Blackhall woman overcomes odds to be selected for international beauty pageant

Megan Crombie, of Blackhall, east Durham, will be taking part in the Face of the Globe in Disneyland Paris in October.

The 20-year-old, who has aspirations to become an RSPCA inspector, said: “Being selected means a lot to me. It is a lot more a personality competition than a beauty contest.

“It will give me the chance to raise awareness of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) and how I have been able to overcome the illness, while doing something for charity at the same time.

“As part of the event I will be raising money for the Rainbow Child Foundation, which helps underprivileged children around the world.”

Megan, who has suffered from ME since the age of 15, said she also had to endure relentless bullying at school.

At one point she was bedbound and had to use a wheelchair for four months.

Megan said: “Because of my illness I was told by teachers it was pointless carrying on with school.

“But that made me all the more determined to succeed.”

Megan passed her GCSEs with flying colours and went on to graduate from Sunderland University with a foundation degree in sports coaching.

She said: “Although I still suffer from ME and have relapses I have embraced it and am living an almost normal life – I recently did a skydive to raise money for charity.

“While I was poorly I still managed to volunteer as a sports ambassador and give over 1,000 hours of my free time to help in schools in sport in Easington district and the county.”

Megan is a volunteer at the Stray Aid animal shelter and also teaches swimming at Peterlee leisure centre and is a freelance children’s entertainer.

Her main sponsor for the Face of the Globe is Tweddle Children’s Farm in Blackhall, where she also works part-time.

Megan will be staging a Disney and Rainbow themed arts and crafts day for charity Tweddle Children's Farm, from 11pm to 4pm on Saturday, August 23. Normal admission charges apply.