Red Deer’s Elisabella MacKenzie crowned Miss Queen Teen Canada

MacKenzie has taken part in seven pageants since 2024, five of which were with Personality Pageants Canada and two with Pageant Group Canada.

Her first-ever pageant was the 2024 Queen Alberta Pageant, and since then has competed in three international pageants.

She said her mindset going into the competition was to continue to make friends, to be a part of sisterhood, and to have the opportunity to voice her platform.

She said personality pageants are all about who you are as a person, your platform, your advocacy, and what you stand up for in your community.

She said the interview portion was worth 30 per cent, followed by delivering a speech to an audience of judges on why she would be the best candidate for the title. MacKenzie was also judged on her evening gown, her fitness, and fashion. She also had to do a live Q and A once she made the top five.

“Pageants are often stereotyped as beauty competitions and that women who are in them do not have a certain level of intelligence… That’s not entirely true, especially with personality pageants,” she said. “A score on an interview being 30 per cent means that there has to be a certain level of intelligence in order to achieve a high score. They are truly focused on what you do in your community.”

MacKenzie explained that the on-stage portion is more so based on your confidence and ability to have fun on stage rather than beauty.

This has been a trait MacKenzie has developed over the years.

“I have always had social anxiety, and it used to be really bad when I was a kid… Confidence can be difficult in young kids, so for me, I joined Personality Pageants because that year I lost my father to cancer, and also I really struggled with being bullied my whole life,” she said.

“I signed up for my first pageant in 2024, and that started my development and becoming a more confident person.”

Her volunteer work in the community consists of working with charities. In 2024, she launched her platform, Bella’s Literary Warriors, where she advocates for early childhood literacy and education.

As a result, she’s joined programs such as the Red Deer Youth Literacy Program, where she tutors Grade 2 students. She’s also volunteered at the Red Deer Reading College and donated books to the Red Deer Food Bank and the Red Deer Christmas Bureau. She’s also in the process of raising more funds to donate more books to the Food Bank and the local Ronald McDonald House.

“Literacy truly is what I would describe as more than the book in hand. It does affect many aspects of a child’s life growing up, and people don’t tend to realize how much it affects our adult lives, not being able to read,” she said.

“It’s important to empower kids while they’re still young and teach them the right skills and literacy to have a strong foundation and to grow up and be the most successful version of themselves.”

Once she graduates from high school, she wants to be a French immersion kindergarten teacher and a child psychologist.

In the near future, MacKenzie plans to compete in an international competition but is not sure which one yet. If so, it would be her first time on the international stage.

by Ian Gustafson

Red Deer’s Elisabella MacKenzie crowned Miss Queen Teen Canada

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