UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH-HUMBER
UofGH alumna named Miss Universe Canada finalist

Those who know her now might find it hard to believe, but University of Guelph-Humber alumna Carmelle Martinez once suffered from stage fright.

When she originally arrived at UofGH, the Class of 2018 Business graduate remembers how terrified she was of speaking in front of an audience.

"I remember I had stage fright up until I had to present in front of our Marketing class in my first year," Martinez said. "I had a lot of fears when I first started, but I got to meet so many incredibly smart and dedicated individuals, who motivated me to get out of my comfort zone and conquer those fears.

"It seemed so overwhelming in the beginning, but I found the support that I needed from different campus initiatives that helped me overcome those fears. Fast forward to my last year at UofGH, I participated in numerous case competition events, where I had to present in front of various executive members from large organizations.

"My fear of presenting would have inhibited me from receiving the awards that I got from those competitions, but UofGH supported me throughout my years as an undergraduate student, and that has helped me attain so many achievements."

Martinez could not have dreamed then just how far she would ultimately push outside her comfort zone.

Now, Martinez - who works full-time as an Audit and Tax Reporting (ATR) Professional at Deloitte Canada's London, Ont., office - will appear on a grander stage than she could have imagined when she competes as a finalist in the Miss Universe Canada competition in August.

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