Nicole Saliny
“If you don’t try, then, you’ll never know.” (Joycelle, Nicole’s grandmother)
Nicole Saliny was crowned Mrs. Minnesota America on June 20th at the Bloomington Theater & Arts Center in Bloomington, Minnesota where she competed with other accomplished, married women from across the state of Minnesota. Nicole also won the Swimsuit, Evening Gown & Best Complexion Award throughout the evening.
Nicole is a native of the beautiful land of 10,000 lakes, Minnesota. She is proud and excited to represent all married women of Minnesota! She was just married this year to the man of her dreams, Morgan Saliny, in the picturesque mountains of Santa Barbara. Nicole and Morgan are both only children and family is extremely important to both of them. They share a great passion for life and giving back to the community. Nicole and Morgan currently reside in the beautiful town of Victoria.
As a young girl, and even now, God and family have always been the strongest part of her life. She was surrounded by such strong women who were amazing role models to her and who put family first. Nicole loved spending time with her grandparents and she would make her own fishing poles to fish with them, take boat cruises, jump on the trampoline for hours, played cards and rode around the yard in go-carts. She grew up in a family business that is focused on building and restoring antique cars. Her first car was a mini Model A Ford that she would ride in for hours! And from there her love and passion for the classic car business has grown. And still to this day, she loves going to car shows with her parents, her husband and their dog.
Nicole grew up as a dancer traveling across the country dancing for professional artists, dance groups and for the NBA as a Minnesota Timberwolves dancer. She started modeling at the age of 8 which has led her to work domestically, and internationally, as a professional model. She lived in LA as well as Japan for modeling and has been fortunate enough to travel the world in pursuit of her dreams. Nicole grew up in Arizona and later attended Arizona State University on an academic scholarship where she pursued Business/Marketing and Dance. She later studied at the Academy of Film & Television for Acting. Nicole currently works for Life Time Fitness as the Corporate Campus Office Manager/Special Projects. She is also a Fashion Expert/LifeStyle Guest for Evine Live where she shares her passion for fashion and helping others achieve success and style in their wardrobe. She also has her own styling business, Nicole Lauren Style, www.nicolelaurenstyle.com
In her spare time, Nicole loves working out, downhill skiing, swimming, boating, stand-up paddle boarding and spending time with their animals. She enjoys traveling with her husband, going to concerts, theatrical events, painting and going to art galleries. She also enjoys her time giving back to the community volunteering in organizations such as: Arthritis Foundation (where she is a Spokesperson and on the Executive Planning Committee), Make-a-Wish, Minnesota Zoo Foundation, Feed My Starving Children, Animal Ark Animal Adoption, Life Time Fitness Foundation and Children’s Read-a-thon.
This year, Nicole will be promoting her cause, Arthritis: The Invisible Disease, and diligently working to raise awareness and financial support. She decided to compete in the Mrs. Minnesota America competition to meet new people, set challenging goals for herself and strengthen her ties to the community. Ultimately, she’d like to work with non-profits that focus on arthritis and help them to generate revenue and awareness. Nicole was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis when she was a teen and has been actively managing and controlling it. However, she is grateful that she has been blessed with the opportunity to help others as Arthritis affects over 53 million people and is the leading degenerating disease in the world. “Throughout my life, I have been surrounded by strong women. Everyone from my grandmother, mother and my friends have encouraged and inspired me to take on this challenge,” she says. “I’ve been taught to persevere. It’s not easy living each day with Rheumatoid Arthritis, but being Mrs. Minnesota will allow me to have an amazing platform from which I can help and assist others dealing with the same physical issues that I do.” She adds that she does not want to simply create awareness about arthritis; she wants to provide people with the skills and tools needed for surviving and thriving while living with this disease.
