Chantel Valdivieso was born at Lakenheath Air Force Base in Lakenheath, England, where her mother, Teresa, was serving in the United States Air Force.
Her family was transferred to Tucson, Arizona when Chantel was just seven weeks old, a common occurrence for military families.
After her mother's retirement, they moved to Joplin, Missouri, where their family lived, and Chantel began taking modeling classes at the local YMCA.
Her modeling coach, Colleen Hayden, helped prepare her by organizing runway fashion shows, televised interviews, and building self-esteem through teaching classes on health and beauty.
With the support of her family, her coach Colleen, and Colleen's husband John, Chantel went to New York for the summer at the age of four, commuting from Joplin, Missouri to the Big Apple.
She began working in the Fashion and Print Industry, booking her first commercial for the New York College Saving Fund after just three days in the city.
By the age of six, she had already booked jobs with Sears, Imaginarium, Marshalls, and Zoey Computer Games.
In July 2002, she added voice-overs to her resume, booking a voice-over for Sutter Health Care, and by mid-2002, she had won leads in three Independent Films.
In November 2002, Chantel was given her first SAG job, receiving a casting call for a pretty, sweet, hero girl named "Holly".
Her break came after the third callback for the feature film "The Polar Express".
Chantel continues to keep busy, shooting commercials and episodes like "Zoey 101" and "The Dog Whisper".
She recently became the first child to be an announcer at the Imagen's 20th Annual Awards Show and is currently working on a series called "Have Sword Will Travel", taking sword classes towards her Level 5 Degree.
Chantel's most recent project is working with "Norky" and the PolarBall, a pen-eagle hybrid and keepers of Santa's naughty and nice list.
As the "Youth Ambassador of Goodwill" and "Celebrity Host" of Norky TV Network, Chantel is set to release her first book in a series of children's books, "Christmas With Norky", in September 2005, with a Celebrity Christmas Special to follow.
Chantel is passionate about helping others and changing the world one person at a time, feeling it is part of her responsibility as an actress to be a good role model and lead by example.
