She’s beauty, she’s grace, she’s cancelled: Miss New Brunswick on hiatus after lack of interest

When Sarah Betts was crowned Miss New Brunswick, the excitement was written all over her face.

She remembers then-Miss Grand Falls grabbing and hugging her, and the crowd applauding.

That support – from both the community and her fellow Miss New Brunswick contestants – is something she’s still grateful for nine years later.

“It taught me to know that if your heart is in a good place, if you're passionate about something, you can go out there with like minded people and you can make stuff happen,” she said in an interview with CTV Atlantic.

Betts was crowned Miss Minto in 2014, which meant she would represent her community at the Miss New Brunswick pageant the following year, where she won in 2015.

For almost 70 years, the pageant has brought together young women from many communities across the province: Grand Falls, Chipman, Minto, Woodstock, Hartland, Nackawic – to name a few.

It was cancelled for two years due to the pandemic.

This year, it’s cancelled for a much different reason – a lack of interest.

In a statement on social media, organizers said: “It is with sadness that we announce that the 2024 Miss New Brunswick Pageant has been cancelled due to insufficient application numbers… We hope to see greater interest in the future.”

The notice of the Miss New Brunswick pageant being shut down due to lack of applications. (Facebook/The Miss New Brunswick Pageant) The organization had already tried to open up the competition to any young woman, so long as they were permanent residents of N.B. and between 16 and 24 years old. They would have to undergo an interview before being approved as a participant, but didn’t have to be a title holder.

Even still, there were too few applicants.

“I was sad because I have so many great memories. I met so many amazing people and I'm so grateful for that,” Betts said.

Five-time pageant winner, including Miss Canada, Maria Giorlando, believes Miss New Brunswick still has a future, but changes are necessary to get there.

“The pageant world has to evolve. It has to change. Otherwise it's going to be one of those things that is left in the past that we look back on and remember that we did,” she said. “You have to invest in elevating the messaging, the marketing, the system, everything.”

Giorlando is now a business and pageant coach, and believes pageants still have a place in building confidence among young women.

“Next year is another opportunity. It's a full 12 months that you can learn and turn around the entire system in this reality, so that next year someone can have this opportunity,” she said.

But if this is it, Betts – who’s now a Bell Media radio morning show host – believes young women will show off their talent in many other ways.

“I'm really excited to see what kids decide to do now,” she said. “Almost ten years after I won, how they decide to showcase what they're passionate about, about their communities.”

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