Valerianne Hinkley of Wilton is Miss World Ambassador 2022. Submitted photo

WILTON — On July 30 The World Ambassador Competition hosted its inaugural ceremony at Innisbrook Resort in Palm Harbor, Florida. Four women were crowned World Ambassador in four separate divisions. Wilton native Valerianne Hinkley, 20, took the title of Miss World Ambassador 2022.

Hinkley, who has held numerous titles in both state and national competitions since 2018, chose to participate in the Miss World Ambassador Competition for numerous reasons. According to Hinkley, The World Ambassador Competition “brings a life I have been living of Pageantry since 2017 together with a passion of modeling and social media influencing” which she considers to be “the best of both worlds.”

The World Ambassador Competition was founded in 2010 by Kristin Thurston, who is also executive owner and national director of the USA Ambassador Competition. The World Ambassador Competition mission statement is to highlight its competitors as leaders, models, and social media influencers.

When speaking of Thurston, Hinkley considers her to be a role model, saying “her personality, compassion, vision and passion for life has made an impact on my life.”

Prior to being crowned Miss Ambassador 2022, Hinkley also held titles for the USA Ambassador Teen 2021 National Queen as well as SLICC [Success through Leadership, Integrity, Charisma and Confidence] Ambassador – Jr. Teen, Teen, Miss Divisions 2021 National Queen.

As the 2022 crown holder Hinkley has taken this opportunity to spend the year travelling and participating in runway events such as the upcoming Couture la Rouge, LLC first anniversary fashion show in Louisiana, Mississippi, in February 2023. This hasn’t detracted from her studies as she is currently a junior at the University of Maine at Farmington, majoring in elementary education.

On top of that, she is also using the platform of pageantry to bring attention to her anti-bullying campaign. Hinkley explains that pageantry helped her deal with bullying in the past and she wants to use it to help others. According to Hinkley, “pageantry would build my self confidence and help me find my voice to no longer be afraid to call out both peer and adult bullies.”

More information on bullying can be found at beboldstanduptobullying.com.