Katy Guaman cried as she was crowned Ecuadorian Queen of Connecticut, winning the title at the first pageant hosted by the Association of Ecuadorians in Connecticut.
“I'm feeling so in shock,” Guaman said. “I have no idea what just happened. All I know is I'm very happy and proud.”
Guaman is a 24-year-old Ecuadorian American. She represented the city of Danbury and the Province of Azuay in Ecuador during the pageant.
As queen, she now represents nearly 40,000 people of Ecuadorian origins living in Connecticut, which the Pew Research Center reports is a state home to one of the highest Ecuadorian populations in the U.S. alongside New York, New Jersey, Florida and California.
Four other women competed against Guaman for the honor of representing their community in Connecticut. Noelia Cabezas of Waterbury won the title of Miss Culture as the runner-up.
“Regardless of whatever the outcome may have been, everyone is a winner. This crown does not define me,” Guaman said. “What defines you is the person you are, the voice that you use behind that platform that you're going to work with.”
Guaman said she wants to use her new platform to help break down the stigma Latino communities have around mental health.
“[Latinos] always say… ‘That doesn't exist,’” she said. “For me, as someone that's diagnosed with ADHD, depression, and anxiety, I'm a student, as a social worker, and I'm trying to find resources for the Hispanic community to know, ‘Hey, this does exist.’”
When Guaman won Miss Danbury back in 2021, she worked at a women’s center, providing resources for the community.
Now with her new crown, Guaman said she is working to launch a new project called “Fuerza in Silencio” or “Strength in Silence” to help Latinos struggling with mental health and domestic violence to find resources and their inner strength.
“I'm going to be very happy to raise my voice for the Ecuadorian people,” Guaman said, “not just them, for all of my women that are Hispanic.”
Empowering Ecuadorians in CT
Fernando Cerdeña watched the pageant at the back of the audience, the first big event that the Association of Ecuadorians in Connecticut hosted after being founded in January of this year. Cerdeña is the vice president of the association.
Though pageants are often associated with beauty, Cerdeña said the association had a different mission in mind.
“What we want is for the queen to truly understand what it means to be Ecuadorian—not just by birth or having Ecuadorian parents, but by having a genuine connection to that identity,” Cerdeña said.
To achieve this, Cerdeña said the queen is expected to help the association empower the community through a project of her choice over the next year. Only then will she receive her final reward for winning the pageant: a new car.
The runner-up, Miss Culture, will also get a chance to connect with her culture with a paid week-long trip to Ecuador.
Cerdeña said the pageant was also an effort to lift these women up as members of the Ecuadorian community in Connecticut.
“The goal is for them to become empowered: the mere act of stepping forward—learning how to walk, speak, move, make eye contact, and study—has involved a huge effort,” Cerdeña said, not just of the girls but of pageant director Jenny Cueva.
The association is hosting two more big events later in the summer, Cerdeña said. The Gala Dinner is being held August 1 at the Waterbury Marriott Hotel and the Ecuadorian Parade and Festival on August 8 in Waterbury.
Proud parents, win or lose
Edgar Paredes arrived at the pageant wearing a yellow t-shirt that had his daughter’s face on it. Underneath her portrait, it read, “Emily Paredes, Representative of Pastaza.”
Paredes said he was thrilled to be attending the pageant because of how it united his local Ecuadorian community.
“I’ve been here for 10 years and there’s never been anything like this before,” Paredes said. “God willing, everything goes well and this tradition continues.”
Despite supporting his daughter, Paredes said he was happy to see the rightful queen crowned.
“I don’t want my daughter to win just because she’s my daughter,” Paredes said. “No, no, no, let the one who deserves it win.”
After the coronation, Rosa Patiño waited for her daughter Guaman to finish taking photos with audience members, so she could give her a hug.
“May she move forward with God’s guidance,” Patiño said of her daughter. “May she succeed and help other girls. My girl is an example for the other girls coming up behind her.”
Learn more
For updates on future events from the Association of Ecuadorians in Connecticut, visit their Facebook and Instagram pages.
Follow Katy Guaman on Instagram for the latest on her projects and pageantry.
