Crowned as the ‘National Canadian Junior Teen Miss’ from Central Alberta earlier this year, Stettler resident Tennille Day Chief is on her way to attend the ‘National Canadian Royalty’, being held in Vancouver from July 9–15, 2015.
‘National Canadian Girl, Teen & Miss’ is Canada’s national scholarship system for females aged 0 to 35.
There are 10 different age groups, and once the provincial selection is complete, winners move to the national round, which is the final round for being crowned ‘National Canadian Royalty’, a title reserved for winners in each of the age categories.
With a keen interest in contesting in pageants, this is not her first, Chief said. Her introduction to the world of pageants was by sheer accident.
“I was scrolling through Facebook and came across this pageant called ‘Miss Teenage Canada’. It was something I was interested in,” said Chief. “But being too young, I did not get into it, but I enjoyed the journey.”
The ‘National Canadian Junior Teen Miss’ pageant also raises money for children’s hospitals across Canada. And one of the many ways they do it is through people’s choice voting on their website.
All the winners at the provincial level in each category are also eligible for the title ‘Winner of People’s Choice’, whereby visitors to the website can vote for a candidate, but the cost per vote is $1, half of which goes to children’s hospitals.
On their road to the nationals, contestants also have to fundraise for a children’s hospital of their choice. Chief chose Stollery Chidren’s Hospital in Edmonton, an institution she believes in.
This led her to hosting a ‘hot dog, chips and drink’ fundraiser for $5 on Friday, June 26, at the No Frills Parking lot.
Participating in pageants and contests is not easy, as it involves a lot of money, from entry fees and airfares to accommodation and transportation, besides meals and other expenses, explained Chief.
“I have been fundraising in Stettler and Drumheller, in different ways, from door-to-door to concession barbecues like this one,” said Chief. “Besides raising money for Stollery’s, I would love to raise funds for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Canada.”