CHUI YEE SHIA

She is 80 per cent deaf in both ears, but that did not stop make-up artist Chui Yee Shia from joining the Miss Singapore Beauty Pageant 2013.

The 25-year-old lost her hearing and the ability to talk at the age of four after she had a high fever.

Her parents noticed that something was wrong when she would not respond to them but instead stared at them blankly when they asked her questions.

They hired a speech therapist to help her learn to speak again. Now, Miss Chui can talk and string together proper sentences, even though her articulation and pronunciation is not clear.

She also can hear properly with a small hearing aid in her ear that is not easily visible.

Miss Chui told The New Paper: "I joined this beauty pageant as I want to raise awareness about deaf people in Singapore. I feel that many people look down on the deaf and think that they aren't capable of anything.

"I want people to know that the deaf can also do their jobs well... and I hope to encourage employers to set up more training courses for their deaf employees."

Into its 25th year now, the Miss Singapore Beauty Pageant gives out five main titles - Miss Singapore Tourism Queen International, Miss Singapore Global Beauty Queen, Miss Singapore All Nations, Miss Singapore Friendship International and Singapore International Model Of The Year. The finals will be held on Aug 31.

Bullied in secondary school

Life has not been easy for Miss Chui, who was bullied in secondary school because of her hearing disability.

Read the full story here.