The Journey

It was just yesterday (actually it was exactly a year ago) when i was the little 18 year old girl with the dream of one day becoming Miss Brainerd Lakes, Miss Minnesota and perhaps one day Miss America. I had never worn makeup before, never worn high heels for longer than an hour, and to be honest i had never even been to the Miss Brainerd Lakes Pageant. Looking back on those moments i cannot believe the woman i have become and gown into through these past 340 days. I now have had the opportunity to have gone to all but a few of the local pageants in Minnesota, i can multitask and apply makeup while i am also blow drying my hair, and i can walk in heels every day of the week! These may seem like very large accomplishments for a small town hockey player, but to me they are only minor details of the year that has too quickly passed. Other than learning these key elements of being a woman, i also had many opportunities to become involved and have a voice in the community. Not only the voice of a young woman, but a voice that people wanted to hear and had the power to make a difference. As Miss Brainerd Lakes I was involved in many events such as the 4Th of July parades and festivities, all of the homecoming events, including the 2008 Brainerd Lakes Walk For Diabetes. I was also active at the Crow Wing County Fair, volunteering for a Builders Association whose goal was to raise money and awareness about diabetes. In my spare time not in the booth, i was judging competitions in the animal barns, helping with the talent contest, and just hanging out with the kids who had come to enjoy a day at the fair. With my platform being diabetes I also had the opportunity to speak to local businesses, such as the YMCA, that have after school programs and children involved in those programs who have diabetes, educating them about diabetes and what they can do to help those children have better control over their diabetes. Later in the year i spent some of my time volunteering at the Diabetes Expo greeting and welcoming people of all ages to a community dedicated to diabetes. I think some of the most inspiring things i have done this year though, have not been my appearances or the times that i have enjoyed volunteering but instead in the opportunities that i have had to support and encourage both a newly diagnosed boy in California and the family of an infant girl who was diagnosed with diabetes. It is amazing what a simple letter to a young boy who wonders if he too will be able to play baseball like i played hockey, or what a phone call can do for a father with ailing nerves about his young daughter. Those are the experiences that have changed my life forever. Now, with preparing for Miss Minnesota, i can only imagine where the road will lead me next! I am so excited to meet with all of the girls again and begin a week of fun and preparation for the Big Night. Until then i will continue to tan, work out, practice my talent, continue to teach my hockey legs how to walk in high heels and just enjoy the short time i have left as Miss Brainerd Lakes 2008.