Gurnee Community Pageant

This past week was spent with some very lovely and accomplished young ladies of the Gurnee, IL community.  I was asked to be a part of the judges panel, starting with interview last Wednesday and the final pageant Saturday afternoon.

As hard as it is to chose someone who will be right for the job (this group is heavily involved in community service and very active during their reign ), it's exciting to hear about the things these girls do already for their town and surrounding areas and how they will use the title to serve.  I am proud of our area youth, and consider it an honor to have gotten to meet such driven young people.  I am also sending a big thank you to their parent's for instilling values and pride in themselves and where they live.

Special thanks also to Jenni Carlson, director and former Miss Gurnee, for asking me to be a part of this.  I look forward to working with your girls in the future! Thank you also to the rest of our judges who were delightful to meet!

I'm sad to say that I don't have many pictures.  This was a job for me to take care of and be thorough in, so the camera wasn't with me until it was time to leave.  :)  I hope you'll take the time to check out the website and blog!

Bowl for Hope

Sunday was the first annual Bowl for Hope in Vernon Hills, IL benefiting Women's Cancers.  We had a terrific team for raising money, bowling, silent auctions and raffle drawings all benefiting women's cancers.  It was a great afternoon shared with great friends, and reconnecting with some I'd made through my past years working with Walk for Hope.  I'm looking forward to working with this amazing group in the fall!

Thanks to Mary and Michelle, my awesome teammates (sad all our group pictures came out blurry...), and to Beth, and Karen Rolls for being coordinators and integral parts of my expanded work with Walk for Hope!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=piD2qPBnA3M&feature=player_embedded#at=19

Yeah...that's one shameful beginning score and I'm afraid it didn't get much better...I am NOT a great bowler!!! I did like my very patriotic bowling kicks...very Mrs. United States, don't you think?!  ;)

Happy Fourth of July!

Monday morning was spent in Vernon Hills, IL for their Fourth of July parade (one of the largest in the state!).  The weather was clear and sunny and it was great to see so many people enjoying the floats, bands, entertainment, and of course all the candy!  Miss Elena was thrilled to get to be a part of the parade, and wore my local crown because she said she wanted to be "my princess".  LOVED IT!  She kept telling everyone - including their dogs - "Happy Fourth!  Enjoy the candy!!!" 

We were really good about applying the sunblock, so no sunburns, however I did get stung by a bee...one of the disadvantages to having sweets in the vehicle!

Special thanks to the Vernon Hills Parade Organization for inviting us out, and to Anthony Buick GMC for our parade car.  We really appreciate all the help!

http://www.anthonyautogroup.com/

We hope you all had a safe and Happy Fourth of July!

Freedom has its life in the hearts, the actions, the spirit of men and so it must be daily earned and refreshed - else like a flower cut from its life-giving roots, it will wither and die. ~Dwight D. Eisenhower

In the truest sense, freedom cannot be bestowed; it must be achieved. ~Franklin D. Roosevelt

This, then, is the state of the union: free and restless, growing and full of hope. So it was in the beginning. So it shall always be, while God is willing, and we are strong enough to keep the faith. ~Lyndon B. Johnson


(PS - do you love the "sensible shoes"?! I was making sure that no heels were going to get stuck in mud, dirt, or anything else!  ;) Safety first! HAHA!)