Third time's the charm
Joyce Arnakak wins title of Miss Clyde River after two failed bids
Casey Lessard
Northern News Services
Published Monday, July 21, 2014
KANGIQTUGAAPIK/CLYDE RIVER
Not much has changed for Joyce Arnakak since she won the title of Miss Clyde River on Hamlet Day, July 2. Guys aren't hitting on her, and she's still working at the Northern store. Life goes on for the beauty queen.
Miss Clyde River Joyce Arnakak poses on stage at the community hall on Hamlet Day. It was Arnakak's third time vying for the title. - photo courtesy of Aimo Paniloo - |
"Just be myself," was all it took to win, Arnakak said.
"I didn't expect to win. But when I won, it felt great. I thought other girls were going to win. Their dresses were better."
It was the third try for the 21-year-old mother of two, who kept entering the contest for fun. Arnakak was one of seven contestants who gathered at the community hall for the contest.
"We were kind of in a hurry getting ready," she said, noting she had about an hour and a half to get prepared. "(It was) a little bit crazy."
"It was last minute!" mom Meeka Arnakak laughed. "She wasn't prepared. She had to go to a friend to get her hair fixed, and then come back here to pick up her dress. And then back up to the community hall."
For judge Sharmela Sukhdeo, the ensuing process was surprisingly fast.
"It was quite interesting," Sukhdeo said. "We were asked to do this, we got there, waited for 15 minutes, they came in, and based on their appearance and the way they carry themselves and the way they fit in their attire, was basically how we judged. They went up to the stage, did a little turn, and that was it. It was all done within five minutes."
But to mom Meeka, the process was less important than the result.
"I was so happy, I was shouting, 'Hooray! That's my daughter,'" she said.
Sukhdeo sees an opportunity to expand the event into more than a five-minute affair. Add speeches, she suggests, and a men's competition, which they do in other communities.
"I said, 'Why is it they're doing a Miss Clyde River and not a Mr. Clyde River?' It should be equal. It should be more of a competition. You wait 10 minutes for them to get ready, and in five minutes it's all over," she said.
As for the winner, she would like to see some responsibilities added to the role, other than carrying the title.
"They (Miss Clyde River) don't do anything," Arnakak said. "I was thinking they should help more, help around the community."
For the crowd, which was bigger than the Canada Day games crowd, a good show and a chance to take photos was good enough.
For Arnakak's common-law partner, Tiuri Killiktee, who was away working for Baffinland at Milne Inlet, photos are the only memories he'll have of the event. No matter, she said.
"He was happy" to learn of her win, she said.
