I’m 56 and diabetic — I’m in the running to be a Sports Illustrated model

Nina Cash and her husband Aaron were enjoying a beach getaway in Australia during the New Year when he decided to take some sizzling shots of her in a bikini.

But these were no ordinary photos.

“So, I cobbled together footage and this candid shot that he had,” Cash shared. “And then I did a really quick video and I spliced it together. I sent it in and thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be a miracle and super cool if I got this?’”

Cash, a retired university associate dean from California, is now a top 12 finalist for the 2023 SI Swim Search. SI Swimsuit’s annual casting call, which receives thousands of submissions from hopeful models, aims to discover its newest star.

“My reaction was utter shock,” she said about learning the news. “I’m thrilled, but shocked that I’ve made it this far — but happily shocked. And I’m taking it all in. I feel like a 5-year-old on the night before Christmas with all the wonderful anticipation, the butterflies in my stomach, the nervousness. It’s such a great feeling, and I’m embracing it.”

Cash, who joked she was a “senior citizen,” said she was inspired by Kathy Jacobs, who became “the oldest rookie” at age 57 in 2021.

“There is no expiration date,” Cash explained. “You can keep going and going… You can smooth over those road bumps. And that’s what I want to do. It’s never too late. It’s always right timing. I don’t think I would’ve been prepared to do this if I were younger. I think I am the best version of myself right now because I lived life. People talk about laugh lines — I have lifelines. I’m not going to get rid of those lifelines because that means I have lived life, and I’ve also been a lifeline to other people because of my age and my wisdom, my skills and my abilities. I have lived that. So I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”

“I don’t want to go back to being 25 years old,” she insisted. “I don’t want to go back to being a teenager. Even in my thirties. I think beauty does blossom with age. I’m 56, and I feel like I’m blossoming more than I ever could in my twenties or thirties or even forties.”

The original swimsuit issue ran in 1964. It has since been a launching pad for models like Kathy Ireland, Christie Brinkley, Elle Macpherson, Kate Upton and Ashley Graham.

Cash said she’s been curious about modeling but was wary of what her colleagues would have thought of her.

“When I was an associate dean working in education, I never talked about wanting to model or anything like that,” said Cash. “Because for whatever reason, if some people found out, [they would] see me in a different light. It’s like, you can’t be pretty smart — you can’t be pretty and smart. You can’t be accomplished and pretty because for some reason, you can only be one or the other, right? And for me, it’s like, why not embrace all of you? Embrace what you’ve done in the past. Embrace your experiences and show that.”

Cash said her husband is elated that she made the cut.

“I have such a wonderful husband,” she gushed. “He’s my biggest and loudest cheerleader… I wanted to apply the following year because I had just retired. So I had been thinking about it… He’s over the moon. And my daughters are over the moon for me and excited. They’re like, ‘Mama, slay the gray! You’re 56 and in the mix — slay the gray!’”

There’s another man who has also been on Cash’s mind recently — her late father. She said growing up in a Filipino, Catholic and military family had a profound influence on how she sees the world.

“My dad, even though he saw a lot of action, was the kindest, most generous, warm, forgiving, welcoming human being,” she said. “Prior to WWII, sadly my dad had to fight during the Japanese and Philippines conflict… This was probably when he was 16 or 17 years old… He was at a camp [in the jungle] when one of his officers called him to the hut and said, ‘Francisco, you have to execute this Japanese soldier.’ They just got a prisoner of war. And my dad’s a young kid. The officer left, and my dad looked at this Japanese soldier who was the same age as [him]. And my dad couldn’t kill him because it wasn’t like they were fighting. He was just there.”

“My dad let the… Japanese soldier go,” she continued. “And then my dad just shot in the air. Fast-forward, I think it was two and a half, three weeks later, my dad and three of his friends get captured by the Japanese. They’re lined up to be executed. And who comes out to execute them? The person that my dad let go. So that person let my dad go. My dad starts running, thinking that his friends are going to run after him. But no. The guy let my dad go, but he shot my father’s friends.

“I’m like, ‘What did my dad go through?’… I cannot complain about my life whatsoever. So I look at things in a very optimistic way all the time. I’m a can-do person. You very rarely hear me say, ‘No, it can’t be done.’… I have to look at my father and say his life experience was super dramatic. And if that didn’t get to him, by God, nothing’s going to get to me. I have to say, for lack of a better term, I’ve been privileged for the way I grew up with my family.”

Cash is grateful that over the years, SI Swimsuit has celebrated women with various life experiences that have shaped them. Today, she hopes her story will inspire others that it’s never too late to “have an encore.”

“I’ve got gray hair, I’m diabetic, I’m a retired person, I had a career, [but] I didn’t give up on my dream,” said Cash. “It’s never too late. It’s always the right timing. I hope other women can see their reflections in me. I hope my hair, my eyes, my education, my struggles, whatever, will spark something in them that they don’t give up. I’m the best version right now of me that I could ever be.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.