A Boholana beauty in the world stage!

This was the news that greeted Boholanos Friday when they read in the front page of the Philippine Daily Inquirer that one of three women vying for the Miss World title in London has its roots in Bohol. Losing no time , the Post scoured possible sources online notably Facebook of the woman mentioned in the PDI caption story. The search was not in vain when the paper located the Facebook account of Maya Celeste Padillo Olesen which in all its splendor posted the lady’s pictures and biography. Miss Olesen won the Miss Denmark title giving her the right to represent the country of her father in the Miss World competition. Olesen, born to a Dutch father, is one of the three beauty titlists with Filipina ancestries. The other two who are also competing for the Miss World contest in London today are French Filipina Gwendoline Ruias and Riza Santos of Canada who was born to Filipino parents.

Although the caption only mentioned about Bohol as the place of Olesen’s mother, the Post tried to establish other possible contacts to verify the exact hometown of the mother, the former Elizabeth Padillo. In the ensuing verification, the Post was led to a first degree cousin of Ms. Olesen, Eja Grace Padillo, an instructress of STI Colleges, in this city, handling IT subjects. From Ms. Padillo, the Post learned that the family hails from Hingotanan Island, B-Unido, The Bohol contact, except for some sketchy details about Miss Olesen’s mother, said, what she knew of her auntie (Olesen’s mother) was that she went to England as a missionary . It was there that she met her future husband. Asked if she remembered having met the Dutch-Filipina head turner in their hometown, the cousin recalled that when she was three years old her parents went home to Hingotanan for a short visit.

In her biography, the Denmark-Boholana did admit that their parents met each other in England.

Her own account continued : “They slowly developed a sweet romance through their passion for music. My father taught my mother how to play the guitar. This was the beginning of a relationship that stretched across the world. My father is from Denmark and my mother is from the Philippines. After a year, they decided to get married: the start of an adventure as a couple. They travelled to many countries via their work as missionaries. It was their mission to spread the message of God’s love and to help people who were less fortunate. After 6 years of marriage, followed by the birth of their two girls, they got me as their third child.

The 24th of August 1991 was the day I was born. Conceived in Nepal, born in the Philippines and raised in Denmark, I’ve always presented myself with my awkward slogan; “Conceived in Himalaya, my name is Maya”. But there is a deeper meaning to my name. Maya means love in Nepali language and it means a songbird in the Philippines. My middle name, Celeste, comes from my grandfather, Celestino. He died long before I was born, like my grandfather, Andreas, whom my younger brother is named after. We are 4 children with 2 years gap between us all; all conceived and born abroad, and all raised in Denmark. I love my siblings and don’t know what to do without them. They are my best friends, my honest critics and my funniest companions. We always have each other for support and to learn from. I have never for a moment felt alone in my childhood.”