AT A GLANCE
When they walk the stage on the MUPH grand coronation night on May 13, they are not just doing it for themselves; they are also making their child proud and their community excited as they become part of "herstory." Who knows, one of them could be proclaimed Miss Universe Philippines 2023!
Historic. There's no other way to describe this year's batch of Miss Universe Philippines beauties who are the first qualifiers of the new rule to allow married or single moms to join the pageant. Standing tall and proud among their fellow candidates, the three mothers of MUPH 2023 are making waves with their talents, head-turning looks and unique life stories to tell.
When they walk the stage on the MUPH grand coronation night on May 13, they are not just doing it for themselves; they are also making their child proud and their community excited as they become part of "herstory." Who knows, one of them could be proclaimed Miss Universe Philippines 2023!
Let us get to know the MUPH mommies one by one:
Miss Benguet Joemay-An Leo calls herself the first married woman to make it to MUPH. Aside from being a mom to her baby daughter Courkin, she is also the SK chairperson of the town of Tuba in her province. She wowed the crowd in the recently-concluded National Costume competition, emerging second place by parading around the stage with a salad of mountain-grown vegetables behind her back.
Joemay-An Leo
Joemay is no stranger to pageantry, having been proclaimed Miss Cordillera in 2016 when she was barely 20. She revealed that she joined Miss Universe Philippines to give a spotlight to her province, to showcase its products as well as its tourism spots and give the world an idea what an Igorota beauty is all about.
"I am not only an Igorota. I am a proud Ibaloi and Kankanaey from Mt. Province. My advocacy is cultural awareness and sensitivity. I aim to show the skills and talents of all indigenous peoples all over the Philippines, not only the Igorots," she told the Manila Bulletin after last month's press presentation.
Joemay revealed that it has been hard juggling pageant duties and being with her family. " I have been going to Benguet and travelling back to Manila. Pabalik-balik po ako just to see my family and join the activities. What's giving me the courage to continue is I know my baby will be proud of what I do now and she will be empowered just like me."
Miss Parañaque Clarielle (Clare) Dacanay is easily one of the most recognizable beauties in MUPH 2023 because she towers at 5'11 and sports short hair. Her recent feat was being named one of Aqua Boracay's Magic 8 finalists.
Clarielle (Clare) Dacanay
Clare said she is engaged to her partner and father of her 2 1/2 year old daughter. She is also an interior design student. " I was actually working under Asian Vision, It's a cable company, but I let it go since I wanted to focus on my daughter, my schooling, and the pageant," she disclosed.
"Joining the pageant was a spur-of-the-moment decision. When they removed the civil status requirement, I thought it was destiny because I always wanted to join ever since I was a kid. Then I had a baby so I thought it was game over but when they announced the new rule, I had no doubt in my mind and I just went for it," the 25-year old Clare revealed.
She added that "the best thing about joining the pageant is all the learning I get."
"My advocacy is maternal mental health, especially post partum depression or PPD. I was diagnosed with a major depressive disorder back in 2019 and I had suicidal tendencies. I was actually confined in a psych ward for maybe roughly a month. But when I found out about my pregnancy, I knew the importance of having to focus on your mental being before having a baby because you don't want to affect their growth. Luckily, I didn't experience any signs of PPD, just a few traces of sadness. But I wanted to advocate for it because I had a good friend who underwent a very bad case of PPD and I saw how much it affected not only her but also the baby," Clare stated.
The last mom-candidate is Miss Quezon City Mary Eileen Gonzales. She is 27, businesswoman, actress and a middle child in a family of five. All her siblings are boys.
Mary Eileen Gonzales
Eileen dotes on her son Zohan, who she shares the same birthday with. "I am not the perfect mom but I just want to tell Z that everything I've done and will be doing is really for him. I want him to know that he has a mom who would do anything for him."
Eileen believes that she "manifested" being an MUPH candidate.
"Way back in 2019, I emailed the Miss Universe Organization that maybe one day, they will allow us (moms) to join the pageant. Being here today is something I am really proud of. I cannot wait to hear my son one day tell his friends that mommy is a Miss Universe Philippines candidate," Eileen said.
