Prescription for success

CEBU, Philippines - This former model and now practicing doctor had placed in all the beauty tilts she’d joined as a single woman. Three kids after, she proves her charm hasn’t waned a bit by winning her first pageant for moms and married ladies.

Stephanie A. Tiro-Sitoy, a 43-year-old pediatrician from Cebu City,  now hopes to bring home to the Philippines its first-ever Mrs. Globe crown, the finals of which will be held in Schenzhen, China this Nov. 27-Dec. 7. She earned the right to represent the country after being chosen Mrs. Philippines Globe last May 17 among a bevy of 22 other beautiful and accomplished moms and wives.

Dr. Stephanie was a Supermodel 1992 regional winner who was supposed to represent Region 7 in Manila but was kept back by medical school. She then joined Miss Cebu Tourism in 1993, placing second runner-up. In 1994, she was crowned Miss Glamour Girl; 1995, she was Division C Miss Toastmasters. “I was also invited to join Mutya ng Pilipinas and Binibining Pilipinas, but that time, I was already focused on my medical studies,” relates Dr. Stephanie, who studied BS Medical Technology in Velez College, then took up Medicine at the Cebu Institute of Medicine.

Shares the beauty queen on why she chose a career as a pediatrician: “My first dream was to actually become a lawyer. I wanted to take up Political Science, but my dad wanted me to take up Commerce. Humility aside, I love numbers and I would always get exempted in Math-related subjects. I would get flat 1 in Bio-Chem, for instance. I love challenges, so taking up a course that will tackle lots of numbers was no longer a challenge for me. I took up Medicine instead.  I love kids, that’s why I chose to be a pediatrician. Spending time and playing with young patients also makes me feel young. It fits my personality because I always have a happy disposition.”

Married to neurologist Dr. Apollo Sitoy, Dr. Stephanie thought her pageant days were naturally over after she got hitched.  “I was and am very happy with my family life. Then I suddenly got big. I love to eat! And I didn’t care about gaining weight, because I still felt sexy with all the love from my husband and my family. It was when Mrs. Philippines Globe was coming over to screen candidates from Cebu that I was motivated to slim down.”

Upon the prodding of a friend and makeup artist Romero Vergara, Dr. Stephanie flirted with the idea of  joining Mrs. Philippines Globe last year. The pre-pageant activities clashed with her work trips and medical conventions, and so she decided it was not her year. She wanted to give it her hundred percent, and conflicts in her schedule simply wouldn’t cut it.

“This year, during the Miss Cebu pageant night where there was a reunion of past winners, Danny Booc was there and he convinced me to give it a try. When I got the application form and looked at the pageant’s schedule of events, everything fit into my work schedule as well. So it was like everything fell into place,” she continued.

Seeing her fellow candidates who seemed all confident with their pageant-ready bodies during the initial orientation motivated her all the more to double up on her slim-down efforts. Boxing, zumba, a rigorous diet – and basically a daily trek to the gym became her religious routine beginning March until the early weeks of May.

The efforts paid off for Dr. Stephanie was back to her model form come coronation night. “After the initial orientation and pictorial for our official magazine, I went back to Cebu to go on with my life as a doctor. They would call us every now and then for activities in Manila. When I would return to Manila, they would notice the changes in my body and comment how I’ve slimmed down,” she shared.

Dr. Stephanie attests how a pageant for married women is bereft of the backstage drama common in tilts for single females. It’s all really friendly competition and sincere sisterhood, she says. “I got to click right away with my fellow candidates, because one thing about me is, I’m a friendly person. We really enjoyed each other’s company. We really bonded, and we would miss each other. We don’t see each other as competition. Some of them even call me at 4 a.m. for a consultation. It was so fun and everyone was just great!”

Asked during the pageant’s final Q&A what differentiated her from other women, Dr. Stephanie pointed out that her uniqueness comes from her experiences, values and the principles “which have made me the person that I am today and which will also help me in my future endeavors.’”

