On November 30, beauty queen Michelle Dee recounted her most memorable moment in the 72nd Miss Universe.
At the media event held at GMA Studio 7, LionhearTV asked Dee what she would consider a memorable moment for her during the competition, and she emphasized her recent Voice for Change Award.
“Honestly, ‘yung Voice for Change is the award that focuses on your advocacy. It really gave that–my advocacy a platform for global recognition. Inisa-isa ko ‘yung everything that was on my script. I really supervised the execution, the video, the content– because that was my mission at Miss Universe.”
She then reiterated how she wasn’t planning on joining the Miss Universe Pageant but changed her mind after finding out about their organization’s shift to focusing on advocacies.
“If they didn’t make that recent shift to focus on advocacy feeling ko talaga hindi ako sasali last year. I wouldn’t have the energy, but [because of] my brother’s, millions of indivuals on the spectrum, really gave me [so much] inspiration.”
She noted how winning the award underscored her advocacy for autism awareness.
“Kaya noong nanalo kami ng gold for the Voice for Change against 70 ata na nag-submit ng videos, to get to that top three, to get that gold medal, it really confirms that my advocacy is really that one we can’t ignore. It’s really an opportunity not just for myself but for millions of Filipinos on the autism spectrum.”
Aside from her award, she wished her advocacy could’ve been highlighted further during the coronation night.
“I was actually waiting for a segment na maha-highlight ‘yung mga winners. Of course, it [was already] announced that I was in the top 10 silver finalists and doon kukunin ‘yung tatlong winners. So I thought they were [going to] insert a segment to really give advocacies a spotlight it deserves. I was backstage and patapos na and parang wala pala. Only when I replayed the whole pageant–I saw that they announced it briefly, but it was one thing that I [really] wanted to be highlighted.”
Miss Nicaragua, Sheynnis Palacios, won the crown for the 72nd Miss Universe during the coronation night on November 18, 2023.
As for Dee, she got into the Top 10 finalist of the competition but didn’t get through the Top 5.
