Gloria’s Story and personality inspired us, and it needs to be heard, it might inspire  you, other tousands and even millions of people. 

On July 6 2022 Gloria Celina (28) became the Face of Melanin Wonder, her coronation took place on the 18th of September 2022 at EFE Venue in Amsterdam. Melanin Wonder has been electing the Face of the brand since 2018, a Melanin Wonder is a spokesperson and ambassador for Gen-Z all the way to Gen-X, they are most likeley part of the melanated community and want to help and inspire their peers and outsiders with their story and talents.

Gloria Celina receiving her Sash from Stephanie – Photo by @sethshotit

A Melanin Wonder is someone who is inspiring, talented, kind, hard working, ambitous, a trailblazer and influencial in their own way. They are the ones to show the world dreams can come true and great things are possible for you, despite of your background or color of your skin. And that you should embrace who you are and use this to your advantage, but always with a sense of goodwill for others and a strong sense of purpose.

Fabian Willems with Gloria Celina and her prize – Photo by @sethshotit

Gloria’s stood out for us, which made her the winner of this years’ competition. Not only did she show us consistency, humbleness, beauty and grace. But she also showed us the power of collaboration and a growth mindset since the from day one. But after getting to know her a little bit more, this comes as no suprise,

I want to start the conversation about how drastically my life has changed in a positive way and exactly how that happened – Gloria Payne

“Behind the strong woman I am today, there is a special story. I have an intense background where my father died when I was 8 and I was very insecure because of that, I missed out on a lot of male/paternal love. That caused me to end up in a toxic relationship, I just sank deeper into a black hole where I dealth with domestic violence. All the people in my surroundings were in shock because I always was the person that could stand my ground, therefore this came as a suprise to everyone. But there were also a lot of questions… Like how did I let this happen and how did I get out of this.”

Gloria Celina – Photo by @Shotbydashenko

“I am now a mother, happy and married. I was also recently chosen to be the face of a magazine called Melanin wonder official. And to this day I encourage women with my story. “

“I grew from an insecure girl who was in a toxic relationship to starting my own family. I want to show the world that anyone can make a change in their life. To achieve this, sometimes you just need a little help, in the form of a motivator or example. Motivating others is what drives me. I consider myself a go-getter, which simply means I keep going until I achieve my goals, such as becoming the face of Melanin Wonder Official, and so much more.”

Gloria Celina on the red carpet. Photo by @shotydashenko

“My goal is to encourage others that even in 2022 it is possible to reach the place where you belong. And that you can use that place to be an inspiration to others daily. My story may touch 1,000 people and someone else’s might pass is on which will eventually reach 50,000 and so on. In doing so, we encourage thousands together. Your experiences are invaluable. Sharing them can encourage others or hold up a mirror to encourage them to do things differently and above all to believe that they can be done differently.”

Want to know the full story with more details, then keep an eye out for the first edition of the Melanin Wonder Magazine of 2023, then subscribe to us via the website to have a chance to grab one of the first copies once it’s out!

Gloria Celina (28) is the Face of Melanin Wonder 2022! Melanin Wonder is ecstatically happy to welcome this Surinamese beauty as the next Face of the Brand. Gloria is an influencer based in Almere, a wife, mother, a lady of faith and someone with an inspiring story which will move the public.

The story of Gloria Celina

“My name is Gloria Celina and I want to become the Next Face of Melanin Wonder, because I have a story that can lift up somebody’s hope in life. I went through alot, there was a time in my life where I found myself ugly, because of the fact that I have been through alot in the past.”

“Each time I was looking in the mirror I was asking myself why I was so ugly. After the many tears I cried in my room I decided to prove life that I wasn’t who they said I was. I promised myself that I would be a testimony and a motivation for the people that  felt the way I did or feel like they can’t manifest who they really are.”

“I want to inspire people with the fact that as long as you believe in yourself you can become everything you want in life!” – Gloria Celina

“Now I’m working as an influencer and I’m not just influencing with fashion but my influence reaches broken women that look down on themselves.”

Her journey towards the title

Gloria is a lady that describes herself as kind and loving and a person that is a go-getter, in other words she doesn’t stop until she gets what she want. In the running to the finals she really showed how tenacious and loving she is, she has a big community supporting her in her dreams and this can’t be just coincidence but rather a wonderful supporting system that reciprocate back the love she gives to others.

Below some footage of her campaign vying for online votes and support in the City Centre of Almere.

Photo: Shot by Dashenko

Let us introduce you to our newest writers behind the scenes!

Manou Cristal (@sir.manou) professional athlete turned into a content creator and blogger. From professional basketball playing to displaying his creativity into the digital world. The 29-year old Christal Malalu is now looking forward to showing his creativity in the digital world. Keep an eye on the website for some athletic and creative content and articles from sir Manou.

Michelle Amo (@michelleamo_) is a ray of sunshine with a personality as colourful as her fashion. She has been featured on Elle Netherlands, Flaire Belgique and NL Vogue promoting her views on sustainable fashion with style. If you need a dose of colour, happy feet and circular fashion inspiration, then you should surely keep an eye on Michelle’s content and articles.

Temitope Oluwatobi (@duchess_teymi) the lady of soul! Temi is a Dublin based Freelance Journalist from Lagos, Nigeria. After she graduated with an honours degree in Masters of Media and Communication (2021) she decided she is ready to conquer the world with her golden pen, telling you compelling stories about love, mental health and social injustice.

Ayesha Noelle (@ayeshanoelle) is a mindset and business coach, who specializes in imposter syndrome. She mainly helps female online entrepreneurs achieve their business goals & overcome imposter syndrome by implementing science-based strategies. Her background is in Applied Psychology and she appeared as a guest expert on multiple media platforms.

Tiesha Olive (@bnaturalcurls) Latiesha was constantly getting questions about her hair. Not just from women but men too. So she decided to make a channel to educate on the proper way to care for natural hair. She went to school for cosmetology to be able to educate others better and graduated with Honors in September 2018. Latiesha vlogs and blogs about beauty, lifestyle, fashion, hair products and her faith.

Stephane-Thierry Ngali was born in France and has been from an early age exposed to the diversity of the world and the value of traditions as the anchor of a nation’s spirit. Together with his father, Stephane-Thierry travelled across 13 African countries where he had the privilege to understand and experience the intrinsic value of the African approach to life’s tenet. Graduated in international business & finance, Stephane had the opportunity to acquire in-depth knowledge in global finance and European wealth systems. He lives in Amsterdam and works for a cloud provider as a strategic business development manager.

Danitzah Jacobs (@danitzahjacobs) is a mother of three beautiful children. Besides being a womanist and a feminist she is also an entrepreneur. Over the years she has accumulated loads of knowledge on various topics such as Afro Caribbean & Latin cultures, African spirituality & Money Confidence. She is currently developing a ready meals food line for her company Danitzah’s Afro Caribbean Kitchen but is also ready to launch a new fashion concept from Ghana.

STAY TUNED AND ENJOY THE TO BE POSTED ARTICLES!

RiRi Rihanna honoured for her ‘extraordinary commitment’ to Caribbean island as it makes a historic political transition.

The singer was honored Monday in her native Barbados during its presidential inauguration, which served to mark the country becoming a republic. Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Mottley told the crowd: “May you continue to shine like a diamond and bring honor to your nation by your works, by your actions and to do credit wherever you shall go”.

Barbados formally cut ties with the British monarchy by becoming a republic almost 400 years after the first English ship arrived on the most easterly of the Caribbean islands.

@badgalriri