It is with heavy heart that I say as of today my year as Miss Teenage Central Nova Scotia is up and I will be making way for a new girl to take my place in this incredible journey. I joined this pageant for a lot of different reasons and am so proud with how far I’ve come because of it. I’ve made some life long friends from all over the country, learned when to pivot my feet on a runway and how to showcase myself for all I’m worth. I’m so happy I attended Miss Teenage Canada and I’d just like to extend a warm thank you to all of my supporters.

So it’s been several months since the national competition had come to an end, so I thought I’d give an update on how my reign of Miss Teenage Central NS 2015 is going.

Currently I am enrolled In the school of my dreams. It’s a very small private collage called daVinci located in the beautiful city of Halifax. I’m currently studying 3D Animation for Game, Film and Visual Effects. I spend long days loving every second of what I’m doing, Creating and building new worlds and characters on computer software; It’s like magic.

For employment I am a flourishing Younique Makeup representative (https://www.youniqueproducts.com/AnastasiaCook/business) while also doing loads of commission work on the side (Some even consisting of editing the photo shoots of my fellow MTC super stars). Miss Teenage Canada gave me so much confidence in myself and my potential, I spend everyday trying to light that same spark in the people around me.

I’ve kept in close contact with all my my pageant friends and even traveled to We Day with a group of the Nova Scotian title holders and my youngest sister!

So many opportunities have opened up since returning home. I’ve found a new love for runway modeling and have participate in a few fashion showcases.

I continue to this day volunteering my work with Skills Canada and have partaken in several youth forum speeches in and out of province, attending blind auction events and even featuring in trades/women’s career days.

Every day I live life to my fullest and it’s been nothing but clear skies here in Halifax as a title holder. Leadership, Respect and Initiative is apparently what I glow with when approaching a new task and I couldn’t be more proud of myself then where i’m at right now and how i’m pushing for greatness.

-Anastasia

SO HERE WE ARE!

I made it to Toronto in one piece and have gotten through 2 days of competition! It’s such a roller coaster of events and honestly a lot more work then expected. At the end of the day I see a trend of being exhausted.

But everyone here is absolutely, without a doubt, beautiful inside and out.

I’ve made so many new friends and my roommate Cara is an absolute sweetheart. I’m enjoying every second around these amazing people.

I’m honestly learning so much here, and seeing myself in professional makeup left me astonished.. I saw a side of me this morning that gave me so much confidence and I was ready to take on anything. (almost cried a little when I caught myself in the mirror, not going to lie)

So we’ll see how the rest of the week goes! It’ll be quite the ride but no doubt worth it in the end.

The experience of a lifetime.

-Ana

My platform for the pageant is the establishment of equal rights on a global level. This topic is so very dear to me on many levels and I truly believe that with the proper education and representation the equalization of all genders, races, and sexualities can be achieved.

Over the years there have been many giant strides towards the proper and fair treatment of one another but still stigmas, prejudgment and hatred remain to dwell deep within the societal image. Whether it’s towards the homosexual community or the fact women still struggle entering primarily male dominated trades, proves many groups still have their obstacles.

The issue with this problem is the fact that those who commit these unfair acts don’t recognize or refuse to acknowledge that what they’re doing is essentially wrong. Typically due to cultural conditioning; through medias lack of portrayal or the way they we’re brought up.

But my goal is to put an end to this. Everyone deserves a chance and everyone deserves a sense of comfort just being themselves. I plan to continue volunteering my time, motivating my community and inspiring young people towards building a world of respect, following passions, acceptance, and open mindedness.

-Ana

So here we are. Exactly a week before I leave for nationals and I couldn’t be more excited (And nervous….mostly nervous)

The last few months since receiving my title have been the experience of a life time.

I attended so many events through this amazing opportunity. I got to follow my passions and embrace the many different events Nova Scotia has to offer. I was able to promote women in trades receiving the “Financial woman” award, attend the Truro Sea Cadets 61st Annual Ceremonial Review, take place in a job fair, have a booth at NerdCon, attend the Tattoo festival, participate in the Bible Hill Canada day parade and venture out to the Skills Canada National competition as Nova Scotia’s Youth Forum leader. like wow.

And despite my blog losing half my posts and my computer being out of commission for several weeks I still made it out okay and am planning to participate in Toronto to the very best of my abilities.

I’m here packing and It’s hard to believe. I just want to thank everyone so much for the support and love. This is so out of my comfort zone but I’ve had multiple people help me out and i’m forever thankful.

My mantra for nationals is “Stay true to myself, Be honest with who I am, and be a positive role model.”

-Ana

Out of all the countries in the world Canada has a lot to be proud of. From the beautiful scenery, to the open mindedness of our people; we as a country are world renowned for being the kindest. This is something pretty impressive!

Our diversity is outstanding. Our Country was first inhabited by the first nation people who grew small settlements and lived off the land. They had very distinct traditions that still are in the hearts of Canadians today. Later on European powers arrived in search for goods, causing Canada to be colonized by the English, French, and some Spanish. This brought a wide assortment of conflict upon our land, but also the cultural impact from many different powers and nations. Throughout the years Canada’s relations with countries have spanned over the entire globe through trades, political policies, and aid relief. This wide range of global influence is impeccable and what makes us such an open minded, accepting country as a whole.

We also have a long written history worth being proud about. From the Underground Railroad, to the battle of Vimy ridge, the telephone, insulin, basketball, key frame animation, McIntosh red apples, snowmobiles, free healthcare, and CanadaArm on the International Space Station. We are a country for our people.

The well being and future of Canadians has always been a primary goal; reinforced by our laws and how we treat one another. What other country can say majority of their stereotypes are positive? The fact we’re world renowned for being polite, playing sports, and enjoying a cold beer, means we haven’t really been on bad terms with anyone politically. So A+ Canada!

Our Human rights place us as the 5^th happiest country in the world as of 2015, right underneath some very Socialist nations. So economically, that we as a nation can remain a capitalist country, economically stable, and keep our people happy, means we met our quota as a nation built on respect and democracy.

The Canadian economic influence is probably greater then you’d expect also. We house the world’s largest reserve of fresh water and being the second largest country in the world, have more forestry, housing, farming and oil industry potential then you’d ever imagine. With the Trans-Canada pipeline, we also hold the key to open a wide field of job opportunities for thousands in a variety of trades. Canada also has the North American Free Trade Agreement which connects us closely with the United States, a partnership that has us exporting so many goods at a steady consumption rate. Our dollar is very strong and our unemployment is relatively low in a world of recession.

Overall Canada is an amazing country. With one look at this vast, beautiful nation, you can tell whether you’re from a rural community like me, or a larger city like Vancouver, we’re all Canadian and have every right to be proud of this powerful, loving nation we call home. <3

-Ana

So this is how I spent the day! Thanks to an old friend with his Pilot licence, I got to go next to the clouds on a little air trip to Moncton and back.

It was a 2 person plane and I got to experience 0 g force unexpectedly (Just a nice little nose dive to wake you up.)

It was so wonderful to catch up with an old friend and an amazing experience flying a plane!

-Ana

What a beautiful day for a beautiful parade in the little town of Truro and area!

I teamed up with my Family, Boyfriend and the Truro Fire Department (my dad is a member) to ride an antique fire truck in today’s Canada Day parade! It was a lot of fun riding in the hose bed waving to people. I got a few “Look mommy a princess” which absolutely melted my heart.

I also got to see a few friends and MLA Lenore Zann in different floats or on the sidelines!

Overall an amazing day full of wonderful memories and a perfect Fireworks show to end it.

As Canadian citizens we have a lot to be proud of! <3

-Ana