2 Edmonton women among competitors at Miss Indigenous Canada pageant

Pair competes in Miss Indigenous Canada pageant Two Edmonton women take part in an Indigenous pageant that goes beyond beauty to focus on leadership and culture. Nahreman Issa has more.

Edmonton will be well represented at this year's Miss Indigenous Canada pageant in Ontario this weekend.

Meghan Breen heard about the pageant from her aunt and decided to apply.

"I thought it would be a great learning experience," said Breen, not expecting she'd be accepted as a contestant.

"I was super excited. I called my mom right away and we're all so happy," Breen said.

"My family is really supportive and I've had a lot of support from my community and everyone so it's been really great," she added.

She's up against 25 contestants including another Edmonton woman, Mya McDowell.

"I have no pageant experience and I didn't really anticipate being selected," said McDowell.

"I say that in the most humble way possible, it's obviously a huge honour," she added.

The pageant is open to First Nations, Métis and Inuit women between the ages of 18-30 with a verifiable community affiliation.

Breen was born and raised in Alberta but is a member of Deh Gah Got'ie Dene First Nation in Fort Providence, NWT.

"I've always maintained a close connection with them and have always followed their teachings from my grandparents," she said.

She moved to Edmonton to attend the University of Alberta.

McDowell is from Bushe River, one of three communities in the Dene Tha' First Nation near High Level. She also moved to the city for school and recently became a registered nurse.

Miss Indigenous Canada is not a beauty pageant but rather focuses on things like character, community service and cultural involvement.

Contestants are assessed in four categories: an interview, personal essay, traditional presentation and community presentation.

Pageant weekend is a retreat-style event with workshops, tours, guest speakers and other activities.

"I like what this pageant stands for in terms of a lot of internal work and a lot of advocacy, leadership, culture and kind of those more vulnerable topics rather than an external factor," said McDowell.

During the final show, contestants with the highest scores will go on to be judged in a final question competition to determine a winner.

"An Indigenous ambassador means to me showing authenticity and really embracing my heritage and who I am. I want to express that to any other Indigenous youth who want to be a leader," said Breen.

Breen often thinks of her ancestors who endured traumas such as residential schools.

"Their strength is what brought me to here today," said Breen, adding "I just want to embody that strength and resilience that they showed."

"I really want to honour that idea of representing your nation fully," said McDowell.

She's been working with an elder in preparation for the final pageant.

"Being a leader is admitting you need to be led," McDowell said.

While both women hope to win, both look forward to meeting other like-minded women who want to make a difference in their communities.

"But also be given the experiences to learn more knowledge that I can use in my future," said Breen.

Miss Indigenous Canada is being held on Six Nations of the Grand River in Ontario from July 24-27.

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Nahreman Issa