March Madness!!

Having some "FUN" with the Jackman Rd. Students!

Reading to the students of Mason Central Elementary...

The 2007 Miss Michigan Class... :o)

Hello friends and family!!

I must apologize for my tardiness in posting... however... March surely has been a month of Madness for me!

The craziness started the last weekend of February... when I had one of our biggest MSU Stars fundraisers - Greek Week Penny Wars, Alpha Chi Omega's Songfest event, and the St. Michael's We Care Telethon. I drove back and forth from Lansing 4 times that weekend! However, all turned out to be huge successes! My sorority took first place in Songfest and Greek Week, Penny Wars made nearly $10,000 for the Make-a-Wish Foundation and the Telethon was a blast. I emceed in the TV room for three hours... (I sure enjoyed my moments behind the television cameras!)

On March 1, I was a guest at the American Red Cross Everyday Heroes Event. What a touching evening!! Local heroes were honored for their life-saving skills and commendable actions. Congrats to Ryleigh Linsenmeyer, Miss Monroe County Outstanding Teen 2005, who was honored for her life-saving actions during a house fire.

I then spent a weekend in Muskegon for the Miss Lighthouse Coast Pageant and Miss Michigan Orientation. How proud I am to share with you that Miss Jenna McCormick, Monroe's 1st runner-up was also named 1st runner-up at this highly competitive pageant. Monroe should most definitely be proud of her representation of our county and program! I also had the chance to meet the 2007 Miss Michigan class. What an amazing group of girls. And... we picked our contestant numbers... Drum roll....

12!! Yes... the same number I was in Miss Monroe. I am not too sure if that means anything, but we were excited! Thank you Mom, Dione, Amber, Delle, Allen, Jill, and Jennifer for making the long, snowy drive to Muskegon as well!

National Reading Month has kept me pretty busy as well! I visited ten Monroe County schools and met with classrooms ranging from Kindergarten to 8th grade. I wanted to devise a program to bring my platform, the Make-a-Wish Foundation into the schools as part of National Reading Month. Hence... the creation of my Share the Power of Reading Campaign. Students were asked to take part in a story writing contest about what their wish would be...

And... yes... I heard some pretty imaginative wishes!! Even one wish to be my best friend from a 1st grade student at St. John's Elementary in Monroe, MI.

The stories will then be put in a professionally bound book and distributed to the 500 Make-a-Wish children statewide... Sharing with each of them the importance of reading and the Power of a Wish!!

And... to make March an even busier month... I hosted two Make-a-Wish fundraisers with the MSU Stars team, including a Date Auction and Battle of the Bands. On March 31, along with friends from both Monroe County and Michigan State, we walked as part of the Walk 4 Kids and were the 5th highest fundraisers!!

The money raised through these events will grant a wish of a young Michigan child battling sarcoma in honor of my dear friend, Mary Beth, who lost her own battle with cancer last week at the age of 22. She will be forever missed, but her laughter and smile will forever live on through the wish granted in her memory!

April will also be a busy month (but, I would not have it any other way!) The COW PLOP is quickly approaching and becoming bigger and better everyday! News stations, radio stations and newspapers will be joining us at the event... along with Kaye Lani and two Monroe County wish children.

I will also be making two visits to the State Capital to meet with representatives and senators to discuss current legislation regarding childhood cancer research and funding. I am very excited for this opportunity to join our state leaders in session!

Sending my best wishes to each of you for wonderful start to Spring!!