Celeste Cortesi shares she worked as a cashier: ‘I’m proud of it’

Prior to becoming Miss Universe Philippines 2022, Celeste Cortesi shared she worked as a cashier.

In a YouTube vlog, the Filipina-Italian beauty queen revealed her reasons for not going to college — one of which was the story behind her previous job. 

“First reason (is) I did not know what I wanted to do at that point in my life so it’s like, ‘why would I go to college if I don’t know what I wanna be when I’m an adult?’”

“Another reason why is because I wanted to help my mom in paying rent and everything so I had to find a job. At the time, I was modeling. I also worked as a cashier in a shop,” she added.

Asked if she was ashamed of her past, Celeste said she did at one point in her life.

“There was a time [when] I was kinda embarrassed, didn’t really wanna show that side of me to others.”

Celeste said she’s come to realize how important it was to acknowledge it “especially with the title that I have to show people the real me so they can relate to me.”

“It’s really important because you should never deny your past and be shy of what you’ve been through because it’s what made you who you are right now. I’m proud of it. I really wanna show where I came from.”

The Miss Universe Philippines 2022 is now taking up a course to get her real estate license.

She won the crown in 2022. She is set to represent the country in the 71st international pageant. —Franchesca Viernes/KG, GMA News