with school and so forth, she wondered how she’d find the time, but she acquiesced and decided to get on board.

“I said I will go and try my best,” she shared with Pepperpot Magazine, “But I kept telling myself that I have to win this; I have to take home the crown to Karrau.” So said and so done. Despite being the first major pageant that she participated in, Kristie made herself and village proud, eventually taking home the crown.

“It means the world. I felt to myself I need to bring this crown to Region Seven and I put my all into it. There were sleepless nights. During the time there was also CXC,” she reflected. She also had to leave home and stay with friends to be able to participate.

When school closed, she seized the opportunity to travel home and get prepared for the pageant. “That’s when everything started. That’s when I picked my platform, started my talent, my introduction, etc.” she recalled.
Explaining why she chose “Indigenous Women Empowerment” as her platform, she said: “When I visited Karrau the last time, I observed a number of girls who dropped out of school and then these boys who would take advantage of them. I felt to myself that they can be given opportunities to help around the village.”

Her cousin too had told her that she could become a role model for those girls and that she stand a chance of being someone to help them to pick up back their studies.
Her uncle, Mikel Andrews, who is a dancer from the village, helped her to get prepared for an indigenous dance, even as she also prepared a spoken word performance. All of the work that had been put in paid off when Kristie won the pageant. “They said Karrau made history and they are very proud of me,” she said about her village folks. (Approximately 500 people live in Karrau Creek).

Offering a word of advice to youths, she said: “Be bold, brave and confident. Make sure when you’re doing something, it’s something you love. Make sure no one would down talk you. Just be yourself.”
Kristie will now be working along with the Karrau Village Council to help create programmes for the school dropouts and to help them get more opportunities in the ICT hub and so forth. “Since there’s no opportunity for them right now, I will look to see how I can help them create and find employment and continue their studies,” she offered.