“I guess what made me stand out and win was my sincerity. I was just having fun. Even the press – they messaged me on Facebook – they said I wasn’t trying to impress the judges. They said I was just being myself,” says Dr. Stephanie, who was also awarded Career Woman of the Year.

She led a circle of winners who are former national pageant placers and career achievers in their own right.  Named as Woman of Substance was Janice Alop-Trillo, 36, a real estate businesswoman, who was also Mutya ng Pilipinas fourth runner-up in 2001. First runner-up was Sonia Santiago-Mendoza, 42, a public servant from Amadeo, Cavite. The tallest candidate at 5’10”, Mendoza, who was Bb. Pilipinas 1996 second runner-up and Miss Model of the World 1994 top 10 finalist, was also named Best in Talent.

Second runner-up was Aileen Jane Bactol Cavas, 30, a speech and language pathologist and single mom from Bacoor, Cavite. The former Miss Global Queen Philippines (2003), also won the Supermodel Mom award. Third runner-up was Eizza Lim-De Baron, 30, an Ateneo de Manila University graduate. Eizza, who was Mutya ng Pilipinas-Tourism International in 2004, also won the Mrs. Body Beautiful award.

“My colleagues and my patients are also very supportive, especially after I told them the advocacy of Mrs. Globe [strongly affiliated with The Women In Need Foundation, which aims to help abused women and children recover their self-esteem]. My doctor-friends in Cebu already know that I used to join pageants, so they weren’t that surprised. Most of my med-reps and patients know about my Miss Cebu Tourism days,” says Dr. Stephanie. Aside from Cebu-based designers and makeup artists, she says one of those who helped her prepare, albeit briefly, were Bb. Pilipinas International 2014 Bianca Guidotti and Aces and Queens fitness trainer John Jay Cuay.

She’s relishing her victory at the moment, as she spends time back home with family and returns to care for her dear patients. But the rest won’t be long, for the international stage come November will be a different ballgame. She says, “I’ll be listening to my mentors, especially Ms. Carla [Mrs. Philippines Globe national pageant director Morena Carla Cabrera-Quimpo], since she’s been through that. I have to take care of my body and improve personality-wise. I also need to work on my walk.”

As a woman who’s gone through trials, Dr. Stephanie has learned by now how to turn adversity into life lessons. Her China journey will simply be another challenge accepted.  “One thing about me, I try to have a good relationship with other people and with God. There are people who would really hurt us. Sometimes, it hurts you when your expectations of other people aren’t met. But I always look at the positive side of things, that probably there is a good reason why certain things happen. I don’t hold grudges. Out of six pregnancies, I had three miscarriages. So that was something really hard for me and my husband. We left it all up to God. I take all trials as blessings. I always pray that whatever trials come, I may be able to carry on.”

How has her husband been taking this new chapter in her life? “He’s a stage husband!,” she exclaimed quickly. “Even last year, he was prodding me to join. He’s really the wind beneath my wings. He’s always there for me, supporting me all throughout. Now, he’s the one reminding me to go to sleep early so I won’t have eyebags. He knows and understands how it is in pageants, so he has no problem with me wearing a revealing outfit on stage.”

Drs. Stephanie and Apollo are proud parents to Joaquin Lorenzo, 11; Liliana Maria Margarita, 8 (“because I’m a Marian devotee, so I wanted the name Maria”); Irina Maria Sophia, 5.

They’ve been together for 12 years and counting, but the lovely doctor still gushes like a blushing teenager when speaking of her hubby’s attributes. “My husband has always seen me as a queen. I can feel that then and now. It’s just that now, he has become more concerned how I will look like to the public. I can really feel that he loves me a lot. He brings out the best in me. The people who knows him would tell me that they can see how much my husband loves me – the way he talks about me when I’m not around, and the way he looks at me. For him, I am a queen, even without the crown.”