Monday, June 27, 2011

Is it that I'm slacking, or that I'm too busy with scheduled events?

So maybe it's a little bit of both...slacking on the posting and ALSO being too busy at actual events to find a second to write a new blog entry, but now that school is out for a bit (HURRAY SUMMER) and I am pretty well-prepared for the national Mrs. United States competition, I should be better at updating on a more regular basis.

To begin catching up, let's travel back in time to May 20th, when Jimmy and I attended the Freund & Associates Spring Fling. Attorney John Freund, who is the Allentown School District Solicitor, organizes this event for his law firm of KingSpry in order to annually bring the community together for networking and celebration. My Aunt Joanne Jackson, who recently earned her place on the ballot to be re-elected to Allentown School Board in the primary election, secured an invitation for me to appear as Mrs. Pennsylvania United States along with my husband and mom. We so enjoyed the evening as it was an excellent opportunity to share the advocacy work I'm been doing with community leaders and help folks understand a bit more about MRS pageantry.

The weekend after marked a break (WOW!) for me from appearances after a busy week at school, but the week following was equally busy at school and culminated with a trip to Pittsburgh to see my sorority sister Jess and my four-legged nieces, Lily and Leia, for a good ol' fashioned Pennsylvania baseball rivalry between the Phils and the Bucs. Jimmy and I were floored by PNC Park and really relished in Pittsburgh as a whole since we'd never fully explored the city before, which is ironic considering I won my title there!

On the way back from Pittsburgh we relaxed at a dinner fundraiser at Starfish Brasserie to benefit the African Black-Footed Penguins of the Lehigh Valley Zoo. Thabo made a guest appearance that night and delighted all with her pleasant demeanor. We were exhausted when we got home so rested well that night for the busy week ahead, as we were engaged all week in finalizing plans for the Take Back the Streets Block Party & Community Yard Sale, organized to raise awareness of auto theft prevention.

The Take Back the Streets block party was a great day and a huge success. The Lehigh County Auto Theft Task Force arrived at noon and VIN-etched over fifty cars until around 3 PM. Lou Franco played and sang live for us until around 2 PM, when Lehigh Valley Martial Arts arrived for a self-defense demonstration until 3 PM. The neighbors enjoyed yard sale-ing, face painting and body art from Funtastic Faces and Body Art, and burgers and dogs throughout (the latter compliments of my wonderful hubs). In addition to being fun, it was also an important event to help the community understand the need to come together to prevent auto theft, particularly in the section of Allentown in which the event was held.

No rest for the wicked goes the old cliche because the very next day I traveled to Dover, Delaware to assist Crowns of Inspiration's Siouxzan Moore in her triple-crowning pageant for Mrs. Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia United States 2011. I can't rave enough about the experience. The contestants were top-notch and I was thrilled to see pageant sisters for the first time in quite a while. It absolutely reaffirmed my belief in pageantry bringing together wonderful people who inspire each other to do wonderful things. Congratulations of course to the new queens, as well: Tamika Hall, Mrs. Maryland United States 2011; Katie Barrie, Mrs. Virginia United States 2011; and Angie Hionis-Bell, Mrs. Delaware United States 2011.

Since Blogger only lets me post five photos per post, I will have to cease updating here and continue, hopefully later this week, with an update on the Star of Bethlehem Festival for Kids, the Save Baby Myah Celebrity Bartending Event at Starters Riverport, and the SteelStacks Farmers' Market.

Dream Big/Do Good,
KAM
 

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