Aug 20 - Busy Time For Mrs Gibraltar As She Leaves For The Mrs Universe Pageant
Preparations are underway for Mrs Gibraltar’s winner Serika Garcia, who will be the first woman to represent Gibraltar at the Mrs Universe pageant.
As she prepares to leave on Sunday morning, mother-of-two Serika spoke to Your Gibraltar TV about her upcoming travels to Minsk, Belarus, and a little of what she’s been up to since she was crowned Mrs Gibraltar last month.
She said: “I am very excited, this is a dream come true for me and it is what I’ve always wanted.
“I’ve watched Miss Gibraltar religiously every year, but because I became a mum at a young age, I never had the opportunity to take part in something like this until this show happened.”
With two young children, Julian, 7, and Lucia, 3, Serika has had a lot on her plate in terms of rehearsals, events, family life and work.
She claims she wouldn’t have been able to do this without the support from her husband Dani, but is looking forward to her trip to Belarus.
Since being crowned Mrs Gibraltar, Serika has been working at perfecting her talent for the Mrs Universe pageant, as well as sorting our her outfits including her National Costume by designer Anita Viotto and her evening wear by Ismael Lopez.
With a hint of trepidation, Serika says: “I am nervous and scared at the same time. Not because I am flying or going to a new place on my own, but because I have to leave my children behind. I’m still looking forward to the trip though, and meeting new people and making new friends.”
Having had children at such a young age, Serika felt like something was missing in her life and felt like she lacked confidence in herself, and had a low self-esteem. She said the competition held by Ideal Productions last month helped to boost her self-confidence and helped to bring her out of her shell. She puts it down to making time for yourself, because as a mum you often forget about yourself, and it also helped to meet new people, go to various events and all the pampering helps too.
On the night of the Mrs Gibraltar competition, Serika said she wasn’t nervous or worried.
She said: “I just kept telling myself, Serika, it’s your day, it’s your night, and I just started to make the most of it.
“The nerves really kicked in once I was announced as Mrs Gibraltar because I didn’t know how to react.
“I enjoyed my night to the fullest, and made the most of it. It was hard work, but it helped pull me out of my daily routine, and helped me to make time for myself.”
Speaking about the show itself, Serika said it was more than what she expected. The James Bond-themed show was well received by the audience, and Serika said it was fun to participate as a contestant as well.
It was the morning after when things turned sour, when Serika was faced with criticism by others when she logged onto Facebook and saw there was a thread saying she shouldn’t have won. This was something that the former Miss Gibraltar Shyanne Azzopardi faced as well, and Serika said she was lucky to have Shyanne’s support during this time.
She added: “I was really upset and couldn’t believe people could have been so nasty and write those things for everyone in Gibraltar to see.
“It was very hard for me to shake this off, as I didn’t expect it but then again, you really cannot make everyone happy.”
Serika is determined to overcome this and continue with her head held high and to look forward to and make the most of her year as Mrs Gibraltar.
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