With the Miss Calgary title and crown already under her belt (or on top of her head - so to speak) Airdronian Emily Marston has set her sights on an even larger crown and title. Marston will be competing in the upcoming Miss Universe Canada Competition late this summer.

Marston explained that 50 young women are selected for the Miss Universe Canada Competition, and by winning Miss Calgary, she was automatically qualified for the national competition. 

"It was absolutely incredible and this means that now I get to represent Calgary and the Airdrie area on the national stage," she said. 

The competition has a humanitarian component to it, and each of the candidates must demonstrate that they are engaged in their communities. Since her passion has been sustainability and the environment, propelling her to launch her own non-profit The Mud Pie Project; her project for the Miss Universe Canada competition follows a similar path.

"As much as people think it's about being a pretty face; you do have to be able to answer some questions and you also need to be doing a lot of work in your community. The SOS Children's Villages offers safe and nurturing family homes to around 80,000 orphaned and abandoned children throughout 130 countries around the world - and we're focusing on the Canada [chapter]," Marston explained. "I wanted to do something that also focused on sustainability and the Reduce, Reuse recycle movement, which is why we partnered with Value Village."

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Marston added that household items including clothing, bedding or book donations, will gladly take in as part of the project. 

"It works well because it focuses on reducing reusing and recycling within the community, but it also brings awareness to the number of children who are abandoned or orphaned at a young age within Canada."

Marston, who has a background in Environmental Science said that she hopes to continue to educate the public and bring awareness to the fact that there is less and less land that can be utilized for what she calls attainable agriculture.

"The reason why it works well is that through my Mud Pie Project, I also educate people on how to use the environment around them to provide healthy food sourcing by growing their own fruits and vegetables. For kids who don't necessarily grow up with the proper family support, education and housing; this is one way that we can also help them learn to be sustainable in their future practices or in their lifestyle."

While she is working hard on being prepared for Miss Universe Canada in August, Marston also reflected on her recent Miss Calgary crown.

"I'll be very, very honest: I have lost so many times that I did not think it was real. I have no shame in sharing that I have lost the amount of times that I have because I truly believe that every failure I had has led me to this moment," she said. "It's taught me to be successful. It's taught me to be focused on the things that I need to work on and not take any moment for granted. When we were on stage, and they called my name, I looked over at my parents who were in the audience, and they were kind of freaking out, and I thought, 'Oh, it must be real this time.'"

While Miss Calgary is one of the more prestigious titles, Marston has recently won, she has also been awarded the Miss Congeniality award as well.

"It's funny [because] you get into these pageants, and you think that it's going to be cutthroat and girl hating on girls. In reality, I've never had a bigger support system."

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