Miss Universe contestants (from left) Shona Tuohy, Kaylyn McGrath and Karen McShea.

Mayo trio vying to be named Miss Universe Ireland

THREE Mayo women are in the running to be crowned Miss Universe Ireland 2019.

Selected for the finals are makeup artist Karen McShea, piano teacher Kaylyn McGrath and primary school teacher Shona Tuohy.

Karen hails from Swinford, Kaylyn from Ballina, while Shona is from Castlebar.

Thirty women will contest the final on August 1 in Dublin's Mansion House.

Karen McShea is an outgoing, positive and caring woman who works as a qualified beautician and makeup artist. She has ambitions of finding success in the modelling industry and using the connections to build her own business running a makeup studio.

She says her biggest obstacle in life has been self-love. Because of her height, she struggled with confidence in always being the tall girl that stood out. Today, however, you see a woman that loves herself and loves wearing all the beautiful shoes she wants!

She is focused on Aware Ireland and her aim is to see children taught how to care for their mental and overall health, especially given the pressures of modern life and social media.

Accomplished musician Kaylyn McGrath has been singing and playing the piano since she was five. She completed all her formal piano and signing grades by the time she was 16, putting her talents into productive action, raising money for different causes including taking part in local voluntary productions of Les Misérables and Oliver Twist, which travelled to both Manchester and Dublin raising thousands for hospice.

She is a member of a local choir which has organised numerous events to raise money for the restoration of the local cathedral, schools, and the local Saint Vincent de Paul.

She had the opportunity to share her talents at the Papal visit in Phoenix Park and recently has established her own piano teaching practice.

Shona Tuohy – a bubbly and positive primary school teacher - aims to have her pupils (30 plus of them) leave her happy and optimistic about future possibilities.

Her journey into teaching tested her dedication after she fell short by the absolute minimum of points on leaving school. She chose to repeat, but also applied to have her papers rechecked. Thankfully, one of her papers was miscalculated and she succeeded in achieving the necessary points. After the rechecks, she only had about four days to leave school, source accommodation in Dublin, and begin college three months after everyone else.

A daunting time as everyone had already established friendships and gotten used to college life, she soon settled in and has never looked back.

This will be the third year that Miss Universe Ireland is under new management and with a fresh and empowering focus, director Brittany Mason said a core objective is to cultivate job opportunities and to empower Irish women to become leaders in the community creating positive social change.