Canadian veteran first to compete in Mrs. Universe pageant

In less than a year, an Alberta woman has gone from gracing the stage at her first pageant to competing at the Mrs. Universe pageant in South Korea. She’s making history by becoming the first Canadian veteran to compete internationally.

Following her father’s footsteps, Giselle Drew Walsh joined the Canadian military, serving as an infantry soldier for 16 years. Once she retired, Walsh dedicated her time to advocacy and spreading awareness about PTSD that soldiers face when they return from duty.

“We have lost more soldiers to suicide since the time of Canada’s participation in the war in Afghanistan than the soldiers that unfortunately lost their lives while there,” said Walsh.

“I’ve seen firsthand what post-traumatic stress disorder can do to somebody who’s struggling and doesn’t have adequate resources.”

For about a decade, Walsh has spoken on multiple stages and on podcasts spreading awareness and education about PTSD soldiers’ experience, the issues the families of soldiers face and domestic violence, but the pageantry platform is still quite new.

“I thought this might be a really unique way to get in front of a new crowd of people that may be unaware of the issues that are going on,” she said.

Her message seems to have resonated with the pageant world and set her apart. Walsh won the Mrs. Canada pageant, which qualified her for Mrs. Universe. The organization is committed to raising awareness about domestic violence.

As part of her advocacy work, Walsh also serves on the boards of several non-profit organizations, including the Canadian Institute of Military and Veteran Health Research (CIMVHR). The organization has been around for 14 years and “has built a network of 46 Canadian universities who have agreed to work together to address the health research requirements of the Canadian military.”

Paul Hook, the managing director of CIMVHR, says a lot of tools and resources have been put in place for returning soldiers, but it’s not enough.

“The statistics now are somewhere around 15 to 17 per cent of people that go to war or deployed on operations in the Canadian Armed Forces end up with mental health issues,” said Hook.

CIMVHR has its own journal, and a recent report shows that “significant delays in treatment initiation are problematic for the military population” and that “only 20.6 per cent of Canadian Armed Forces Veterans released after 2015 have received treatment for combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).”

Hook says this important subject seems to have been put on the “backburner when Canada left Afghanistan”.

“We still have thousands of troops deployed in places like Latvia and in the Middle East, but the public has moved on to new topics,” said Hook.

“I think by having someone like Giselle doing pageantry, hitting a new audience, being the first veteran that won a national competition, and having a train made out of handmade poppies, I think that’s just going to spark a new conversation.”

As part of the competition, Walsh will be wearing a unique National costume that honours the country’s military history and veterans.

“I’ve got poppies that have been handmade by veterans across Canada, and it’s sewn onto the gown,” said Walsh.

The Mrs. Universe Pageant goes from October 2 – 10.

As for what’s next after the competition, Walsh says she’s only getting started.

“I just want to do more, and I just want to raise my voice louder because people who are in positions to make changes, I need to talk and get their attention so that we can make some positive changes.”