One of her fondest memories as a young girl was passing by the highway and looking at billboards of women who were all glammed up for the annual competition that is Miss Mandaue.
As an 11-year-old, Ralphiela Lewis dreamed of becoming a beauty queen herself. Well, last month, she became one. And the 18-year-old student, ramp and print model is breaking the mold, doing away with the stereotype beauty of fair-skinned women with silky straight hair, dominating the pageantry.
Ralphiela (Raffy, to her friends) flaunts her black American descent—fine curls, golden brown skin and all.
Growing up, she has faced her fair share of discrimination.
But she learned to fight against it and didn’t fall into the trap of buying whitening skin products, simply because she is but proud of what she is and how she looks.
“If someone comes up to me and has a problem with how I look, I would tell the person to accept who I am, and if not, either look away or not look at
me all. It’s wrong for someone to make fun of you because of how you look. We have to accept and respect each other,” she said.
More to being crowned as the 48th Miss Mandaue, Raffy’s victory was her way of honoring her mother Leonora, who inspired her to join.
Learn more of her story, her game plan to achieve bigger titles how she would do that while pursuing the dream to become a doctor in the future.
How are you after winning Miss Mandaue?
Overwhelmed. It took some time to sink in that I am now Miss Mandaue 2017.
During the casual interview on coronation night, you said that this pageant is for your mother. What do you mean by that?
I remember being a little girl, probably 12 years old.
Driving around Mactan area, we would chance upon tarpaulins of Miss Mandaue candidates.
I’d be all absorbed and my mom would tell me to look at the candidates, check out her bet.
That was kind of how the dream of joining Miss Mandaue started.
My mother has been supportive of my entire Miss Mandaue journey.
Well, not only for Miss Mandaue… she has been supporting me all throughout, whether it’s school or sports, she has
always been there.
That’s why I made sure to acknowledge her during the interview because she encouraged me to join the pageant. I wouldn’t be the
person that I am today without her.
How did you prepare for the pageant?
A month before the screening for Miss Mandaue, I had to stick to a proper diet, and I had to exercise to make sure my body was fit for the screening.
I would research about Miss Mandaue, ask some friends who have already joined the competition, so I would know what to expect. I trained to walk in my heels again.
Did you expect to win the crown?
It was unexpected, but I really prayed for it.
I remember when I was on the stage, I communicated to God… that I am here now and I have done my best and I made sure that everything was perfect. And when I won, I was extremely happy.
Honestly, I was jumping up and down inside… that’s what I wanted to do on stage.
You mentioned that it was your mom’s dream for you to join the pageant. Was it your dream to join Miss Mandaue, too?
Ever since I was a little, I would always watch Binibining Pilipinas, Miss Earth and Miss World.
Through those shows and pageants, I somehow realizated that I wanted to be like those girls, be one of those girls.
It’s also my dream, so when my mom found out about it, I guess it also became her dream. We kind of had that agreement of what we wanted to do.
Why Miss Mandaue?
Miss Mandaue is now the biggest pageant in Cebu. And I saw this as an opportunity.
I did not look at it like I should win the pageant.
But I had to just give my best shot. Before Miss Mandaue, I already joined other pageants. I won one title, and that was Miss Campus Face, a national competition.
That was my first pageant.
And then Miss Cesafi.
I was a muse for Ateneo and I won first runner-up. Miss Mandaue is my third pageant.
So how was your Miss Mandaue experience?
I can say that Miss Mandaue is my favorite pageant of all the three I attended.
This batch of girls, we had that connection.
We did not treat the pageant only as a competition but also as an experience and a way to make new friends. I can say that all the girls are friendly.
We even formed our own group chat though we weren’t told to do so, just to update each other.
Up until now, we are still communicating, keeping in touch with each other. We became really close.
In the pageant world, there are stereotypes of how a candidate should look like, like having fair skin, long straight hair, etc. Being morena, how was it for you so far?
I didn’t feel discriminated against because I wasn’t as fair or anything like that.
I made sure people understand that not everyone has fair skin and beautiful straight blond hair.
If you have a dream that you want to achieve, it doesn’t matter what you look like, what your race is, as long as you believe in yourself and try
hard to achieve the dream.
Was there any hesitation to join the pageant?
Yes, there was a bit of hesitation because people would say that Miss Mandaue is a big pageant, the girls
may be intimidating, and you wouldn’t know if you’ll jell in that batch.
I was kind of scared at first. But my friends and family really encouraged me so I took the risk and joined.
How did you juggle the activities and school work?
I was fortunate that I did not have school on summer and I kind of felt bad for the others because they had problems with their schedules and
practices.
Since I also work as a part-time model, I told my manager not to schedule any event for me during the pageant because I wanted to focus.
How do you pronounce your name?
It’s Ralph-i-ye-la. I have this problem. Many people have difficulty saying my name so I just tell them to call me Raffy.
Ralph is my dad’s name, and then Ella.
Who is Ralphiela when she’s with friends?
If you don’t know me you might think I’m a shy and intimidating person. But then when I am with friends and family, you’ll see that I’m the loudest one, the risk-taker, always telling them to do things and to have fun.
But it’s a different thing when I am with people I don’t know.
I make sure to act in a respectable manner.
