Black Press Media is a proud partner of the Miss BC pageants, with this year鈥檚 event taking place June 29 - July 1in Fort Langley. As part of the People鈥檚 Choice Award, we are posting contestants鈥� biographies online for readerstolearn more about the women and girls from their communities and to put in their vote.

Submitted by Sumaya T. of Burnaby:

To me a beauty pageant is a platform for a woman to become more influential to her surroundings with extra confidence and a strong awareness of her self-worth. For me, the Miss BC pageant is an opportunity to learn and grow through friendly competition while presenting myself to be recognized for who I am.

Something that people find really unique about me is the fact that I moved here from a third world country, Bangladesh, to follow my dreams. But I think, what makes me unique is my will power to push myself to be the best version of me. I like to introduce myself as an artist. Learning to do new artsy things, creating influential social media content and volunteering at different events are few of my hobbies.

Currently, I始m working on pursuing my fashion marketing degree, wanting to see myself as a successful entrepreneur. One of my favourite sayings is, 鈥淒on始t let anyone make you cruel. No matter how badly you want to give the world a taste of its own medicine, it始s never worth losing yourself.鈥� This ties back to my belief that love and compassion is the key to happiness and self-satisfaction.