Royal Spotlight: Miss Natural Hair and Health Beauty 2016 Jazmund Walker

 

The Royal Spotlight is an interview series where I highlight queens from a variety of  pageant systems. This month I had the pleasure of interviewing Miss Natural Hair and Health Beauty 2016 Jazmund Walker.

Tell us about yourself.

I am a youth mentor, motivational speaker, college counselor, and writer from Birmingham, Alabama. I hold a B.A. in Communication Studies from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Writing and mentoring youth are my passions. I have written for The Birmingham News, Birmingham Home & Garden, and Health Magazine as a freelance journalist. In addition to serving on the YMCA Youth Center Advisory Board, I am a mentor for Big Brothers Big Sisters. Currently, I work full-time as the Communications and Outreach Coordinator for CAMP (College Admissions Made Possible) –  a non-profit organization that empowers students at underserved schools by equipping them with the essential tools to gain access to the college or university of their choice. Part-time, I work with the Birmingham Education Foundation, bringing people together to discuss community issues and take action toward changing opportunities for students in Birmingham City Schools. Things I do for fun are pretty eclectic. I love quilting, sketching, writing poetry, shopping, spa days, listening to music, watching movies, binge watching the hottest TV shows, canoeing, caving, hiking, rollerblading, visiting parks and gardens, going to fairs and carnivals, checking out cool museum exhibits, and spending time with family. Yes, that was a mouthful. Did I also mention, I am meticulous and thorough? It must be the writer in me! It’s a habit I just haven’t been able to break, but I am working on it.

When did you start competing in pageants?

Actually, the Miss Natural Hair and Health Beauty Pageant was my very first pageant. I love natural hair! I’ve been rocking my natural hair for eight years. Plus, I’ve always dreamed of being in pageants, but I didn’t have the courage to compete until this year. I’m so glad I made the decision to do so. Little did I know what God had in store for me just for taking a leap of faith and trying something new that was out of my comfort zone. To prepare for the pageant I welcomed constructive feedback from our pageant coach for areas of improvement. I read articles on pageantry, signed up for pageantry e-newsletters, and studied hours of videos from past pageant queens. Miss Universe 2016, Pia Wurtzbach, is my favorite to watch so is Miss USA 2012, Nana Meriwether. They’re just amazing in competition. In fact, watching pageants is something I’ve done since I was a teen. I enjoy it. This year, however, I was truly watching as a student by studying pageant queens’ poise, interview style, stage presence, and overall etiquette. I practiced and practiced for hours. Eventually, I created my own signature style and personal brand to bring to the stage during competition time.

Why do you compete in pageants?

I competed in my first pageant this year for two reasons. My mom and I attended the Natural Hair and Health Expo every year as our little tradition since it began. It was our bonding time as two naturalistas. We just love their mission of bringing together naturals to support, celebrate, and encourage one another. The expo is Birmingham’s biggest event dedicated primarily to women with natural hair, and I was excited to try out for their first ever pageant this year to show my love for the Expo and the natural hair community. Also, I wanted to challenge myself and try something outside of my comfort zone since pageantry is very new to me. In life, I usually play it safe and I’m very calculated about every move. I was just a normal working woman leading a quiet life with a 9-5 trying to move up in my profession and give back to the community. For once, however, I wanted to break out of that mold and do something new and different that I’ve always wanted to do but never had the chance to. My 30th birthday was two days before the pageant, and I was determined to walk into a new year of life with a new attitude and love for self. I’m so blessed to have gained that and more since then.

How many titles have you won?

To date, I’ve won one title -Miss Natural Hair and Health Beauty.

Tell us about the Miss Natural Hair and Health Beauty Pageant.

The first ever Natural Hair and Health Beauty Pageant was hosted on March 12, 2016, at the Natural Hair and Heath Expo in Birmingham, Alabama. The Natural Hair and Health Expo was started in 2012 by Victor and Jeffrey Simmons – the sole proprietors of Visions Beauty Distributors. It was their vision for people to use the Expo as a resource in the journey toward living a healthier, natural lifestyle. It is the largest natural hair event in Birmingham, Alabama with over 2,500 participants. The Expo includes panel discussions, celebrity appearances, musical performances, vendors, product demonstrations, natural hair classes, hair and fashion shows, giveaways, and more. This year was the first year that a pageant was included in the lineup. The Natural Hair and Health Beauty Pageant gives women, ages 18 and up, with natural hair a chance to compete after making it through the preliminary. The nine contestants who made it through the preliminary sold tickets to the Expo and posted promotional flyers on social media to advertise the pageant. For the actual pageant, we performed an opening number and competed in the areas of introduction/interview, gown, natural hairstyle, social media, and on-stage questions. The overall goal of the pageant is to celebrate, embrace, and showcase the beauty of natural hair while inspiring others to do the same. We attracted a large crowd for the 2016 pageant, so I’m definitely looking forward to even bigger and better things for next year’s pageant. I’m also very thankful to all of our amazing sponsors and partners for contributing to the success of the first ever Miss Natural Hair and Health Beauty Pageant.

