This week’s busiest point came over the weekend with many people to see and places to be. On Friday, I first traveled to Indianapolis to the wonderful store Caché, in the Keystone Fashion Mall, to pick up my lovely wardrobe for the weekend’s events. This included some amazingly comfortable tan pants, a beautiful red sweater, some black dress pants with a glamorous gold chain in the front, to match my red, black, and tan patterned top with a gold snake embellishment.
Then, I headed up to Muncie to the David Letterman Communications Building dedication ceremony. I was hoping to get the chance to meet David Letterman himself, and though I was a ‘special guest’ with a VIP pass for parking and an excellent view of the ceremony, courtesy of the amazing Miss Ball State director Carol Kosisko, I unfortunately didn’t get the chance. I arrived 30 minutes early to join the sea of students and faculty that had come to see the event, and even got some cheers from the crowd myself. However, I had a previous commitment in Anderson that I had to get to by 4:30, and when the ceremony didn’t start on time and then the rain started sprinkling in, I decided it was time to go. Maybe I can send a letter to David though and see if he can get me on the show!
Next, I went to the Triple L Youth Ranch in Anderson to speak with some troubled teenage girls. They had never had a Miss Indiana visit, and they were so excited that they even put out a mock red carpet to the entrance and bought me some flowers, how sweet! I spoke to them about overcoming adversity by giving some examples of successful women that had to overcome obstacles of their own. A couple of the examples included; Oprah Winfrey who spent her first 6 years in poverty, had been abused at age 9, and is now the richest African American in the world with the power to influence millions, Helen Keller who became blind and deaf at a young age but still managed to learn to speak in several languages, read Braille, and is famously known for her accomplishments, and the Miss America Organization’s very own Heather Whitestone, Miss America 1995, who despite her hearing impediments learned to dance ballet and won the prestigious Miss America title.
I also brought my Miss Ball State crown and sash for the girls to try on and take pictures with, and opened the floor to questions, of which they had many. They asked everything from, “How do you keep your crown on?” to “How can you get up on the stage and compete? And how can we be better prepared for life’s many competitions?” Then we had dinner, which included chicken, dinner rolls, potato salad, and veggies with dip. They even got a cake for the occasion. When asked what the girls learned, I was glad to hear that they learned to be ambitious, believe in themselves, and persevere, because that was the message that I hoped to relay to them. That the only limitations they have are those they put on themselves, and to remember the blessings that they have instead of dwelling on the negative. I ended the evening by singing part of my Miss America talent along with a Carrie Underwood song, by request. It was a unique experience that I’m sure the girls will remember, and I was glad to be there as a positive influence in what seems to them to be a negative world.
Finally, I headed to the home of my wonderful interview coaches, Jim and Joy Robbins with Image Improvement, in New Castle to stay for the evening. It was a long day, but a productive one, and I spent part of the evening preparing for my appearance the following day in Richmond.
Saturday morning I drove to Richmond for the “Richmond Walk of Fame.” This was an event that honored famous jazz and blues entertainers that recorded at the Star-Gennett recording studio in 1920’s through the 1950’s. They did this by placing large medallions with the likeness of a record on one side and a tile mosaic picture of the honoree on the other. The featured honoree was Hoagy Carmichael, who recorded songs such as “Georgia on my Mind,” “Up the Lazy River,” and “Stardust.” His son, Randy, was there to perform some of these songs at “The Leland” during lunch too.
After lunch we went down to the site of the “Walk of Fame” where they had already placed several inaugural medallions for Gene Autry, Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton, and Bix Beiderbecke among others. There was also a life sized bronze sculpture of Hoagy Carmichael that was made by a former student of Indiana University where Hoagy had studied law before entering the music business. The Indiana University Singers were there too, which included Nicole Pollard, Miss Hoosier Heartland 2007.
Then, there was a ribbon cutting ceremony for the unveiling of the medallions, and the entire rest of the day was filled with great jazz and blues music. I even signed autographs in the restored Starr Piano factory. On the way out I left my remaining autographed pictures to be sent in care packages to a group of Marines stationed in Iraq. Then, I was on the road to drive back home to Plymouth after an eventful weekend. Just another day in the life of being Miss Indiana!
Thanks for stopping by!
Miss Indiana 2007
TKPN
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