"It's not your typical beauty pageant."
That's how Miss World Canada contestant Jessica Ferreira of Coquitlam described the beauty contest shortly after she was nominated to this year's competition.
And in many ways, she's right.
Emphasizing substance over sex appeal, Miss World Canada 2011's motto - "Beauty with a purpose" - highlights the pageant's departure from the typical pageant mould towards celebrating the selfless efforts of women aged 16 to 24 in raising money for Variety: The Children's Charity.
Delegates such as Ferreira, and those from across the country, will still strut their stuff before a panel of judges, scored in traditional contest criteria like looks, poise, confidence and interview skills, but the real determinant will be on fundraising ideas and ability.
"The swimsuit competition is optional, the photogenic competition is optional, the talent competition is optional; all of those typical things that they really make a big deal of in other pageants are optional in this pageant," Ferreira said. "It is still about beauty but the main focus is really the philanthropy and the fundraising work that we do, and that was really my main reason for doing it."
Ferreira hopes to raise $5,000 in donations for Variety before the Miss World Canada pageant begins at the Richmond River Rock Casino Resort on May 16.
Last year's pageant raised more than $100,000 for Variety. For more information, or to donate, go to missworldcanada.org or Ferreira's blog at jessica-mwc.tumblr.com.
