BOISE, Idaho — Earlier this week, Victoria's Secret released a new campaign empowering women and inspiring social change. Gone are the Victoria’s Secret angels, and instead are 18 models from diverse backgrounds, one of which is an Idaho native.
“It was like a dream come true, those were the kinds of jobs I was wishing for and praying for when I was in the city modeling,” Celilo Miles said.
The 27-year-old was one of 18 models featured in Victoria’s Secret's new Love Cloud campaign. The new campaign focuses on celebrating all women from different backgrounds, but Miles isn’t your typical model, the Idaho native is also a wildland firefighter for the Nez Perce tribe.
“My culture has always been on the land, so I grew up fishing, huckleberry picking and then I got into fire and that's where I feel most at home and at peace,” Miles said.
She's currently attending school for communication studies, but the 27-year-old started modeling in New York back in 2017.
“It was great, I loved the city, I met a lot of people, but I had a lot of disappointment in my modeling career. It was hard for me to book work,” Miles said.
She told KTVB she decided to leave the industry after her brother's passing and the start of the pandemic, and returned home to be on the land and heal.
“Then this fall, I had a casting agency, they sent me an Instagram message,” Miles said.
After sending her photos to the casting agency, she found out the job was for Victoria’s Secret.
“I was like what? I’m not even in the city, I’m not signed, I’m not even modeling, I’m going to school and firefighting,” Miles said. ”I stopped trying to fit a mold and then I get this job and I’m like 'okay it was meant to happen, life comes around full circle.”
She now hopes to inspire other girls, like herself.
“Growing up in Idaho we grow up in small communities and all we see is our mothers and aunts, and it's nice to see people aspiring to be more," Miles said. "It doesn’t mean you can’t be a mother or a housewife but you're more dynamic than that, you're more than one role and so I think coming from Idaho it's great that I can represent that and I’ve seen so many other women breaking their own barriers other than what they grew up in,” Miles said.
She told KTVB, she’s been getting a lot of support since this came out from her friends and family, but also from a lot of women she doesn't know congratulating her.
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