‘I feel lucky to be Filipino’: Miss Universe 2022 R’Bonney Gabriel rocks Terno at Miss Universe Philippines Gala Night
MANILA, Philippines — Miss Universe 2022 R’Bonney Gabriel walked with great pride, gliding on the red carpet in her Terno made by Filipino designer Mark Bumgarner, as she made a grand entrance at the Miss Universe Philippines (MUPH) Fashion and Charity Gala Night ballroom in Okada Manila last Wednesday.
“Magandang gabi po sa inyong lahat! I am so very happy to be here,” she opened her speech.
“I actually arrived a few hours ago. People were asking me if I was tired. I’m not tired because I’m so excited to be in the Philippines and I’ve been waiting to come to this beautiful country!”
According to her, it has been five years since she last visited the country.
“I had so many memories of visiting my father’s country, growing up as a child. This is one of my most favorite places to visit because the Filipino people are so hospitable! They are so welcoming, they are so charming, so funny, have the best food, but most of all, the best hearts. So I feel very blessed. Thank you so much for welcoming me here.”
In her speech, she emphasized how lucky she is to be half-Filipino. She is the first Miss USA with a Filipino descent.
“I am half Filipina, half American. I feel quite lucky to be Filipino because I would say you’re one of the best countries that compete and one of the best countries that I would say put our all into pageants. The Filipino people have given me so much support as I trained for Miss Texas, as I trained for Miss USA and for Miss USA. And so I would like to thank you for the love and support.”
She confessed that MUPH is among the pageants that motivated her to train hard.
“I remember watching Miss Philippines (MUPH) last year and I thought, ‘Wow, the competition is so amazing!’ Production was so inspiring. The level of women that compete was top-tiered. I remembered, I haven’t even won a pageant yet, but I felt so inspired to watch that competition that it gave me a little extra motivation as I trained for my little pageant back home in Texas,” she recalled.
“I would like to thank everybody for the continued inspiration. Not long ago, I was competing, and I some girls here have been competing for some time now, a few months, I’ve been seeing you on social media. I can tell that there’s so much hard work that goes into this and I just want to commend all the girls who put themselves out there.”
Similarly, she encouraged others to also try joining pageants.
“Pageantry has changed my life like no other. That really pushed me to be the highest truest form of myself and I know all these girls have their own unique journey.”
She thanked the new Miss Universe owner, JKN Global, and MUPH franchise owner, Empire Philippines, “for continuing to elevate me and all the other women that come across this stage.”
“You’re a part of the beautiful journey that helps us move forward,” she said.
According to her, she has about a week in the country to explore and to bond with more Kababayans.
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