Jazmin Newell, from Kilkeel, and Meghan McAlerney, from Leitrim, took part in the Gala Final at the Europa Hotel in Belfast on 2 June.
Jazmin (20) was chosen as a Miss NI Finalist in May. She went on to be the runner-up in the talent section of the competition with her rendition of the song Bed of Roses by Bon Jovi and got to perform a song during the Gala Final.
“It’s meant the world to me to be able to perform at an event as big as the Miss Northern Ireland final,” she said.
“Nothing makes me feel more alive than singing on a stage to a room full of people and it’s motivated me more than ever to give everything I have to achieve my dreams, as doing what you’re passionate about as a job is such a privilege to have.”
Jazmin is a past pupil of Annalong Primary School and Kilkeel High School. She works as a self-employed musician and plans to attend the University of Falmouth in England in September to study music.
A guitar player and songwriter, she is also working on recording music and hopes to release her first single in the future.
She said one of the things she liked about taking part in Miss Northern Ireland was getting to try new things and meet a variety of people.
“I was incredibly happy to have been a Miss NI Finalist this year as I am always looking for opportunities to push myself out of my comfort zone and improve myself as a person and this was the perfect opportunity for me to do that.
“I also really enjoyed being in such a lovely community of supportive girls as it just really highlighted how beautiful it is to be a woman,” she said.
“It was also just amazing seeing how much talent, beauty and brains that comes from Northern Ireland. Like we are such a small country, yet we have so much to offer. It just goes to show that good things can come in small packages.”
Meghan, an 18-year-old A-Level student at St Malachy’s High School, Castlewellan, was selected as a Miss NI Finalist in April. She plans to study business and marketing at the University of Ulster in the autumn.
Meghan is the youngest of four sisters and works in her family pub in Leitrim, as well as at Coco’s Adventure Playground in Newcastle.
She said that it has been a “very busy” year with finishing her A-Levels and taking part in the Miss Northern Ireland competition, so she is looking forward to doing a bit of travelling this summer.
“Over the past couple of months, I have had to balance my A-Level exams alongside a very busy Miss NI schedule which was quite a juggling act,” she said.
In her spare time, Meghan enjoys spending time with friends, going to the gym and running.
Meghan said she is glad she took part in Miss Northern Ireland.
“Being a finalist in Miss NI was an enriching experience,” she said.
“I’ve learned so much about myself, grown in confidence and met some incredible young women who all stand for something positive. I feel proud of my journey – and I hope by showing it, someone else feels inspired to step into theirs.”
She said that some of her favourite parts were being involved in the modelling training aspects.
“In this competition, I think it’s important to take part in every aspect and fully embody the spirit of Miss NI. Personally the bits I enjoyed most were the professional photoshoots and catwalk classes and I would love to follow a career in modelling,” she said.
“Participating in this competition has definitely improved my personal and professional growth. It has given me the opportunity to collaborate with brands and improve my media presence. It is a platform that has helped me find my voice, to make an impact and grow into my potential.”
As part of the ‘Beauty With a Purpose’ portion of the competition, the young women involved each took up a cause and raised money for it.
Jazmin will be doing her first-ever bungee jump in Belfast on 7 July to raise money for the Regenerate Mental Health Hub, which provides counselling for children and young people in Kilkeel, and set up a GoFundMe page to accept donations –
www.gofundme.com/f/raising-funds-for-regenerate-mental-health-hub-kilkeel
“I chose to raise money for Regenerate Mental Health Hub as mental health is something I’m very passionate about and I think it’s something young people really struggle with in this day and age as there’s a lot more pressure put on young people due to social media,” Jazmin said.
For her chosen charity, Meghan held fundraisers and took part in a relay team to run the Belfast City Marathon in May to raise money for the Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice.
“When I was asked to join the midwives at Daisy Hill to take part in the Belfast City Marathon and support the children’s hospice, I was honoured,” Meghan said.
“I think that we all owe them a debt of gratitude for the amazing work they do. We had a great day and our relay team raised almost £9,000 for this very worthy cause.”
Both Jazmin and Meghan said they liked the way the Miss Northern Ireland competition celebrated people’s individual talents and accomplishments.
“I want young girls to know that they can not only be beautiful, but they can also be strong, talented, smart, kind and make a change in the world and that’s really what Miss Northern Ireland is all about,” Jazmin said.
“It’s about empowering and inspiring young women and showing them that they can achieve anything they set their mind to.”
The winner of Miss Northern Ireland 2025 was Carly Wilson, a 23-year-old university student.
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