Stephanie Wong has her sights set on becoming Miss Universe Canada.
The 23-year-old from Ladner has been accepted as a contestant for the 2013 pageant, which will be held in Toronto next summer.
This will be first time taking part in a pageant for Wong, a model who also loves doing stage theatre and travelling.
"It's completely new to me, I've never been in this kind of role before but I just like having new experiences in life no matter what they are. I'm very open to trying new things," she said.
Wong recently spent about a year living in Berlin on a work visa and has also made her way through Western Europe. She's been to China, Hong Kong, Israel, Egypt and went on a humanitarian trip to Morocco in 2007 to help build a school house for kids.
"Travelling is basically what makes me the person I am," she said.
Leading up to the pageant Wong will go through training with event organizers, work with a personal fitness trainer and perform charity work. Miss Universe has a focus on children's charities, said Wong, who has volunteered in the past at children's camps.
As well as doing nightlife photography, Wong works at a retail store in Vancouver.
She said she enjoys working with local designers while doing creative modeling.
"I don't really fit the bill for a pageant kind of girl so I really look forward to representing more alternative stores and fashion and people in the city," Wong said.
Miss Universe Canada selects the country's representative to the Miss Universe Pageant.
Vancouver's Sahar Biniaz won the Miss Universe Canada title this year.
Wong is looking for sponsorships from local businesses.
For more on Wong visit her website at stephaniemis-suniversecanada.wordpress. com.
