IN THE MIX BY MIC DIAZ: CHAT WITH MIC
For Irene Formentera, wearing a crown represents more than winning a pageant. Behind it is a story of motherhood, sacrifice, resilience and the decision to keep moving forward even when life does not unfold as planned.
During my Chat With Mic conversation with Irene, she spoke openly about the experiences that shaped her—from growing up on Camotes Island in Cebu and moving to Manila for college to becoming a flight attendant with Qatar Airways. Her journey eventually brought her to the United States, where she took on different jobs as she worked to build a life and support her family.
Motherhood became one of the defining forces in that journey. As the mother of twins, Irene has worked hard to provide for her children while navigating personal challenges, including the painful end of her marriage. Rather than allowing those experiences to define her future, she chose to focus on healing, forgiveness and moving forward.
For Irene, forgiveness does not mean forgetting what happened. It is about finding peace and refusing to remain trapped by the pain of the past. That perspective has become part of the strength she hopes her children see in her—the ability to endure difficult circumstances without losing the capacity to believe in what might still be possible.
At 43, Irene decided to revisit a dream she had carried since childhood: pageantry. She entered Miss Philippines USA Empress, proving to herself that becoming a mother or reaching a certain age did not mean giving up the dreams she once had. She went on to earn the title Empress Tourism 2025.
The crown also gave Irene another opportunity to serve. She has used her platform to give back, including providing school supplies to children in her hometown. Her desire to help others extends into her professional life as well, where her experience in caregiving and residential care has allowed her to offer guidance and support to others entering the field.
Her story challenges the idea that dreams must happen according to a particular timeline. Sometimes life takes people far from the future they originally imagined. Responsibilities change, relationships end and survival can take priority. But a dream postponed does not necessarily have to become a dream abandoned.
For Irene, entering a pageant later in life was not about trying to reclaim the past. It was about recognizing the woman she had become through everything she had experienced—and allowing that woman to pursue something for herself.
Today, the crown is only one part of Irene’s story. What matters more is what came before it: the mother who kept going, the woman who learned to move forward and the belief that there is no expiration date on pursuing a dream.