Why would you consider yourself as a risk-taker among your friends?
I have different group of friends, from school and from the agency.
The friends that I have in school are shy, the typical conservative Filipina, unlike my friends in the USA.
So I would always be the one convincing them to visit new places or we’d go island hopping.
What are your plans this year?
Since I’m graduating next year, I will be focused on school to get high grades and higher GPA.
I will take up medicine right after in the Philippines. I want to pursue my studies here because I like the Filipino culture, friendly people.
How often do you go to the States?
I have been here for three years.
But before that, I lived in the US for four years and would often come here for vacation and summer.
It was only then when we decided to stay here for good.
After Miss Mandaue, are you planning to join more pageants?
I want to join pageants that are bigger than the previous ones I’ve joined.
That’s why I’m planning to join national pageants in the next two years.
I will prepare myself for these.
As the reigning Miss Mandaue, what are your plans?
Before Miss Mandaue I would not really go around the city, but because of all the events that I had to attend, I became more familiar with the city and some areas in Cebu.
Also, it has always been my advocacy to fight racism and discrimination.
Having experienced this, I really would like to fight for those who are bullied, or criticized for the
color of their skin or their race.
This issue we are experiencing is serious and very real, especially to young girls who are insecure about their looks.
In Filipino standards, to a large extent you are considered beautiful if you have fair skin, long straight hair.
This image is instilled in the minds of little girls.
I want to tell people that it is okay to be different, to be comfortable in your own skin, size, shape.
Don’t be afraid to show who you are. You don’t have to change to please others.
I have experienced that simply walking into stores.
If you want to achieve that color, that is fine, but for me I’m totally happy with how Ilook.
It’s difficult to find lotions and soaps that don’t have whitening ingredients on them.
How do you deal with racism or discrimination?
When I was a little, I went to school here and other little girls would laugh at me because I’ve got curly hair and I am like darker than them.
There came a point where I would cry and run to my mom telling her that I want to rebond my hair.
But she sat down with me and said that I dont have to change my hair or anything about myself. My curly hair makes me stand out in a crowd. I don’t have to try too hard to make people notice me.
You mentioned about your plans—graduating
high school and pursuing medicine. How do you see yourself in the pageantry, like what would be the last competition you will join?
If God would grant me to become Miss Universe, then I would say that it would be my last pageant.
Prior to that, there are things that I have to go through before I reach that kind of level.
But for sure, it’s Binibining Pilipinas.
And if they decide that I am fit to compete internationally then I would be so happy to represent the country.
Are you open to surgical
enhancements if your handler demands that you to undergo them?
For now, I would say that I am happy with how I look.
But if they would tell me that I have to do it and change a certain part of my body, then I really need to think about it. I don’t know.
Maybe I’m scared and don’t want to go that far.
Who are the beauty queens that you look up to?
I have a lot. Of course number one is Pia Wurtzbach, and then Megan Young, and recently crowned Miss USA Kára McCullough.
I really look up to her because she maintained her curly hair during the Miss USA pageant.
Having dual citizenship, if you’re asked which country you’d like to represent, what would you choose?
I would choose to represent the Philippines.
It doesn’t matter if I am half-American. I want to make my home country proud and bring more praise and glory to the Philippines.
What do you do during your free time?
It depends on my mood. Like for now, if I have free time I would be sleeping, or going to the beach and swimming. Or I just hang out with friends. I don’t really do much.
I am like a boring person. Sometimes, I go to work for my modeling gigs.
In terms of modeling, are you more comfortable on the ramp or in print?
I just started modeling recently but I am comfortable with anything, fashion shows and photo shoots.
But I think I love fashion shows more because I get to wear the most beautiful creations of designers.
Photo shoots for ad campaigns takes longer.
Recently I did a shoot for Corolanda, an international jewelry company and they said my photos are in France na. So I’m really happy.
What is your favorite go-to place in Cebu?
It’s Moalboal.
My mom is from Alcantara and its near the town.
We would go island hopping and see how we are really blessed with so many beautiful sights.
I used to be afraid of fishes but our frequent trips to the beach changed all that.
How were you able to maintain your Cebuano tongue?
My mom would teach us Bisaya and she would always have TFC so we would watch teleseryes, which is the reason why I learned Tagalog.
What is your favorite teleserye?
It’s an old teleserye titled “Walang Hanggan” with Coco Martin.
That was a good one, I never missed an episode.
Who are your favorite Filipino actors?
Coco Martin, Enrique Gil, Liza Soberano, Angelica Panganiban and John Lloyd Cruz, and of course, Bea Alonzo.
What talent did you present for Miss Mandaue?
I read a poem that I wrote about the country and world peace.
What do you think made you win?
I believed in myself and pursued the dream despite the so-called early favorites where some candidates were winning minor awards.
I kept my focus, was not discouraged and worked harder.
Being the eldest of four siblings, what kind of a sister are you?
I’m pretty laid-back and fair.
I treat them with respect to make sure that they also respect me back.
I am strict in a way for them to respect me back.
What is your message to girls who want to join pageants but are not really comfortable in their own skin or insecure about how they look?
Don’t hold back. Go for it. Accept yourself.
Believe in the dream and work hard for it.
There is no limit to what you can do.
