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Armi Helena Kuusela-Williams (née Kuusela, formerly Kuusela-Hilario; born 20 August 1934) is a Finnish American beauty queen and philanthropist, best known for being the first-ever Miss Universe. In 1952, she gained national recognition by winning the Finnish beauty contest, Suomen Neito, which qualified her to represent Finland in the inaugural Miss Universe pageant held in Long Beach, California. Following her historic win, Kuusela dedicated her life to philanthropy, business, and cultural ambassadorship. Through the years, she became actively involved in numerous charitable organizations and was honored for her contributions to various causes.
Among her many prizes, Kuusela received a new car and a long-term movie contract from Universal Studios. As titleholder, she also became a Goodwill Ambassador for the Miss Universe organization.
Kuusela was the only Miss Universe to be crowned with the Romanov Imperial Nuptial Crown. The crown was previously owned by the Russian monarchy.
That year, Kuusela also starred in a Finnish movie about her titled Maailman kaunein tyttö (The Most Beautiful Girl in the World). Tauno Palo played the role of Jack Coleman, Veikko Itkonen was the director, and Mika Waltari received writing credits for the film.
Kuusela and Hilario owned and operated Gilarmi Corporation, a real estate development company in Makati, which included their eponymous Gilarmi Hotel along Ayala Avenue, the first residential hotel in the Philippines. Between 1955 and 1965, they had five children: Arne, Anna-Lisa, José (Jussi), Eva-Maria and Miguel (Mikko). Hilario died of a heart attack on 7 September 1975, and until 1979, Kuusela was chief executive officer of Gilarmi Corporation and Honorary Counsel of Finland in Manila.
Kuusela was married a second time to American diplomat Albert N. Williams, a Senior Officer with the United States Department of State on 8 June 1978. Kuusela supported Williams in his subsequent appointment as American Consul General in Barcelona, Spain, where they resided from 1979 to 1983. Williams was recalled to Washington, D.C., where they underwent Turkish language training from 1983 to 1985, and then she supported him in his appointment as American Consul General in İzmir, Turkey, where they stayed from 1985 to 1989. Upon retirement in 1989, they settled in La Jolla, a community in San Diego, California. In 1996, Kuusela became a naturalised United States citizen. By then, she had traveled the world, lived in many countries, and spoke seven languages: Finnish, English, Swedish, German, Tagalog, Spanish, and Turkish.
Since retirement, Kuusela has worked on many charitable causes. Since 1992, she has been a Member of the Director's Circle of the San Diego Museum of Art and the Chancellor's Associates at the University of California, San Diego. From 1993 to 1998, she was a Member of the Director's Circle of the Mingei International Museum, and co-chair of the Director's Circle from 1993 to 1994. From 1993 to 2006, she served as board member of the Burnham Cancer Research Institute (now known as the Sanford Burnham Preys Institute), and a Member of its Board Nominating Committee. Since then, she has served as a Member of the advisory board of the Fishman Foundation, an affiliate of the Institute that funds research scholarship. Since 1994, she has been a Bravissimo Circle Paton of the San Diego Opera. Since 1995, she has been a Charter Member of the Patrons of the Prado, for the benefit of San Diego's iconic Balboa Park museums. In 2010, she became a Member of the International Bipolar Foundation. That year, she also became a Member of the Angel's Angels of the San Diego Youth Symphony and Conservatory, and from 2013 to 2018, she served as honorary co-chair of its annual gala to raise scholarships for the children. In 2014, she was admitted into the Order of Saint John, a British order of chivalry, first as a Member and later promoted to the rank of Officer in 2018.
Kuusela has received numerous honors for her charity. In 2000, she received the Deming Award from the Burnham Cancer Research Institute and the Paul Harris Award for Philanthropy from the International Rotary Foundation. In 2008, she received the Fishman Foundation Award. In 2011, the City of San Diego designated August 10, 2011, as Armi Kuusela Williams Day, by Proclamation of Mayor Jerry Sanders. In 2012, the President of Finland awarded Kuusela the Order of the White Rose of Finland, with the rank of Knight (First Class)."IS vieraili upean Armi Kuuselan, 78, kotona Kaliforniassa." Ilta-Sanomat 18 December 2012.
She visited her native town of Muhos in August 2014. Her visit was an official meeting with the city municipal manager. Armi Kuusela kirjoitti kotiin. Yle.fi, viitattu 17 April 2014
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