District 83 Toastmasters | Metropolitan New Jersey, Rockland County, Staten Island

Toastmasters are known for captivating their audiences and AT&T Middletown Club member Ceylone Grooms proved this by capturing the crown of Mrs. New Jersey. The 2009 Pageant was held on Sunday, May 24, 2009 at 6:30 pm in Yvonne Theater at Rider University.  In an evening filled with excitement, entertainment and pageantry, Ceylone brushed aside competition and stood tall and beautiful among 17 finalists to the contest. She captured the title and crown of the premier pageant for New Jersey's married women with grandeur and elegance. The pageant included three phases of competition whose sum total equals 100% of a contestant's overall score: Personal interview (34%), Swimsuit (33%), and Evening gown with on-stage questions (33%).

Ceylone Grooms will be competing for Mrs. United States National Pageant to be held in Las Vegas, NV from July 19-25, 2009. We are sure she will continue to charm the audiences and judges as she does in the Club meetings. We wish her all the luck and success for the national crown.

Besides being an active Toastmaster Ceylone is a make-up artist and image consultant with over 15 years experience in front of and behind the camera. This former model/Sassy Magazine cover girl’s work has appeared in numerous film/television projects and national trade publications. Ceylone appeared as a coach on MTV's hit show "MADE" and served as guest host on a Harvest Global Network radio program.

Impassioned about the importance of community service, Ceylone actively gives back by being an advocate for families with special needs children, volunteering with the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, and Lovely You (a non-profit aimed to bolster the self-esteem of under-served girls).  Dedicated to raising cervical cancer awareness, Ceylone is the author of the blog " Damali Circle," which helps people going through a cancer crisis locate resources and information.  Ceylone is happily married to her best friend Lorenzo, and they’re blessed with 4 beautiful children, Justin (12), Elijah (10), Anthony (7) and Milan (2).