This young spirited 20 years old woman is beautiful from the inside out. Laetitia Rached, a second year student in Political Sciences at USJ found her path when she pledged to dedicate herself to improving the lives of the differently-abled people after volunteering with the Youth of the Order of Malta. She found the right opportunity to voice her cause through the Miss USJ competition.
“I joined the Youth of The Order of Malta after the « Clubs day » last year at USJ. The Youth had a stand that some of my classmates were running. They were explaining the concept of camps and activities, and I got a bit scared that it would be a big responsibility to take care of other people, but I still registered. A few weeks later, I was participating in my first Down Syndrome camp. I didn’t know at the time that it would be the beginning of an amazing experience.
Not only did that first camp teach me so much, but so did my guest Elie, he changed my life. When the bus got there on the first day of the camp, I was actually really afraid, as I wasn’t used to being with differently-abled people and didn’t know what to expect. But the minute Elie stepped out of the bus, hugged me, held my hand and said « come on, you’re my sister now, let’s go play », I got whipped. It was the most amazing weekend of my life, where I learned that it’s in giving that we receive, and that loving and caring can overcome all of the differences. The marvellous activities such as the talent show (my personal favourite) really taught me that there’s no such thing as « disability ». Every single one of us is able, yet differently. Twelve camps later, I can assert that there’s nothing more fulfilling. I’m thankful for the chance to spend time with them as I believe that they are all angles, they inspire us”.
Joining the Youth of the Order has become like a second home for Laetitia, one that opened her heart and enlightened her spirit.
She decided to participate in the Miss USJ contest as it represented an opportunity for her to speak about a cause dear to her heart. The contest transformed from a beauty pageant to a “Miss porteuse de Cause” and as such, Laetitia presented herself into the competition as a spokesperson for people with disabilities, knowing it would provide a chance for her to shed the light on many aspects of the cause. By creating awareness and enlightening the general public on the need to embrace those who are different, she aims at shaking some of those rigid social and cultural stigmas, and hope that the existing bridges between conformity and difference progressively dissolve.
The competition’s results were based on the following criteria: an online campaign conducted by the candidates, a presentation contest, a public vote and a closing speech.
Laetitia made it her mission to communicate vividly about the love and the emotions experienced through her volunteering work with the Youth of The Order of Malta, and mostly the importance of acceptance of the Other regardless of any differences. She’s been since heavily communicating on her social media platforms featuring camps, statistics and legal recommendations. Her campaign’s hashtag #werisebyliftingothers says it all.
The campaigning started on April 22nd leading up to May 14th where the winner was announced. The competition was harsh as many young women were portraying each a cause they believe in passionately. Laetitia won the Miss Congeniality title, the 2nd most coveted, and proudly wore the colours of the Order.
True to her belief, to the question asked throughout the competition, What would like to change about USJ? Laetitia answered “Develop an scholastic program adapted to people with special needs, allowing equal access to education for all”.
