August 20th 2011
Meet Oneka Mckoy: Miss Caribbean Culture
Rae Anthony

Oneka Mckoy is not only the face of the trending show “Da Vibe” on Choice TV; she currently holds the title “Miss Caribbean Culture,” along with several other pageant records. She created a new record when she received the crown for “Miss Caribbean Culture,” as this is the very first time that Saint Lucia has won the crown. The show was held in St. Kitts. Oneka can best be described as down to earth, bubbly, an achiever and of course a go- getter. In an interview with the delightful beauty, we got an opportunity to speak to the well known local personality; where she eagerly shared with us a few chapters of her life.

The 24 year old enjoys travelling and spending time with her family; she emphasized that family time is essential. She stated with a passion, “I love music; I fall asleep with my blackberry headphones in my ears listening to music.” She also played steel pan for eight years, and used it as her talent piece in the Miss Caribbean Culture Pageant. She said that she is an optimist; “I like to keep a positive attitude in everything that I do.” When asked how it feels to be the one being interviewed, since she is usually the one interviewing someone, she laughed and said, “I kind of know what to expect, from whoever will be interviewing me and some of the answers that they would expect from me, so I’m comfortable with it.” she said. She also added jokingly “once you’re not going to ask me about anything that’s rocket science, I’ll be able to answer.”

Something that really surprised us when interviewing her was that the beauty queen stated that she was a “tom boy.” She said that pageantry was a way of getting in touch with her feminine side. “It was a bit of a challenge,” she said laughing; she said that she had to learn how to walk in stilettos and put on make-up. “The transition from jeans to little dresses was really challenging for me but I felt very comfortable doing it and I can go back to casual jeans, and dress it up if I have to.” She said that she has come a long way. She started pageantry in the year 2007. She stated that someone she constantly looks up to for inspiration is Wendy Fitzwilliam; she won the Miss Universe title for Trinidad, and was the first woman in the Caribbean to do so. Apart from that being one of her many achievements she has a skin care line, so Oneka stated that Miss Fitzwilliam has really influenced her positively and she intends to pursue her dreams. She says she also looks up to other women who have crowns, so that she can further herself. Apart from that she said, when it comes to improving self, she goes on YouTube and views pageant shows so that she can learn a lot more than just what she already knows and put it into effect.

Her ultimate career goal she says is to become a nurse. “Anything medical, I love it. If I can still host a TV show and be a nurse, trust me, I’d do it in a heartbeat.” She says that she is working towards it and she is also a certified emergency medical technician basic. When asked where does she see herself a few years from now, she responded “I think that we lack medical supplies in Saint Lucia, so probably bringing down medical supplies and opening my own store, but for now TV, production, media and broadcasting is great, I love it.” Oneka revealed a side to her that we were not really aware of and she was nothing but genuine, as she spoke about what she loved.

She attended the Castries Comprehensive Secondary School and was Valedictorian in her year. She was also voted Prom Queen and she received the award for English Literature.

She wanted to leave a message to young people, including those who want to participate in pageantry in the future. “I would like to say to the young people out there, to always keep a positive mindset, in everything that you do. You will get people who will try to bring you down and tell you, you can’t, if it is in your heart and it is in your mind, you can do it. You need to speak with positive people, don’t have friends who will tell you, I don’t think you should do this, or will try to bring you down. Make sure your friends and your family are all positive and I would also say to them just have a positive outlook on life on the whole. Encourage people around you to be positive, never try to bring anybody down, especially when it comes to their dreams and aspirations.”

She spoke about how she gets ready for a pageant. She said the best thing is to be genuine; she would encourage individuals to just be themselves. She said even though she’s extremely nervous, she always tries to give a nice, pleasant smile. She says that she realises that a smile goes a long way. She said when she goes to an audition, she keeps smiling whether or not she feels like crying or she’s nervous, she just keeps smiling.

At the Pageant she received the awards for: Best Ambassadorial Wear, Best Swim Wear One Piece and Best Swim Wear Two Piece.

Oneka Mckoy would like to thank Minister of Youth and Sports Lenard Montoute, Sofyerie Promotions, Fran's Boutique, Evo's Boutique, Carib Beer provider of the costume, Solange Stanislus, Jesse Titus (Pan Coordinator), Touch Therapies Day Spa, Denyse Elliot of Hair Affair, Shervon Lloyd in St.Kitts, Hyper D and Karen Davis, Co-workers, friends, family and Janice Dupal for all their love and support. She would also like to thank “Scady Dot P” and Rae Anthony, for giving her the opportunity to express herself.

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