École Sir John Franklin High School student Marie-Luna Langlois Escandon moved to Yellowknife from Québec three years ago on a quest to learn English and “just fell in love” with the city.
“It was so pretty and people were so nice,” she told Cabin Radio during the 2024 Sǫǫ̀mba K’è Multicultural Festival on Sunday afternoon. At the event, she was accompanied by her siblings and mother to showcase Colombian culture and traditional attire.
Sixteen-year-old Escandon is one of the participants flying to Toronto this summer to attend Miss Teenage Canada, a national beauty pageant where roughly 70 contestants compete for the title each year.
Escandon will leave on July 9 and stay in Toronto with the other competitors for five days until the competition on July 14. Escandon said she registered for the event on the pageant’s website when the portal opened. Thereafter, the pageant reached out to her for an interview.
“I’m proud to go to Toronto to represent Yellowknife against all other girls from around Canada,” she said. Escandon said she has been told this is the first time a contestant will represent the NWT at the pageant, and her family will be there to support her.
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To secure the crown, participants will engage in a variety of activities from photoshoots and group dances to interviews and a talent show, where contestants will be each asked one question.
According to Miss Teenage Canada, last year’s winner was Cece Wu from Vancouver, British Columbia – a competitive black-belt taekwondo athlete and a prima-level ballerina.
Haudry Escandon feels proud of her daughter’s achievement, calling the opportunity a “really good surprise and nice adventure.” She hopes it encourages more locals to take part in similar contests.
“This an amazing opportunity for young ladies in the territory to go, not just to show the beauty, it is also to show where you’re from, and the culture of Canada that maybe other provinces don’t know that well,” she said.
