Cork beauty Zoe uses profile from Miss Ireland competiton to raise important issues

A CORK woman who made her mark as an advocate for causes such as anti-racism and dementia awareness has secured third place at the Miss Ireland contest.

Zoe Hendrick from Blackrock, who works as a digital marketing analyst took the stage for the finals last Sunday took her place alongside first runner-up Coaimhe Gibney, who was representing Meath and winner Pamela Uba from Galway.

The event took place outdoors and in line with Covid-19 restrictions. However, it was a far cry from the Cork regional heat which saw Zoe compete online for her place in the Miss Ireland finals.

Zoe, who works part-time with Pulse Models, had said she wanted to use her title as a platform to help worthy charities. Speaking to The Echo after the Miss Cork event she said:

“The one charity I’ll be fighting for is the Alzheimers Society as I lost my great-grandmother and my grandmother to the disease. It’s a slow process. It’s years of watching someone lose themselves which is extremely hard for families.”

Zoe has also spoken out against racism in the past. She highlighted her own experiences in a previous interview with this paper.

“Every now and then there can be a snide remark, but most people shut it down and people are more educated now,” she said. 

“Cork has come a long way over the years since I was in school but there’s still more learning to go. I want to raise awareness for racial equality and remind people to think about their choice of words. And if you don’t know what words to use, that’s ok, just come up and ask.”

Her remarks followed an Instagram post at the time of George Floyd’s death which sparked widespread protests around the world, she shared a powerful post on Instagram, where she said she felt it was time she ‘spoke her mind.’ In it she said she had faced racism all her life, sometimes in obvious ways but other times, more subtly.

“When we were kids we were taught that security guards’ eyes would be on me because of my skin, so don’t look suspicious,” she said. 

“I was told one black model was enough for a show and they wouldn’t need me…that I should remove my image on my CV in case whoever was hiring was racist. People think racism is only in America but it’s here.”