Miss Universe Canada 2015 Is Latina! 10 Things To Know About Dominican Paola Núñez Valdez

A new queen has been elected to represent her country in the upcoming Miss Universe beauty pageant. Her name is Paola Núñez Valdez and she's been crowned as the 2015 Miss Canada. Her win is not only of great pride for Canadians, but for Latinos also! You see, the beautiful Paola, 24, was born in Dominican Republic and immigrated with her mother to Canada at the age of 10, where she currently resides.

Growing up in Canada, however, was not easy for the newly-crowned beauty queen. Valdez recalls a dark moment in her childhood when she was bullied in elementary school for not knowing the language and for looking different. "I didn't understand why I was being bullied because I thought I was normal," she told The Toronto Sun.

As she got older, Valdez learned how to cope with bullying and is now the first woman of Latin heritage to be named Miss Universe Canada. "I've been waiting all my life for this. Thank you Lord, I owe it all to you!," she expressed on her Instagram account. "I cannot wait to represent Canada at the Miss Universe pageant 2015 and make you all proud."

Indeed, we couldn't be any prouder of the gorgeous Latina! Here are 10 things to know about Miss Canada Universe 2015.

1. Paola comes from a large family of musicians and performers. She was no exception, and began dancing at age 6 and doing television at age 7.
2. In fact, dancing is one of her biggest passions in life.
3. Aside from her parents, Paola says her grandmother has had the strongest influence on her.
4. Her ambition is to be a successful entrepreneur and own a prosperous restaurant.
5. Her "dream job," however, is to work in the media and entertainment industry.
6. She's currently a student at Humber College, who is studying Business-Accounting.
7. Her favorite time of the year in Santo Domingo was Christmas because she'd have a big traditional Dominican dinner, play games and dance the night away with her family.
8. She's had all types of jobs, including: newspaper delivery, TV commercials, TV co-host, promotional modeling, fashion modeling, salsa and hip-hop instructor, sweet sixteen choreoprapher and coordinator.
9. She claims that she doesn't know how to cook, yet can prepare a delicious meal in no time.
10. In ten years she hopes to have a family, be financially stabled and running her own business.