Shay Mitchell's Parents Keep Her Open-Minded - Facts about Them

Shay Mitchell's parents' raised their daughter to be open-minded and proud of her mixed-race heritage. Her redhead grandmother's love and support helped the "Pretty Little Lies" star become the woman she is today.

The life lessons that Shay Mitchell has learned from her parents have helped her deal with condescending comments implying that because she is so beautiful, she should get a successful man to provide for her.

The Filipina-Canadian star was not brought up to be in the reflection of someone's else' trophy; she earns her own. The elder Mitchell banned cell phones from the dinner table, something his social media-loving daughter can appreciate now.

Shay Mitchell Had Difficulties Because of Her Ancestry

Born Shannon Ashley Garcia Mitchell on April 10, 1987, in Canada, Shay is the eldest child of Precious Garcia and Mark Mitchell. Precious is Filipina; she left Pampanga, Philippines when she was 19; her husband is of Scottish and Irish heritage.

The matriarch imparted Filipino values to her daughter, such as the importance of family and being respectful. Despite the robust support system at home, the actress had a difficult time growing up mixed race in a white neighborhood. She admits to dying her hair blonde and wearing light contact lenses as a teen:

"When I was in high school, I was uncomfortable with myself. All my friends were blond and blue-eyed. My mom is Filipino - but my friends' nannies were Filipino."

Being scouted as a model in her late teens helped the Filipina-Canadian actress embrace her unique looks. Her love for Jennifer Lopez, known as J. Lo to fans, led to the nickname Shay Lo, which inspired her professional name.

Precious and Mark used the gender-natural pronoun 'they' when speaking to Shay and their son...

As a performer of Filipino heritage, the "You" actress is in good company these days; stars such as Vanessa Hudgens, Bruno Mars, Jessica Sanchez, and Nicole Scherzinger have spoken about their ancestral links to the Philippines.

On Shay's first trip to her mom's home country in 2013, she quipped that her acting talent came from her parents, conceding that her creative side is from her mother:

"My parents are not artists at all! They're in finance. My mom can draw amazingly, but as far as the acting bug? I don't know, but I guess it has a lot to do with the Filipino side. I would always say that from my mom's side."

Precious and Mark used the gender-natural pronoun 'they' when speaking to Shay and their son, Sean Mitchell, never the gendered 'he' and 'she.' The couple's healthy attitude to sex education, giving their teen daughter access to condoms and birth control, shocked their pals.

Shay Mitchell Reminisces about His Father in Dark Times

For father's day 2016, Shay shared her love of her father with a famous quote about how on her darkest days, she gets comfort and strength from the certainty of who her father is. The actress maintains that she's comfortable with her sexuality because of her dad:

"When I started, people were like, 'What are you?' I'm like, right now, I'm dating a guy.
 I don't know what it's going to be in three years. You love who you love. Black, white, polka-dot, that's what my dad always said."

Mark is an investment advisor at BlueShore Financial in Lonsdale, North Vancouver, with over 20 years of experience advising on investment strategies and complex financial matters.

Shay Mitchell Has Had 2 Important Women in Her Life

Precious' Facebook profile photo is of her children. The few pieces of content made public are devoted to the "Dollface" actress. For Mother's Day 2017, Shay spoiled her mom with a spa day at Tomoko Japanese Spa in Beverly Hills.

The following year she cheeking said that she was keeping the Mother's Day Insta tribute short and sweet, just like her mother and grandmother. The actress gave the two extraordinary women credit for being responsible for her being where she is professionally.

Shay's paternal grandmother and best friend, "Gram," died in January 2022. Gram connected with her granddaughter through imaginative games of when she was little and collected the model from high school when she was bullied.

The performer was very grateful that her son, Atlas, could also have a relationship with his great-grandmother. Gram was her granddaughter's date at her first movie premiere, "Mother's Day," in 2016.