Hugs and cheers as Miss Bermuda returns

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Homecoming Miss Bermuda Rochelle Minors was welcomed with cheers and flowers by a throng of family and friends as the semi-finalist returned from China last night.

“She’s just as beautiful inside as she is on the outside,” grandfather Ernest Minors told The Royal Gazette. “We couldn’t be more proud of her.”

A crowd of well-wishers met Ms Minors outside the arrivals hall at LF Wade International Airport.

Stepping out at 9pm after the last leg of her trip, the tired but beaming Miss Bermuda — still wearing her sash with pride — said she looked forward to some good home food to celebrate the end of her Miss World journey.

“The main thing I’ll take with me is all the people I met, the long term friendships with the people who helped me get through the pageant.”

Ms Minors recalled her bikini shoot in “the desert heat in the middle of nowhere” as one of the most striking pictures of the experience that would stay with her.

She was met also by great-aunt Jewell Eve, aunt Althea Overbey and cousin Bianca Clay, along with local pageant director Milika Seymour, and Miss Bermuda’s boyfriend Greg Dwight, visiting from London, all flanked by a coterie of local friends.

Said Mr Dwight: “She’s enjoyed representing Bermuda through this whole thing. She wasn’t expecting any of it — she gave it her all to win, but most of all she represented her country the best she could.”

Waiting friends Ffion Caisey and Miguel Estrella said sheer excitement at coming home was keeping Ms Minors awake after a gruelling journey.

“We always knew she’d do well,” Mr Estrella said, “but she’s a very humble person. When the time came, we wanted to shake her and make her realise she’s gorgeous.”

Echoed Ms Clay: “Rochelle has a lot of substance, inside and out. She is very adventurous and not afraid. Sometimes she’s a bit hesitant, but for this, she just went for it.”

After journeying halfway around the world, the 22-year-old’s verdict on the Miss World experience was: “Breathtaking.”

Useful website: www.missworld.com, www.missbermuda.bm.

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