First Miss Middle East California Pageant

First Miss Middle East California Pageant

April 8, 2014 6:55 am by: The Los Angeles Fashion - Yasmin Santana Category: Fashion News Leave a comment A+ / A-

First Miss Middle East California Pageant

Thursday, April 5th, 2014. La Jolla rolled out the red carpet to host the first Miss Middle East California beauty pageant. The venue took place at the Museum of Contemporary Art in beautiful and elegant La Jolla California and what better location for such a pageant! The beauty pageant was hosted by the Chaldean Chamber of Commerce where seventeen young women of different Middle Eastern decent competed for the first ever title of Miss Middle Eastern California where they got to represent their country of origin. With a panel of high profile judges which include Lisa Haisha, wife of producer for Two and a Half Men, San Diego’s KUSI News Sonya Berg, Fox 5 News anchor Shally Zamorade and San Diego Fashion Designer Andre Soriano, International Human Right Activist and former Ms. Kurdistan Soraya Fallah.  Anna Hirmiz, who hosts and produces her own show on a Middle Eastern Channel and Ben Kalasho who is president of The Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce hosted the event.

Ben Kalasho, President of Chaldean Chamber of Commerce awarding a contestant

The eight final contestants

Host, Ana Hirmiz wearing a Andre Soriano dress

The beauty pageant hostess Anna Hirmiz who looked stunning in an Andre Soriano gown talked to me about the Miss Middle East California Pageant. “This is the first Miss Middle East California Pageant. We have all various types of girls from every country in the Middle East from Iraq, Kurdistan, Lebanon to Jordan. It’s not just Chaldean but the Chaldean Chamber of Commerce is who produced the show. We are hoping to do this show every year. That is our goal”.  So who started this all? “ Ben Kalasho, who is the President of the Chaldean Chamber of Commerce and his wife Jessica Kalasho teamed up with me since I am a host. “ So just what does the stunning host do? “I host and produce my own show on a Middle Eastern Channel, so they approached me and asked me to host the pageant. What was a hosting gig turned out to be a whole directing and producing gig”.

Andre Soriano Screen Sirens collection

Andre Soriano Screen Sirens collection

The contestants were judged on three categories: casual wear, ethnic wear, and evening wear. In the first category they got a chance to show the audience how they dress in every day life allowing their casual side to shine through. In the ethnic category they got a chance to show off their cultural heritage in stunning costumes native to their homeland. During an intermission, we got a chance to view San Diego fashion Designer Andre Soriano’s Screen Sirens Fall Collection in a runway show as well as a teaser trailer for his fashion forward documentary, “Thirty Gowns in Thirty Days”.  The intermission closed with an amazing and exotic performance from a belly dancer and snake charmer who captivated the audience.

The second half of the show included Ben Kalasho presenting awards to sponsors as well as the final judging of the seventeen contestants. In the evening category the contestants showed off their glamorous side with jaw dropping gowns. The panel of judges narrowed the contestants down to the final eight girls who got a chance to answer questions by the judges. The final cut put a spot light on the last five women narrowing it down to the winner, Stephanie Malouf, who was the winner representing Lebanon and took home the crown as first Miss Middle East California.

I sat down with the charming seventeen-year-old model and winner, who is no stranger to beauty pageants and the world of modeling. Stephanie Malouf opened up to me on how she feels as a winner of the first Miss Middle East California Pageant.

“I am going to be representing the whole Middle East, and representing my country, Lebanon. I just hope to be a positive role model to young Middle Eastern women. I definitely know how it feels to be raised Middle Eastern our parents are so focused on our schooling they don’t really allow us to model. I just hope Middle Eastern women will look up to me and change the Middle Eastern parents so they will be more open to modeling, pageantry and supporting their daughters dreams”.

So how did you get into the competition? “ I worked really close with Andre Soriano and his team and was blessed to have met Clint Gorou,  who is Andre’s Videographer that I met at an event here in San Diego in December. Since I am Lebanese he mentioned to me I should compete in the pageant because they needed a Lebanese girl.” So how did Stephanie start out modeling? “ I started modeling when I was eight years old and that was when I started doing pageants as well. I started becoming more serious about modeling at age fourteen. At that age I kind of knew, that is where I wanted to take my career and I also walked Style Fashion Week Los Angeles Last October where I also met Andre Soriano and his team.”

Down to the last five contestants

Winner of Miss Middle East California, Stephanie Malouf

Stephanie, who’s familiar face was seen on Andre Soriano’s runway shows as well as for several other designers for Style Fashion Week is a veteran model and no stranger to pageants. “I recently won Miss Teen Southern Coast and last august I won Miss Orange County Teen International. But Miss Middle East is my favorite because it’s the very first pageant I’ve done, that represents my culture and nationality.” So what are Stephanie’s future projects and goals for the future?

