One of the aims of the pageant is to connect young Aussies, born and raised by Filipino migrant parents, to the Philippines. The ‘revisiting the roots’ program enables titleholders to strengthen their ties and learn more about the culture of their parents’ home country.
It was what transpired to McCarthy the past few months. The three-week stay of the young titleholder in the Philippines allowed her to witness the beauty of the different islands in the country and to spend ‘quality’ and ‘fun’ time with her cousins.
Charity works also made McCarthy’s visit more rewarding and meaningful.
“We awarded eighteen Grade 6 kids in Aklan and also a bunch of university students at Central Philippine University in Iloilo city and that was a really cool experience. We got to stay afterwards and meet a lot of them, talk with them and have food with them. It was awesome to see that not only their lives are impacted but also the lives of their family," says McCarthy.
The young beauty queen also attended ‘Dinagyang Festival’ in Iloilo last January; it turned out to be one of her most memorable experiences as she enjoyed the festival’s lively music, extravagant costumes and story-based choreography.
When asked about her greatest lesson on this whole experience, McCarthy shares “to be completely humbled with everything that I have like even if things might be tough at the moment, there are plenty of people facing greater challenges everyday and meeting some of those people and witnessing how positive they are about everything was just so inspiring and it really made me want to strive to be happy with who I am and the life that I’m just so lucky to live.”
What are her most favourite islands in the Philippines? How can someone join Binibining Pilipinas-Australya 2018? Find out all about it in this interview.
Ends
Anika Jovi McCarthy performs a dance at one of the schools she visited in Iloilo (Supplied) Source: Supplied
Binibining Pilipinas Australia 2017 Anika Jovi McCarthy (Supplied) Source: Supplied
During the finals and crowning of the Binibining Pilipinas Australia 2017 (Supplied) Source: Supplied
