Soroptimist International Charity Fashion Show and Silent Auction

April 12th, 2008


It was a great day, beautiful weather, and a wonderful environment of charity. I modeled in a Fashion Show today, benefiting Soroptimist International - advocates for awareness and prevention of Domestic Violence. To learn more about Soroptimist International's Color Me Pink and Purple, Not Black and Blue, go to - www.siamprsd.org
Mrs. International, Rebekah Negrete, modeled as well. It was great to see Rebekah again and catch up with her. She has had a busy and blessed year, filled with appearances and being a foster parent. She lives her platform daily, which is an inspiration! Her mom, Karen Keller, was there as well. She is a delight and so very sweet.

Miss USA Pageant and Fashion Rocks the Universe!

April 10th and 11th, 2008







What fun! I attended the Fashion Rocks the Universe at Hawaiian Tropic and Planet Hollywood. Great venue and I caught up with a few pageant friends - Holly Ernst, Robin Fleming, Suzy Bootz and more! I met Miss Universe and and the owners of Syrup Swimwear, one of the sponsors.
On Friday, I attended Miss USA with one of my friends, Renita. It was her first pageant experience, so I think I spent most of the night explaining how it all works. I saw Mrs. United America, Deanna as well! One thing I can say about Miss USA, it stays true to its tradition...pageantry at its best!

Girl Scouts of America

April 6th, 2008






While in North Carolina, I spoke to a local Girls Scouts of America Brownie Troup about Volunteerism. We shared examples of how we each can give back. The girls shared how they gave toys to Toys for Tots, served meals at church, visited nursing homes, dropped off food at the local food bank, and donated food to the local animal shelters. Great ideas by all! We visited a local Girl Scout camp, where we rock-climbed (I made it to the top!), hiked and visited the camp accommodations. Funny, when I was a Girl Scout, we slept in tents, not cabins.

Busy, busy, busy!

April 4th and 5th, 2008




Wow, it has been non-stop for the past 2 weeks, so I am just now catching up! I was a Special Guest, Co-Host and Performer for the Mrs. NC United States Pageant. I sang the National Anthem, and asked the Top 5 Platform Questions. It was great to go home and visit with my NC friends and Queens. As a former Mrs. United States, I was honored to be a part of the NC tradition and to see my sister Queens- Debra, Shannon, Kelly, April, and now Nicole. I was also able to visit with Shelby (April's mom), Bria, and Stephanie Hunt. What a blessed weekend. Thanks to Cinamon and Debra for being such great friends - I wish I could visit "home" more often. Love to North Carolina and my Carolina Girls!

Lung Cancer Awareness Advocacy Summit May 27-29

The purpose of the Lung Cancer Advocacy Summit is to provide training and guidance to advocates for how to effect change at a grass-roots level. The summit will consist of teaching workshops, interactive sessions, networking, and small-group discussions. The workshops will be lead by health and research professionals, media trainers, and advocacy trainers. The topics that will be discussed include: understanding lung cancer, how to be your own health advocate, becoming a lung cancer consumer reviewer, how to de-stigmatize the disease, raising lung cancer awareness in your community, and how to navigate the legislative process.
I am on the Advisory Board for this event. I look forward to helping, learning and meeting others that share my passion for making a difference. To find out more information, please contact me or go to www.nationallungcancerpartnership.org

Happy Easter!

My son bought a nice camera with his Birthday and Christmas money, and we finally took the opportunity to take a few photos. My son, Cameron is a pretty good photographer too! Our family is small, but oh so loving and happy.
I wanted to take this time to wish everyone a Blessed Easter!

United for Lung Health 2008 in Washington, DC

On May 13th and 14th, I am attending the United for Lung Health 2008 Lobby Days in Washington, DC. The United for Lung Health/2008 Federal Advocacy Day provides an opportunity to share our federal action agenda and stimulate discussion on lung research and education programs with federal legislators. The United for Lung Health/2008 Federal Advocacy Day will also provide federal legislators with access to an independent lung health community that is vibrant and dedicated to protecting and promoting lung health and supporting research for lung diseases such as asthma, COPD, lung cancer, LAM, ARDS, pulmonary fibrosis, tuberculosis, sarcoidoisis and others. Please visit www.unitedforlunghealth.org to learn more or to sign up and join me!

New Crown Photo!

What can I say, except that I love Clay Spann! He does such a great job, and makes everyone feel special. I had the best time in Dothan, which of course you can tell by the big smile on my face! Thanks Clay and Joey!

Network for Hope

March 11, 2008


I found a wonderful organization here in the local area, Walk with Sally, that helps kids 7-17 cope with having siblings or parents with cancer. I volunteered for the first time last night, Tuesday March 11. They teamed up with 2 other fantastic organizations, Hope Wine and Network for Hope, that each have their own wonderful way of helping others. Network for Hope brings people together, and networks with people, organizations and charities. Hope Wine combines their business and love of wine with giving back, as 50% of profits goes to certain charities. They helped sponsor the event last night and are donating 15% of wine purchased to Walk with Sally when using the code "sally" with your online purchase. Check out www.hopewine.com for THE best wine, ever! I had great fun helping with the door prizes and educating everyone about Walk with Sally. I am currently going through their mentoring training program so that I can mentor children that face the realization that their parent or sibling has cancer and what that means. It is a great balance for me, as with Lung Cancer Awareness, I am mostly dealing with research and funding awareness and I really want to help others going through what I went through. Although I was an adult, the experience is similar and if I can help just one child cope and feel like they have a common bond with another, then I will feel successful.

Lung Cancer Awareness Month Proclamation signed by Indiana's Governor Mitch Daniels!

March 4th, 2008


I received a call today from Governor Daniels' Office. He signed the proclamation I sent him! Victory! This Proclamation declares November as Lung Cancer Awareness Month! I have an appointment to meet with the Governor, and I plan to address the needed funding for lung cancer research. We have to approach each state separately, but I know that in time, we will have national funding! It is a GREAT day!