“This September I’m competing in Miss Lebanon Immigrant that would represent the USA and if you win they take you to Lebanon. After Miss Middle East I get to be sent to compete in Miss California. “It looks like we can look forward to seeing Stephanie Malouf in future pageants and in future runway shows. This talented young lady is sure to make the Middle Eastern community proud!

Photography by: Working Minds – Chuck Fedalizo

©2014 The Los Angeles Fashion

Kurdish New Year in Los Angeles-2014  29.3.2014  Dr Amir Sharifi — Ekurd.net	More Sharing ServicesShare|Share on facebookShare on myspaceShare on googleShare on twitter
Photo: Dr. Amir Sharifi/Ekurd.net • Read more by Dr. Amir Sharifi  March 29, 2014 LOS ANGELES,—  The Kurdish community of Southern California (KCSC) presented the annual Kurdish New Year festivities held from dusk to midnight in Lakewood Senior Center in Irvine on March 23, 2014. Hundreds of families had journeyed to the event from near and afar for reunion to celebrate the ancient festival of spring. The guests intimately exchanged the popular Newroz greetings “Newruzat piroz be!” “Happy New Year!” as they made good wishes for each other and their families in the New Year. Throughout the night the air was filled with the feelings of hope, triumphs, and renewal. A table covered with colorful flowers and Kurdish artifacts had been used to decorate the hall. Many men, women, and children had dressed up in elaborate colorful Kurdish costumes. Mr.Dyari Ahmad and Mrs. Soraya Fallah, the president and vice president of KCSC, respectively commenced the event by welcoming the audience in Kurdish and English, stressing the importance of unity and how the ancient festival serves as a reminder of our bond with nature and our struggle for freedom. Ms. Cklara Moradian, a young Kurdish writer and poet and Mr. Kamangar, a young Kurdish TV host co-hosted the auspicious national day. The program featured Barham Hasan, a Kurdish vocalist from Texas, who sang mostly rhythmic dance music, accompanied by the Kurdish American musician Dilan Hamawandy. Although there was no customary bonfire, two candles symbolically heralded the New Year. Vibrant music from different regions of Kurdistan ignited the night as the joyful guests spontaneously joined expanding circles of dancers, showcasing the kaleidoscope of colors and power of the Kurdish heritage. Mr. Ardishir Rashidi, the founder of the Kurdish American Education Society briefly explained the astrological, cultural, and historical origins of the tradition of Newruj and its symbolic significance for the Kurdish identity, suggesting the term" Newruj” to replace Newroz, its Persian equivalent.    Amir Sharifi encouraged the attendees to participate in a survey of the Kurdish communities, which was launched a few months ago with help from Zaniar Moradian. Most attendees young and old enthusiastically accepted to participate in the survey. KCSC also distributed its own membership forms and asked the attendees for their comments on the program. The guests feasted on a variety of Kurdishwww.Ekurd.net and Mediterranean dishes. For children under 12, their favorite part of the program was when they were called on stage and given cash as their New Year present. To add to the excitement, raffles were also drawn and several prizes were offered to the winners at different intervals. The energetic and elegant dance of women, men, and children hand in hand in colorful outfits was an impressive sight to behold, a befitting end to a successful festival. Dr. Amir Sharifi President of the Kurdish American Education Society-Los Angeles - Dr Amir Sharifi, is the president of the Kurdish American Education Society KAES, Los Angeles, California and Lecturer at California State University, Long Beach. Director of the Kurdish Human Rights Advocacy Group ( KHRAG). Copyright © 2014 Ekurd.net. All rights reserved  http://www.ekurd.net/mismas/articles/misc2014/3/kurdsworld640.htm

In Iran, Violence Against Women Highest Among Kurds

Ava  Homa

According to the BBC’s Persian service, 66.3 percent of Iranian women experience violence in their lives, but Kurdistan Province and the city of Ahvaz are reported to be the two most violent cities for females.

About 88 percent of women in Iran’s Kurdistan Province reportedly experience some form of abuse, among the highest in the country. According to the BBC’s Persian service, 66.3 percent of Iranian women experience violence in their lives, but Kurdistan Province and the city of Ahvaz are reported to be the two most violent cities for females.

The United Nations defines violence against women as "any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion, or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life."

Despite the huge numbers of women living with abuse in Kurdistan Province, abusive men enjoy impunity under the patriarchal laws of Iran’s Islamic Republic.
The children of battered women are also victims of domestic violence. Witnessing spousal violence is regarded as a form of child abuse. Children who witness violence in the home have twice the rate of psychiatric disorders as children from non-violent homes.

Kajal, a 33-year-old senior government clerk in Sanandaj and the mother of a two-year-old, was repeatedly beaten by her unemployed husband. He demanded she hand over ownership papers to the family home and the car she bought with her earnings.

