AT an age when most children are only beginning to discover their interests, 10-year-old Caylee Francis has already built a record of excellence in academics, leadership, and the arts.

Within the span of a single week, the White Horses Primary and Infant School student captured two titles — the 2026 St Thomas Police Youth Club Junior Pageant Queen and the 2026 Mini Miss St Thomas Finest — while being awarded for being her school’s top grade 4 PEP mathematics student and serving as deputy head girl.

A well-rounded achiever, she has distinguished herself in netball, track and field, debating, reading, and the performing arts. Her talent in dance has earned multiple Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) parish gold medals and two national gold awards. Beyond the classroom and stage, she also demonstrates a passion for leadership, serving as vice-president of the White Horses Primary and Infant School Police Youth Club, secretary of the Culture Club, and public relations officer for the Mathematics Club.

The 10-year-old said she is proud of every achievement, noting that while to some it might seem a lot, she enjoys taking on new tasks, learning, and challenging herself.

“I like to be involved because I get to represent my school, my family, my community, and my parish in different ways. Through netball I learn about sportsmanship, through dancing I connect with my culture, and in school I am furthering my education. I love to learn and challenge myself,” she told the Jamaica Observer.

Caylee Francis’s father Constable Conroy Francis passed away seven years ago.

Her mother, Lasana Turner-Francis, said Caylee is a very competitive child who is always up for a challenge. As an educator, she said she saw it best to nurture that side of her and present her with opportunities for personal growth and development. She said Caylee welcomes these challenges eagerly, always aiming to be a shining star.

She said her daughter’s achievements often leave her emotional and overwhelmed.

“Caylee experienced one of the greatest challenges of her young life. At only three years old, her beloved father became seriously ill and later passed away. Despite her tender age, she understood the reality of what was happening. Although she faced tremendous heartbreak, her resilience, courage, and determination shone through,” said Turner-Francis.

With a plate full of responsibilities, she said they try to stick to a schedule. It was this schedule they created that became useful when Caylee found herself participating in two pageants scheduled within a week of each other.

Turner-Francis shared that when they first saw the advertisement for the Mini Miss St Thomas pageant, Caylee was excited and wanted to try something she had never done before, so they signed her up to participate. A few weeks later, she said the police youth club reached out to Caylee to ascertain her interest in participating in an upcoming pageant.

The daughter of Conroy Francis, a former police constable of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) who is deceased, Turner-Francis said they found it difficult to turn down the second pageant because they saw it as a way Caylee could honour her father and his legacy.

With faith, Turner-Francis said they boldly stepped out into the pageant scene. She said trouble came when they later discovered that both pageants were scheduled to take place on the same day. However, after talks with the pageant coordinators, the dates were changed to allow Caylee to participate in both events.

“I was excited to do both, but I was very excited to do the police youth club one because my father was a police officer and I was looking forward to honouring him,” Caylee told the Sunday Observer.

The 10-year-old said with the help of her mother, they choreographed a dance skit as her talent piece for both competitions. The skit saw her having a conversation with her dad, sharing memories and life updates.

Caylee Francis (right) and her mother Lasana Turner-Francis

“It really brought out my talents and the relationship we had. Although I didn’t get a long time with him, it showed how much he loved me…His personality is a lot like mine, as most people tell me. We share the same favourite colour, we have the same mannerisms and the same favourite things,” said Caylee, adding that it was emotional for her to perform the skit as she reflected on his life.

As she recalled the moments, Turner-Francis said each performance was unique, her daughter breaking down in tears in the first talent piece, but later showing strength when she took the stage at the police youth club junior pageant.

“It was something different. It was the same talent piece, but it was something different that we experienced that evening. I think that she did the Mini Miss St Thomas piece for herself, but at the police youth club pageant she did it for her dad, and that was something special to experience. You could see the love she has for him and the strength she developed to become the person she is today,” Turner-Francis said.

She said she felt overwhelmed with emotions when her daughter was crowned the winner of both competitions.

“I didn’t know that she would win both. I thought she would win one and then come second or third in the other, but when she won both, I was so excited. I was so happy and proud of her,” said Turner-Francis.

Caylee said each achievement shows her that she can do anything she puts her mind to, and she hopes every young person will see that he/she can, too.

“Even when it seems like you can’t, having faith in yourself could bring out your talents even stronger. I was shy about a lot of things. I didn’t know how I would do it, but throughout the time I’ve been doing these things over and over, I’ve learned that even when it seems hard, it is possible if you try your hardest and your best,” she encouraged.