Ashley Callingbull is the first Canadian, and the first Indigenous woman in Canada to win the Mrs. Universe title, on 29 August 2015. Callingbull is from Alberta's Enoch Cree Nation, west of Edmonton. She and her stepfather participated in the 4th season of The Amazing Race Canada. More recently, she and her stepfather also ran in the 2nd Amazing Race Devon, a local youth fundraiser, in which they placed 2nd.
Life and career
Callingbull was born in Enoch Cree Nation in Alberta, to Cree parents. By the age of 10, she had consecutively won all Enoch's princess crowns in her community. She graduated from high school by the age of 16. Soon after, she began her University studies to pursue her Bachelor of Arts degree focusing on drama and acting/television. Callingbull was also chosen as Miss Canada for the Miss Friendship International Pageant held in Hubei, Chinain September, 2010, and represented Canada at the Queen of the World Final held in Germany 2010. She also represented Canada at Miss Humanity International in Barbados in October 2011. She used her fame to urge the First Nationsband governments to vote to depose the Conservative Party of Canada in the 2015 federal election. Callingbull stated that the First Nation's concerns needed to be prominent in the campaign. She is also an actress and plays Sheila Delaronde in the series ''Blackstone.
Personal life
Callingbull has said that she "never had the perfect childhood everyone dreams of. I had an incredibly difficult childhood and was raised mainly by my mother and grandparents...It was difficult to grow up the way I did, but it made me appreciate everything I have and most importantly made me the strong woman I am today." Callingbull says she was drawn to the Mrs. Universe competition because of its domestic violence theme. "I thought, this is a perfect platform for me because I'm relatable to people, I've experienced this myself and I'm able to speak about it," she said. "I'm glad I'm able to use this title as a way to speak for others that can't speak for themselves." She also credits turning to her First Nation culture for helping her heal and find herself.
