Boston, Oct. 25, 2024, — The award ceremony for the fourth Miss Chinese Boston organized by the Chinese American Heritage Foundation （CAHF） was held at the China Pearl Restaurant in Quincy on Oct. 20. In the presence of nearly 200 guests, the 2023 Miss Chinese Boston, Sarah Chu, crowned Angela He, a student from the renowned Wellesley College, as the 2024 Miss Chinese Boston.
Guests in attendance included Marian Ryan, the Middlesex District Attorney of Massachusetts, Robert Santiago, Director of the Boston Veteran Services, Chulan Huang, the Chinatown Liaison for Boston Mayor Wu, 2023 Miss Massachusetts Chelsea Vuong, former Presidents of the CCBA of New England, Rick Wong and Hung Goon, among others. Ms. Esther Lee, President of the CAHF, expressed gratitude for the strong support from all sectors of society for this event.
The award ceremony began with 8-year-old child star Mirabel Pan Weston singing the national anthem of the United States. Having previously performed the anthem at Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox, in front of 38,000 spectators, Mirabel’s passionate performance received loud applause from the guests. Her mother, the renowned soprano Jie Pan Weston, attended the event despite feeling slightly unwell and expressed gratitude to the guests for their love and support for Mirabel.
D.A. Marian Ryan (middle) and all four Miss Chinese Boston winners pose for a picture.
Grateful to Parents and Focused on Immigrant Children’s Education
According to the emcee of the ceremony, Mr. Chulan Huang, Angela He was born in Buffalo, New York, and grew up in Atlanta. She moved to Boston for college and is currently a Clinton Scholar at the prestigious women’s college Wellesley, pursuing dual degrees in Economics and American Studies, with a focus on the Chinese immigrant community. While working at her family’s takeout restaurant, she also serves as the director of the Chinatown after-school program at Harvard University’s Phillips Brooks House Association. She is responsible for developing and implementing educational programs for immigrant children in the Greater Boston area from elementary through high school.
After being crowned the 2024 Miss Chinese Boston, Angela delivered her acceptance speech. She mentioned that the China Pearl Restaurant, where the award ceremony was held, was much larger than the takeout restaurant her parents once ran. Reflecting on the hard work her parents endured to provide her with educational opportunities, she recalled an instance when her mother took her to dance class and fell asleep while waiting for her. She has great gratitude to her parents for their sacrifices. “Today, as 2024 Miss Chinese Boston, I feel very humbled because our community has gone through many hardships. As the daughter of a Chinese immigrant family, I want to collaborate with other leaders in the Chinese community to speak out for those in the Chinatown community who are facing gentrification threats and for the Chinese community that suffered hate attacks during the COVID-19 pandemic. I am committed to educating the youth in our community. Thank you for your support,” Angela He said.
According to Ms. Esther Lee, the organizer of this event, this year’s participants were Chinese women aged 18 to 27 who are citizens or permanent residents of Massachusetts. Contestants had the opportunity to contribute to the community through their chosen platforms and participate in various cultural celebrations in Boston.
Angela He will head to California early next year to represent the Greater Boston Chinese community in the 2025 Miss Chinatown USA pageant, which has a grand prize of up to $10,000. For details about the Miss Chinese Boston event, please visit the website: www.cahf.us/miss-chinese-boston.
In her speech, Angela He expressed heartfelt gratitude to CAHF for organizing this event and hoped to enhance her own and Asian women’s influence through participation in this event, while also advocating for equal rights for Chinese immigrants like her parents. The multi-talented Sarah Chu and Angela He also performed an exciting dance program for the guests, receiving enthusiastic applause.