RAINing Queen

CEBU, Philippines - Maanyag, utokan ug adunay baruganan! Kining tulo ka mga pagdayeg maoy maghulagway sa labing unang Queen Universe sa Sugbo nga si Rain Marie Madrigal. Si Rain ang migawas nga mananaog atol sa bag-uhay lang gipahigayon nga “Queen, Pageant for the Alternatives” diha sa wanang sa Pacific Grand Ballroom sa Waterfront Cebu City Hotel.

Ang 26-anyos nga si Rain usa ka aktibong miyembro sa STRAP o Society of Transsexual Women of the Philippines.

“We believe that not all girls/women were assigned as female at birth. STRAP is a transgender rights advocacy and support group that affirms,respects and upholds the dignity, the right to self-determination and good quality life of all.”

“Ako personally, I went through a journey of self-discovery at a very young age that’s why I am assertive, confident and comfortable with who I am, as a transgender woman. The term transgender/transsexual is a fairly new term, it just emerged recently. Mao na ang akong pangandoy nga hinaut unta mas masabtan sa katawhan ang kahimtang sa mga transgender diri sa Sugbo.”

Matud pa ni Rain nga para masabtan pud og tarong sa mga tawo, aduna poy GLBT (Gays, Lesbians, Bisexual and Transgender) community. 

“What I noticed is that, there are still a lot of areas to improve on when it comes to proper education about the GLBT community. So naa jud proper term to be used for each component of the community and the term “Gay” is just one part of it, and it’s not an all-encompassing term to be used to identify non-heterosexual people. So pinaagi sa daghang butang, lakip na kani mismo nga article I can be at least a step closer to that dream. So, daghan kaayong salamat kaninyo for giving me the chance to voice my opinions, and thank you to the readers for also taking the time to read my thoughts. This really means a lot to me.”

Gi-awhag usab ni Rain ang tanang tawo nga mu-bisita sa ilang website www.tsphilippines.com, aron sa maong paagi masabtan og maayo ang ilang kawsa ug gipakigbisugan.

Before Becoming Queen

Sa wala pa siya nahimong Queen-Universe banggiitan na gyud si Rain sa natad sa indigay sa kaanyag.Gani niadtong 2007 siya ang nakadaug isip Super Sireyna 2007 sa Eat Bulaga ug lakip pod siya sa top ten finalist sa Miss International Queen 2007 didto sa Pattaya, Thailand. Dako kaayong garbo usab alang kang Rain nga siya gyud ang nakakuha sa Ms. Ripley’s Popular Vote title.

  “I’ve joined a lot of beauty pageants in the country; I couldn’t even remember all of them. It used to be my source of income when I was still Manila-based way back 2005. At the age of 6, I was already well-versed with the “Venezuelan” way of competing in pageants. When I had the chance to apply the theories into practice, I made the most out of every opportunity to do so. Those pageants I’ve joined in the past, (over a hundred, I guess), honed my theoretical techniques in pageantry.”

Aduna gyuy “great passion” si Rain kung beauty pageants na ang hisgutan, gani matud pa niya, “I believe I have mastered the “Venezuelan” way of competing in pageants. Meaning, there are strategies that I follow to be consistent in all segments of the pageant, from introduction until sa gown. At the age of 6, I already started watching Miss Universe Pageants. The techniques I’ve learned are self-taught, and it’s a good thing nowadays there are videos in the net because that’s one way of learning the techniques… hehehe),” nagkanayon si Rain sa Banat Hugyaw.

“It’s never easy achieving a beauty-queen stature. For one to become a beauty queen, you need to be physically and mentally prepared. Second, you have to know your greatest opponent and that is you - in the form of your weaknesses and limitations. You need to overcome you’re greatest opponent first so you will be successful in beating the external opponents. Thirdly, you have to have a purpose or an advocacy, a specific and pressing concern that you would like to work on, or a message that you would like to send across the community. And of course you have to have the passion to achieve your goals. In anything you’d like to accomplish, passion is always a part of the winning formula.”

Kabahin sa iyang love life mau ra kini ang ikasulti ni Rain, “My family, friends and those people who care for me. That’s my love life. What more can I ask for?”

Ugma ayaw palabya ang mga detalye sa iyang pagpakigbatok sa diskriminasyon, lakip na ang iyang panawagan og panaghiusa sa GLBT community dinhi sa Sugbo.Sayri usab ang iyang mga responsibilidad isip labing unang Queen Universe sa Sugbo.