21-year-old Rachelle Dijkstra will be in the final of the Miss Beauty of North Holland on Sunday, March 10. The Haarlem girl is competing with nineteen other girls for the provincial title of the beauty pageant. “We have a lot of fun together.”
Her gala dress, which she will wear during the pageant in the Velsen City Theater next week, has been hanging in the closet for a few weeks. But Rachelle doesn’t want to say what it looks like. That’s still a secret. The color perhaps? “Red, but that’s all I’ll say about it,” she laughs.
Children and climate
In daily life she works as a pedagogical employee at Hero childcare. Last year she completed her training and started working with the little ones. When she was scouted via Instagram for the pageant last October, she saw an opportunity to do even more for children.
“The Beauty contest is not just about appearance, being beautiful and smiling sweetly. We are also committed to a social problem. This charity is related to the climate. I have chosen to dedicate myself to the effect of climate on children. Because their lungs are not yet fully developed, they are most affected by air pollution, for example, while they can do the least about it. There really is a task for us.”
That’s why Rachelle decided to participate in the Miss Beauty of North Holland. She registered for the casting day, which she passed with flying colors. The weekends leading up to the pageant are filled with catwalk training, learning to present, photo shoots, choosing the gala dress, which fortunately is already hanging in the closet, and this weekend they are practicing for the opening dance.
Figure skating
Although she had never done any modeling, she moves easily. She did figure skating for nine years and could be found at the Haarlem Ice Rink. So she doesn’t worry about the first dance.
Last weekend she also participated in the prejudging. A taste of the finals. To do this, she had put her cuddly toy Pino from Sesame Street, which she received at birth, in the bag. As a lucky doll. “It went quite well, so now he also has to go to the final.”
Sober
By the way, she doesn’t assume anything. “There’s a greater chance that I won’t be, than I will,” Rachelle says matter-of-factly. “But I can always hope. I especially think it was a very nice journey to the final. I think every little girl dreams of participating in something like this. It’s just fun with the girls. A large group of friends. We are very positive towards each other.”
The environment also reacts positively to her participation in the beauty pageant. “You sometimes hear that negative comments are posted on social media, but fortunately I have not experienced that at all. My parents and brother responded enthusiastically. Everyone is happy for me and supports me.”
To vote
If Rachelle wins the title, she can proceed to the national elections. And ultimately Miss Earth, the election for the most beautiful in the world, lies ahead. But the Haarlem native is not looking that far yet. To vote is still possible until Sunday March 10.