Filipino grandmas are not to be left behind in beauty competitions as Mrs. Grandma-Philippines Agnes Jakosalem was crowned Mrs. Grandma-Universe 2017 in Sofia, Bulgaria on January 22, 2017. She was crowned by the outgoing Mrs. Grandma Universe 2016 Cveteslava Gulabova of Bulgaria.
Jakosalem, a 51-year-old, mother to three children and one granddaughter, bested fourteen grandma representatives from other countries around the world to become the first Filipina to win the Mrs. Grandma-Universe title. Jakosalem followed last year’s Babylyn Decena-Newfield who was named Mrs. Grandma-Universal 2016.
Sofia, the capital city of Bulgaria, is the top tourist destination in the Balkan nation of Bulgaria. Sofia features landmarks of more than 2,000 years of history, including Greek, Roman, Ottoman and Russian occupation such as the 4th century medieval church St. George Rotunda Church.
‘I cannot believe I won. This is the first time in my life that I competed in a beauty contest,” the BS MedTech graduate from Southwestern University graduate and now into real estate business in Cebu said after winning the eight edition of the Mrs. Grandma Universe pageant. With no experience being a contestant, Jakosalem relied solely on her confidence and pride in being a Filipino and the solid support of encouragement from her nephews and children.
Jakosalem and the other candidates competed in talent and evening gown and in an essay-writing on the theme about Grand-parenting, instead of the traditional question-and-answer round. Jakosalem, who is a native of Zamboang del Norte, said that she based her answer on the joys of co-parenting her only one granddaughter.
Previous Mrs. Grandma Universe winners were Mrs. Singapore Christine Kam (2015), Mrs. Malaysia Syntia Ong (2014), Mrs. Guatemala Figueroa de Reyes (2013) and Mrs. Sweden Ivana Hamra (2012). Words and photos by Eton Concepcion
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