Dacey's Divas Television Appearance

Today I had to the wonderful opportunity to appear on a local television talk show with Dacey Zouzas on her show Dacey's Divas on Chelmsford Telemedia. Dacey looks to spotlight women in the community who are doing great things with their careers, education, and community service. I am so blessed to have had the opportunity to speak with her about my work with various charity and community organizations, being Mrs. Massachusetts International 2010 and Northeast's Outstanding Mom 2012, my experience of being a mom, and most importantly, sharing my mother's story with Breast Cancer and the Importance of Early Detection and Awareness. I was so touched that the show dedicated this appearance to my mother. I love that there is a local platform for women to share their lives and stories to inspire others and lend a voice to things that are important to them in a public way and allow the viewers to be educated! Please visit http://www.chelmsfordtv.org/ to view the episode. Also, to learn more about Dacey's Divas or to be a part of the show or nominate someone to be on the show, please visit http://www.divas.us/.

5K Run - Homes for Our Troops

On Sunday, April 1, I took part in the 5K Run for Homes for Our Troops in Andover, MA. It was an amazing day and nice to get back to my first run since my 1/2 Marathon in Disney. It was a very inspirational day to see so many people come to support this amazing organization that builds specially adapted homes for our severely injured veterans. To learn more about this amazing organization and take part in events or volunteer work, please visit their website at: http://www.homesforourtroops.org/site/PageServer?pagename=AboutHFOT.

I first met the owners for the company, Never Retreat Never Surrender. They design t-shirts that have sayings for our military, cancer survivors, and inspiration for athletes. I got a t-shirt that has parts of the athletes creed to help me push through to improve my runs.

I also got to meet the Season 10 Top Finality of the Biggest Loser, Elizabeth Ruiz. Elizabeth is a hometown girl from Lawrence that changed her life when she got on the show, and through her lessons with Jillian Michaels, she is now a personal trainer at Boston Sports Club in Andover. We had a nice talk about her experience on the show and what she learned. She is an inspiration to show people that you can make positive changes in your life in regards to your eating habits and exercise plans. I hope to join her on a run sometime soon! You can learn more about Elizabeth at www.elizabethruiz.me.

At the end of the race, I had the chance to meet Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown who also ran in the race. This was my second meeting with Scott, and it was great to see him mingling with people and then handing out the awards to all the top recipients of each age category!

Once again, this was an amazing event, and to learn more about this local event for Homes for Our Troops, please visit the run website at: http://www.bsrs-timing.com/troops/index.shtml.

Miss Pink Pageant 2012

Well, for my 2012 St. Patrick's Day, I celebrated the Pink! As many know, Breast Cancer Awareness and the Importance of Early Detection has been my platform of choice since losing my mother to this disease in 2007. The Miss Pink Pageant was started in 2010 by Ashley Shultz (I am proud to say a pageant sister from the International Pageant system) to celebrate the amazing stories of Survivorship of Breast Cancer! Miss Pink 2010, Trish Grzela served as one of the judges tonight, and she is someone who exemplifies the spirit of Survivorship! I met Trish in 2010 making an appearance to raise funds for Bella Tucker! Although we don't see each other often enough, when we do, we remember our connection to the cause of Breast Cancer Awareness and that appearance for Bella! Donna Wadden, Miss Pink 2011 gave up her crown this evening, and it was amazing to see her take the stage with the pride and love of her two sons walking her for her final walk. The year for Donna has been one of glory by winning the crown of Miss Pink, and also a journey to her fourth diagnosis of meta-static breast cancer. To hear her story and see the love and support of so many around her was absolutely amazing! Miss Pink 2012 is Kristen Wood! Kristen represents the younger generation of women being diagnosed with Breast Cancer, being diagnosed at the age of 34. Hearing her story of being a personal trainer, taking care of herself with physical activity and eating well, brings to light that this is a disease that does not discriminate and can choose anyone at any age and stage of their life. I am so excited to follow Kristen's journey as she shares how health and wellness helped her along the road to survirship, now at the age of 36, and giving women hope to help them become stronger both mentally and physically as they work their way to beating this disease!

It was a great night seeing old pageant friends and meeting a new one too! Elizabeth Ensko competed in this past Miss Massachusetts USA Pageant. She entered for the fun of it, and to also represent a young woman who is a Breast Cancer Survivor. Elizabeth should have been on that stage this evening as she has an incredible story, but I know that the road ahead for her is a bright one as she works to educate young women and be an example that it is possible to beat Breast Cancer, but you need to ensure you know how to conduct your own breast self examinations, know your body, and seek the help you need when something just doesn't seem right!

Thank you again to Ashley and Nick Shultz for giving such an incredible opportunity and hope for women to shine and show everyone what Survivorship is all about and to bring awareness to this cause!

Valentine's Day - Spread the Love

My first official appearance with my Northeast Outstanding Mom title was a very special one on Valentine's Day! The message was "Spread the Love". We started t 9:30a.m. at Dracut Elementary School where students assembled in the gym to welcome the special guests who would later deliver all the cards they made to the VA Hospital in Bedford, MA.

Special Guests included:

Canaligator (Lowell Spinners Mascot)

Mario & Luigi from Super Mario Bros

Damon Amendolara (Sports Hub 98.5 FM)

Chief Master Sergeant Baird Stiefel from the 66th Air Force Base

John Tudor (Former Boston Red Sox Pitcher)

Jane Marshall (Northeast's Outstanding Mom 2012)

Jennifer Hardy (Mrs. Massachusetts America 2011)

Molly Wahlen (Miss Massachusetts America 2011)

UML Hockey Players

Lowell Spinners Front Office representatives

It was great to see the kids so excited to meet their guests, hand in the cards they made, sign autographs, and pose for many pictures with them. Then it was off to the VA Hospital in Bedford to attend an assembly and learn more about volunteering at the VA Hopsital. There were so many decorated veterans there, and I am so proud to know that our country is protected by such outstanding individuals from many years ago all the way to the present. We then headed off to personally hand out the Valentine's cards made by the Dracut Elementary School students and some heart shaped balloons. It was so rewarding to see the smiles on these Veteran's faces. One man by the name of John held my hand and thanked me, in his words, "it often gets very lonely here, so thank you to you people for coming to see us!". This opened my eyes further to the real reason why we were there, and I look forward to volunteering on a regular basis to help make a difference in even just one Veteran's life even if it is only for a short time. These people sacrifice so much to protect our country and our lives on a daily basis, the lease I and we can do for them is to give just a little bit of our time to them to let them know how much we appreciate all they have done for the United States of America. Today was a day where not only was I proud of our youth for their giving enthusiasm, but also of our Military Staff! The future is bright! If you would like to look into volunteering at the Bedford VA Hospital, please visit: www.bedford.va.gov/giving.

A very special Thank You to Jon Goode and the Lowell Spinners Organiztion for coordinating such great event!

A New Chapter - Northeast's Outstanding Mom

Well, I am honored to have been chosen to represent the Northeast in the Oustanding Mom Pageant this June. This is a pageant that is unlike any other pageant I have ever been involved in as the primary focus is about being a mom and also being active in your community. Being a mom has been the most rewarding and blessed experience I have ever had in my life, and I look forward to sharing this opportunity with my daughter as much as I can by attending events together and brining her into the community. I am excited to see what new opportunities lie ahead as well as continuing to work with those charities and causes that are closest to my heart.