Remembrance Day for Miss PNG and Miss Pacific Islands Leoshina Kariha was celebrated in a quiet but meaningful way.
She travelled to Kokopo at the invitation of Miss East New Britain organising committee to launch the winner of Miss Frangipani quest, Ellen Morgan, as Miss East New Britain in the Miss PNG pageant 2019.
The trip took in some iconic World War II historical sites which included a visit to the Bitapaka War Cemetery and the Kokopo War Museum today (July 23).
The next day Miss Kariha will visit the Volcano Observatory followed by a visit to the Yamamoto bunker and the Karavia barge tunnels, the Rabaul volcano and hot springs.
Miss Kariha also met with some prominent women and visited a technical school and the Nonga hospital.
“What an honour for me to visit the East New Britain Province,” Kariha said.
“East New Britain has so much tourism potential and Miss East New Britain will be the province’s culture and tourism ambassador. This is an initiative that will carry a baton on to future Miss East New Britain winners and a partnership that truly stands for Empowerment of Women through Education.
“The MPIP PNG platform has educated seven young women at the University of Natural Resources to the value of K25,000 over the last two years. We want to continue to assist young women here and this partnership is the beginning of so much more.”
Miss ENB will make her way to Port Moresby in preparation for the Miss PNG Pageant crowning on 31 August 2019, where contestants will vie for the Miss PNG 2019-20 crown to participate in the Miss Pacific Islands pageant in Port Moresby in November.
Twenty-two year old Miss East New Britain Ellen Morgan is a certified scuba diver and is very passionate about protecting the environment, especially as East New Britain has some of the world’s beautiful marine life.”
(From left: Chairperson of Miss East New Britain Pageant Committee, Saradha Wong, Miss Pacific Islands Leoshina Kariha, Miss East New Britain Ellen Morgan and Chairperson of Miss Pacific Islands PNG Committee, Molly O’Rourke)