Bushey woman aiming for Miss Hertfordshire title (From Watford Observer)

Justine Georgiou from Bushey aiming for Miss Hertfordshire title

10:50am Thursday 7th March 2013 in News By Kathryn Snowdon, Reporter

A young woman from Bushey has her sights set on the Miss Hertfordshire crown.

Justine Georgiou, of Chiltern Avenue, has reached the Miss Hertfordshire final and will compete against 28 other contestants on May 5.

The 21-year-old performing arts teacher needs to complete a series of fundraising events before the final, which will feature two stages - the ballgown dress and the eco-friendly dress.

Justine said: "When you’re young every girl wants to be in a beauty pageant."

She added: "I am really excited because I’ve never experienced anything like this, but I am also really anxious with all my fundraising events coming up."

As part of the competition, each girl has to raise money for Beauty With A Purpose, a charity that helps disadvantaged children around the world.

Justine, who works for Stagecoach Theatre Arts, is organising a series of events, the closest one being a sponsored walk around Hertfordshire on Sunday, March 17.

The walk will begin in Rickmansworth’s Aquadrome Park, then move on to Cassiobury Park in Watford, through to Garston’s Park, ending up in St Albans’ Verulamium Park, covering a distance of 11.2 miles.

Justine said she is thinking of completing the sponsored walk in a Wonder Woman outfit.

The self-proclaimed ‘animal lover’ said she won’t be training excessively for the event, but she might take her Staffordshire Terrier, Ty, along for the walk.

For the eco-friendly stage of the competition, Justine intends to fashion her dress out of sheet music.

Justine applied for the competition two months ago, but she said, initially, she was unsure whether or not to apply.

She said: "I didn’t know what to expect and whether to go for it or not. All I knew was that it was about raising money for charity and meeting new people."

She added: "It would be amazing if I won the competition, just for the fact that you are changing more lives."

Justine, who used to work as a fundraiser in London when she was 17, said she hopes to work with children charities in the future.

The young hopeful also hopes to raise money with a Live Music night at The Horns, Watford, on March 26 and through a series of children's workshops over the Easter holidays.

The Miss Hertfordshire final will take place at the Tewin Bury Farm Hotel on Saturday June 15 and Sunday 16, and the winner will go through to Miss England.