‘My grandfather is from China… My dad is Chinese, African, Portuguese and European, and my mom is entirely Indian. So that makes me a ‘cook-up’, as everybody wants to call me.’ Miss Guyana World Suzette Shim
‘We have sent very fantastic girls who made an impact in the past, but we’re looking for a change. We’re looking for someone who is very exotic because if you look at beauty pageant these days, it’s all about the look, the look is so important. We have somebody who can blend well… an exotic looking girl… These are the girls the international stage is looking for.’ Derek Moore, Miss Guyana World Artistic Director
“I NEVER thought that I was beautiful when I was growing up. I always thought I was too tall, but now I realise that I have perfect height that I can use to my advantage in fashion, and that I really am beautiful.”
These were the words of Suzette Marissa Shim, the 19-year-old who will soon be crowned Miss Guyana World. During an interview with Sunday Chronicle, Suzette said she never thought she was that ‘face’ any pageant would be looking for until the Miss Guyana World committee selected her over more than 20 delegates, as Guyana’s beauty ambassador to the Miss World international pageant which will be staged in China on December 4 this year.
Upon learning that she had gained the nod of the selection panel, Suzette said: “I was surprised, shocked, excited and I was very happy. I was speechless for a while (and) the first thing I did was call Shauna (my closest friend).”
Suzette is a beautiful light-brown girl who hails from Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown. ‘Tall and stately’ is a usual description of the beauty who stands at 5 feet 9 inches and weighs 110 pounds. Her vital statistics are 30-28-37. She has quite an interesting racial blend that truly reflects the country she represents.
“My grandfather is from China… My dad is Chinese, African, Portuguese and European, and my mom is entirely Indian. So that makes me a ‘cook-up’, as everybody wants to call me,” she giggled.
Before announcing her name, Miss Guyana World artistic director Derek Moore told the Sunday Chronicle the chosen girl is one who is “easy to work with and can sell on the international stage”.
“We have sent very fantastic girls who made an impact in the past, but we’re looking for a change. We’re looking for someone who is very exotic because if you look at beauty pageant these days, it’s all about the look, the look is so important...”
Fortunately, that is one of the most striking physical qualities that the new queen possesses.
“…we have somebody who can blend well… an exotic looking girl… these are the girls the international stage is looking for.”
Suzette has flawless skin, beautiful brown complexion, tall and slender physique, and is very camera friendly and confident.
A fan recently described her as “appealing and drop-dead gorgeous”.
A legal clerk within the Supreme Court Registry, the dignified lady also enjoys cooking, reading, dancing, and hanging out with friends. She has just completed her second year in the Degree in Business Management programme at the University of Guyana, and hopes to manage her own fashion business some day.
Heeding her mom’s advice on independence, Suzette started working just after finding out that she was successful at the CXC exams in all six subjects she wrote at North Georgetown Secondary School, as she was always taught by mom to believe in her independence.
“She taught us that everybody should work and contribute to the home. It’s the only way you learn to budget, know to carry yourself and become independent.”
Suzette first ventured into the beauty industry when she accepted a spot in the Miss Guyana World contestants’ row last year, and placed second runner-up to Queen Alexis Glasgow and Nevillean Dundas.
Suzette was born December 5, 1984 as the fourth of five daughters to her parents, and grew up in a closely and happily knitted family at Liliendaal, in Greater Georgetown.
“I grew up in a yard with a lot of families… and a cousin who is my age was my best friend while growing up at home… We played dolly house, cricket on the streets, and would go fishing sometimes.”
She was surrounded by her immediate family, aunts, uncles and cousins and always felt a sense of belonging.
“… there (were) a lot of people living there. You could never say you had a dull moment or you were bored because there were so many cousins and aunts and uncles living there… your privacy was very limited… It was really nice because we were never bored. There was always somebody there that you could go and talk to,” she said.
Her older sisters have always supported her in every positive move she made, and along with her parents, helped in shaping her into the beautiful person she has become. Although her father is stern, Suzette has a very close bond with both him and mom, and has always cherished their values.
Reminiscing on her childhood, the young woman said climbing high was a hobby and she would always get up quickly, trying again whenever she fell. “I would climb on the wardrobe… there was always something interesting up there… sometimes I even found a nice book up there,” she related.
“I had a typical childhood. We… would go into my mom’s kitchen and steal the curry powder and baking powder and cook. We played hide and seek. You had so many games to play and then you had neighbours. Then a lot of children lived in the neighborhood. We go to church, but Liliendaal was never a community that had a lot of organised fun activities going on.”
“I’d wake up pretty late, have breakfast, and go and play with cousins and friends, and sleep after the usual grooming routine. I still had to listen and obey when I am told to do something.”
Now that everyone is older and working, family time has lessened.
“Everybody is working. Before we used to go on fun days… when my uncle comes, we’d go fishing, and we would go for walks with my dad on the seawall. But right now I think everybody is so busy that we all forgot about family time and having fun together, ” she said.
As a child, attending school was another love of hers as she was able to team with other children to play and learn, and cried bitterly whenever she was not allowed to attend. The new queen is a product of Comenius Primary and North Georgetown Secondary schools. Right through high school, Mathematics was her favourite subject, but after entering the business stream in Fourth Form, she gravitated towards Accounts.
Flashing a smile every now and then, the soft-spoken beauty said the thought that she was beautiful never hit her until she was asked to apply for entry into the Miss Guyana World pageant last year. That day Suzette was strolling the catwalk on campus while Moore was there scouting for delegates to enter the third staging of the pageant. He stopped her and told her about the pageant before showing her an application form and inviting her for an interview with the selection panel.
She accepted after giving it careful thought and seeking advice from family and friends, and never regretted her decision. She was given the third runner-up spot and left with a wealth of knowledge on her country and its multi-cultural makeup, beautiful experiences, greater self-esteem, friendship and much more.
“Although I didn’t win, I met a bunch of beautiful new friends… when the pageant was over I started missing them very much… we had a lot of fun together and the experience was amazing.”
According to a profile of the girl given by the Miss Guyana World committee, Suzette feels she owes her parents “a debt of gratitude for the sacrifices they made so that she got a good education. She was given complete trust by her parents and cherishes this dearly in every relationship she has.”
She describes herself as funny, very emotional, talkative and modest, and believes “If we really work hard, we can achieve all that we want”.