Woodridge’s 11-year-old Aurora Payne is representing Australia and raising money for sick children as a junior finalist of this year’s Miss Diamond International.
From selling crazy socks at the Underwood Marketplace to door-knocking homes for donations and selling home-cooked baked treats, she is halfway to her goal of raising more than $1,000 for the Starlight Foundation.
“I started off with the Starlight Foundation because I met them at the end of last year when I got really sick and had to go to hospital, so they helped me during my tough times,” she said.
She is an Australian finalist for the Junior Miss Diamond International program.
The program runs yearly and aims to instil confidence, presentation skills, etiquette, and raise awareness for local causes all over Australia.
Ms Payne fundraises for several but her primary charity is the Starlight Foundation.
“You could be on stage one day and out in the community doing lots of guest appearances and fundraisers the next,” she said.
“As much as you need some different outfits, you also need to focus on community because they work a lot on charity and confidence.”
Since starting in Miss Diamond a year ago, she has made a full-time hobby of making weekly visits to local events and running her own fundraising activities.
Mother Aingel McLeod is glad her daughter started in the contest.
“Last year, she had a bit of a tough time with bullying at school, but from joining pageants and getting on stage, she’s built a lot of confidence and learnt it doesn’t matter what the world thinks of you,” she said.
“She is very proud of the community she comes from and wants to build that name up and help the community as much as she can.”
Ms Payne’s time in the contest will culminate this September 24 at a gala-style presentation, the Diamond Masquerade Awards Ball, to present everything she has done.
Follow her journey and help her cause on Facebook at ‘Aurora – Junior Miss Diamond International Finalist – Team Australia’.