Azadeh, 21, a university student in Germany, told Rudaw she decided to leave Iran after seeing her older sister burst into her parents’ home with broken teeth, following a severe beating by her husband. “Nobody has been able to stop him. My sister stays in that marriage to be with her children. Men have custody in Iran,” she explained.

Farah, 45, a physical education trainer in Sanandaj, set herself ablaze one year after her marriage. “It was just a threat when I poured the gasoline on my body, but when he (the husband) dismissed me with indifference, I ended up lighting the match. That was 15 years ago. He divorced me and remarried. The burning marks are still persistent on my body,” she lamented.

It is feared that violence against women in Kurdistan is inevitably creating a more unhealthy society, since children are affected by domestic abuse. The children of abused women are likely to become victims or perpetrators of violence later in life. An increase in the rates of violence against women is seen as proof that this behavior is not condoned by society.

Jafar Bolhari, a psychologist and expert in violence against women, believes that many women are “unaware of the crime committed against them.” Many consider receiving a slap by the husband or a verbal harassment as parts of life and not a form of oppression, he explained.

According to the Kurdpa news agency, in the Fall of 2013, 33 Kurdish women were reported to have experienced violence. Fifteen women committed suicide, eight were imprisoned (three of them activists) and seven were executed by the Iranian government. Iran’s Kurdish regions are economically among the country’s most neglected areas.

Soraya Falah, a Kurdish women’s rights activist from Baneh who resides in Los Angeles, believes that the Iranian government promotes violence in the Kurdish regions by deliberately letting them flounder socially and economically.

Recent global prevalence figures indicate that 35 percent of women worldwide have experienced either intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence in their lifetime.

Activists say that Kurdish men and women need to receive education about the definition of violence and its effects on women, children and society. They complain that the Iranian government does not seem to have any intention of raising awareness in this regard and only Kurds themselves can make a difference.

Jay Leno

BURBANK, Calif. - Jay Leno has said goodbye to "The Tonight Show" before, but not like this. The comedian became tearful and choked up Thursday as he concluded what he called the "greatest 22 years of my life."

"I am the luckiest guy in the world. This is tricky," said an emotional Leno, stepping down for the second and presumably last time as host of TV's venerable late-night program. 

لە ئەمریکا شه‌وى كوردستان به‌ چالاكى جۆراوجۆر رێكخرا

My project at the center on Memories in the Making program by Alzheimer's Association

For a while I realized that some of my clients do not engage, they lost in their mind, they don't like some of the center's activities. I felt so bad, I used every way possible, checking on them often, asked staff to engage them, but not much of a result. I looked, searched and talked to a few professionals out of the the office. I found Alzheimer's association in LA. I contacted them, we had some back and forth. I paid for the program they had, : Memories in the Making". Result was increasable. Many of them participated. And after family consents, we participated their art in Santa Monica art exhibition. One of the art by our client sold for 300. You can imagine the rest of the story............

I attended an amazing program Memories in the Making. I found Alzheimer's Association very helpful and full of amazing staff. One of the painting     Memories in the Making® A fine arts program for people with  dementia About the Memories in the Making® Art program In 1986, artist, board member and caregiver Selly Jenny, whose mother had Alzheimer’s disease, explored the use of an art program to identify how much dementia patients could reveal about themselves through the medium of art. Most had never painted before, yet the response was uniformly positive, revealing and reaffirming. The Memories in the Making® Art Program was thus born and has grown into a calendar, a training manual, an art exhibit and more -- expanding both nationally and internationally. Alzheimer's dementia brings with it a constant reminder of failures and losses. The Memories in the Making® Art program is not about failure. Every picture is important and valid. Its value lies in the creative process of making the art and expressing feelings and emotions trapped inside. The ensuing sense of accomplishment brings renewed joy and self-respect to the patient. Our exhibits present a selection of these paintings and the stories of each artist. The messages are from the person who is striving to maintain his or her own dignity and identity, despite the ravages of dementia. Each painting is named by the Alzheimer-artist and the artwork is totally their own creation. The artists speak with powerful brush strokes of color and tentative tracings of line. They pull us into the world of an individual with Alzheimer's. As we look at their paintings, we see their stories in a language that needs no words. Their paintings show us glimpses of who they were and who they still are. They call out to us in a way we cannot ignore. A special thanks to all the framers and facilities who support the Memories in the Making art program. Click here to view the 2013 collection video >>  Upcoming Facilitator Training  Training is open to anyone who is interested in learning how to use art as a communication tool for individuals with dementia, or related disorders. Please contact us for CEUs. Light lunch will be provided *$95.00 registration fee includes light lunch & training manual Location: Alzheimer's Association, Orange County 2515 McCabe Way Irvine, CA 92614 Modular building - rear parking lot