Grandma Rocks Bikini in Beauty Pageant to Honor Late Son
After Amanda Booth’s 30-year-old son Stuart died following a car accident, the English grandmother entered a beauty pageant to escape her grief — and is now set to compete against women 20 years younger for the next Ms. Galaxy title.
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“When Stuart died I was just devastated,” the South Gloucestershire 54-year-old told the Daily Mail Friday about the 2008 tragedy that claimed her son, a father of three, after more than a week in the hospital. “I lost my job and nearly lost my home. Things were awful, but I had to somehow start to rebuild my life. I just had to do something for myself.”
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Long interested in modeling, the size-eight retail manager decided to just go for it and have professional photos taken nearly a year ago. She sent them in to Ms. Galaxy pageant organizers and was amazed to discover she was invited to compete. The Daily Mail reports that the pageant officials confirm Booth is the oldest entrant and is likely to out-age others in her category, over-30s, by two decades.
Photo: David Hedges/SWNS
“I think Stuart would say, ‘Fair play, mum,’” said Booth. “He is my motivation for doing this, and I am sure that he would be proud of me having the courage to try something new. The last thing he would want is me sitting at home upset. You have to make the most of the time you have.”
So next month the grandmother — who also has a daughter and five grandchildren in total — is set to compete in the pageant final in Preston, England, Feb. 4, bikini and all. “I feel a lot younger than I am and lots of people say I look a lot younger, so hopefully it won’t make a difference,” said the hopeful, who boasts a 26-inch waist, thanks to three weekly workouts at the gym. Yet she admitted the bathing suit portion of the competition gave her pause: “When I was told there was a bikini round, I did think, ‘Oh, my god, wearing a bikini on stage at my age…”
Photo: SWNS
But the lessons she learned from losing her son reminded her to seize the day. “His accident changed my perception of life, and after a while it has made me more positive,” she revealed, adding, “It is very easy to sit at home and then suddenly realize you have done nothing with your life.”
Photo: SWNS
Competing in a beauty pageant against women 20 years younger “might put me out of my comfort zone,” Booth explained, “but these are the kind of things that I have to force myself to do … I’m quite a determined person, and when I get something in my head, I try my hardest to achieve it.” Sure, she confessed, “I will be nervous getting up in a bikini next to younger women, but I’m going to give it my best shot.”
Top photo: David Hedges/SWNS
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