Why do you feel it is important to have pageants that celebrate natural hair?

It is important for all people to know that they are fearfully and wonderfully made just as they are. The natural hair that grows out of the scalp is simply a natural part of who we are, just as our natural nails, skin, and body are, but oddly enough kinky, curly, or coiled hair is still not as acceptable or embraced as much as other hair textures. Natural hair is sometimes shunned in the corporate world, schools, media, and other areas. In fact, it is still considered an anomaly in most pageantry circuits. Beauty pageants should encompass the full spectrum of women’s beauty because beauty comes in a variety of body types, age groups, and hair textures. Natural hair should not be a topic of debate but rather an acceptable way of being. For my reigning year I plan to spread the message of my platform, which is loving your natural you, inside and out. It is my hope that young girls find inspiration and solace in seeing more women embracing their kinky, curly, or coiled hair in the media and in everyday life, thus seeing their natural selves as beautiful and worthy simply as they are. It is about time that women define their own beauty, and the Natural Hair and Health Beauty Pageant is one avenue to do so. It offers an untapped niche in the pageant world for women with natural hair to be unapologetically themselves.

What have you learned about yourself through your pageant experience?

Pageantry has introduced me to a more fearless, confident me! Since the first day of rehearsals for the pageant, I’ve experienced a huge improvement in my inner and outer confidence, the love I have for my natural hair, how I dress, the manner in which I carry myself, and even how I handle business. I also go out more, which I didn’t do before because I was comfortable in my quiet life of a homebody, simply tending to my endeavors within the community, my personal life, and work. However, when God wants you to realize your purpose must be shared and your light can’t be dimmed any longer, God will push you out of hiding, and I’m so glad He did. From brand ambassador, public speaker, role model, being your own publicist, and becoming a natural hair influencer, you automatically wear many hats as a pageant queen. Most of these were skills I already exercised in my regular professional life, but it reached a higher level during the pageant. Also, you never know how far you can push yourself until you participate in something like pageantry. It’s almost like a sport. You have to stay in a positive mindset, be willing to rehearse and practice for hours, and stay focused throughout moments that may be chaotic during the competition process. Plus, you have to keep your body, skin, and hair in great shape because you’re being judged by many on your outer appearance in addition to your style and poise. Thankfully, the entire experience for me was a very positive one that challenged me in all the right ways. Other than the blessing of receiving the title and the joy of making my family proud, one of the biggest gifts I walked away with was a beautiful sisterhood with eight phenomenal women. The eight contestants I competed with were so positive, supportive, and caring from the very first moment we all met.  I couldn’t have asked for a better group of people to do it with than those amazing women and the Visions Beauty Distributors team.

What are your future plans for your pageant career?

I have a few amazing events, appearances, and community service engagements that I’ve lined up so far. I will post those to my “Miss Natural Hair and Health Beauty 2016” Facebook page so you can follow my journey throughout the year. I’ll also be posting live natural hair styling tutorials and natural hair care product reviews. The reviews will include some of my favorite products by Design Essentials Natural  from visionsbeautyone.com! In fact, the product I’m completely loving right now is the Deep Moisture Milk Creme from their Coconut and Monoi line, which is worth a try for all naturals. It is everything! It’ll be one of the products I talk about. It’s a light creme that will have your natural hair shining like pure gold from the argan oil and smelling heavenly delicious from the coconut, but I digress. In addition to doing more modeling, my next project to tackle is creating my own inspirational online talk show for young women on how to overcome life’s obstacles. Before pageantry, this has been a project near and dear to me because I learned to overcome personal obstacles throughout life ranging from low self-esteem issues, being bullied at a young age, growing up in public housing, battling poverty, and being a first-generation college student to name a few. This is what drives me to break barriers to pursue excellence and inspire others to do the same. In all that I do, I simply want to encourage others to see that they are not their circumstances.

What words of advice do you live by?

I live my life by the Golden Rule – “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”. We’re all children of God so the best thing we can do is treat each other equally as such. I try to treat all people with kindness and respect, no matter their nationality, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, income, appearance, etc. It’s the best heart-warming feeling when you do. Plus, you never know who’s watching you.

Please provide your contact information so that others can reach out to you. Email? Social media handles?

Go to www.naturalhairandhealthexpo.com to get more information about attending and/or participating in the Natural Hair and Health Expo and pageant. Also, to check out the latest on the Expo, natural hair care, natural styles, and the pageant, follow the Natural Hair and Health Expo on Twitter @visionsbeauty, Instagram @visionsbeautyone, and Facebook as Visions BeautyDistrib. Please tag us using the official hashtags #MissNaturalHairandHealthBeauty, #NHHExpo, and #FollowthecrownNHHExpo.