Daviot Kelly, Staff Reporter

Katrina Grant learns to make bammy. - Contributed

Though she shares the name of the devastating hurricane that smashed New Orleans in 2005, the only aftermath Katrina Grant hopes to leave is a good one.

And, as the Miss Jamaica Festival Queen for 2008, she has a good platform from which to launch. Flair caught up with her to find out a little more about the young woman from Lint Road in the Grange Hill district of Westmoreland.

Cultural events

Since her grand coronation on July 27, Grant has been busy attending various cultural events, including the street parade and Grand Gala on August 6, and the Fisherman's Regatta at Paggee Beach last Wednesday.

Her admiration for the contest and what it has done for young women over the years is evident.

"It's about beauty inside out. We have a place in society and can play a vital role in building the society." She guarantees that with the training the contestants have received, "When you leave (the competition), there is no way you are the same." She's no stranger to pageants, being a former Miss Grange Hill.

"Church has a lot to do with it. My mom also pushes me forward and I've always been a brave child," she said. At the Festival Queen coronation, Grant took the Most Congenial and Best Performance for her Strength of a Woman monologue.

Duty calls

Her activities for the next year are set out by the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission, but involve far more than smiling for the cameras at national events.

"I will be part of the cultural clubs in the different parishes. I will also be working with the parish queens on their projects," she adds. Part of her 'job' will be to expose the respective parishes to the cultures of their neighbours.

But she is also finalising the official start of her community project which is a literacy programme at Grange Hill Primary, her alma mater. She had originally planned it for persons between 18 and 35, but with the demand for places, the age range has expanded. Of course, she had to find out how many persons were in need. This required literally going door to door, doing surveys and mini interviews to see how many persons were literate. But it's not only teaching the participants to read, she is also using Information Technology (IT).

"We are living in a globalised world and IT is so vital. So, I package the reading with computers and the students are fascinated by it now." She has elicited the help of her mother as well as the principal and a few teachers from the school. Using the adage about teaching a man to fish, she believes that by helping these individuals to help themselves and their families, by extension, Jamaica on a whole will benefit.

She is heartened by the reaction that many Jamaicans have had regarding this year's Independence and Emancipation celebrations.

"We've come a far way over the years. People are more passionate about Jamaica; there's a sense of pride coming back about festival." As Festival Queen, she knows her role in this is vital as she helps to keep this wave going.

Other endeavours

Grant is also a director at the Westmoreland Co-Operative Credit Union (which she represented at the pageant) and a member of its education committee. The latter endeavour reveals her love for children.

"It's their innocence," she explains. "They are vulnerable to things and if something is positive they will react to it. But if it's negative, they will still react to it. I am trying to bring positive messages to them."

Grant is presently a management trainee at the Sugar Company of Jamaica. "It's a great experience. You will always be faced with challenges and people are not always accepting. But I've been here almost eight years," she said.

As if her figurative plate were not full enough, she also mentors three teenage mothers. Like so many of her other efforts, the idea came from looking around her district. She saw teenagers, usually 14 and 15-year-olds getting pregnant.

"It's working. People open up to me, telling me their problems, asking me for advice."

Looking ahead, she hopes to be working in the financial sector internationally. But she's not leaving Lint Road and Grange Hill behind.

"I want to continue to work in my community. Sometimes you have to move but community involvement and development are part of my plans," she assured. She also wants to revive the youth club in Grange Hill as she feels this will help curb the crime that is slowly besetting the area. Now that would be a wind of change!

Katrina Grant, Miss Jamaica Festival Queen 2008, during the Festival float parade. - Contributed