JULY 25, 2006
JACOB WETTERLING FOUNDATION SPEAKER AT EDEN PARK (BROOKLYN PARK, MN)

I gave three child safety presentations to K-3rd grade, 4-6th grade, and 7-8th grade at the Eden Park Apartments in Brooklyn Park as part of their community education outreach progam. The kids were great and had some really good questions. Unfortunately, child sexual exploitation is the #1 reason why children are abducted in the first place, so it is a delicate but important subject to talk about. Many people think that "strangers" are who abduct kids, when in fact 90% of the time, it is someone that the child already knows at least casually and TRUSTS. The five main points I teach to kids are: 1) Each child is SPECIAL (kids w/ high self-esteem and confidence are less likely to be lured into a dangerous situation), 2) No one has the right to hurt them or touch them in a bad way (I talk about "good touch" versus "bad touch") , 3) If they are being hurt or abused, it is NEVER their fault (many times child predators will tell the child they did something to "deserve it"), 4) If they are being hurt or abused, they need to TELL SOMEONE, and keep on telling until someone listens, and 5) CHECK FIRST! My main advice to parents to talk about staying safe EARLY and OFTEN. If you're interested in learning more, please visit www.jwf.org or feel free to contact me.

PHOTOS:
1) Posing with the youngest group.
2) Acting silly with the kids!

JULY 22, 2006
CHILD ID & SAFETY EVENT SPONSORED BY THE JACOB WETTERLING FOUNDATION, GREEN MILL PIZZA, AND TOYS R US (ROCHESTER, MN)

I'm very involved with the Jacob Wetterling Foundation as a Board Member and Senior-Level Member of their Speaker's Bureau, and as a result, I help with things like Child ID events such as this one that was held in Rochester. The Green Mill generously donated pizza and members of the Byron (MN) Women of Today donated their time in helping with the Child ID portion of the event. We raised just over $10,000 and many children got their ID info, which is information that EVERY parent should have (NOTE: you need to update this info at least every year and keep it in a safe but easily accessible place in case you should ever need it).

PHOTOS:
1) In the Toys R Us lobby where I "directed traffic" out to our Child ID station.
2) With some of the the hardworking Byron Women of Today volunteers. Thanks ladies!

JULY 22, 2006
MRS. MINNESOTA "WELCOME DINNER"

My official "welcome dinner" was graciously organized by Jane O'Hearn and was attended by a number of former Mrs. Minnesotas and their husbands, including my State Directors Faith (Mrs. Minnesota 1985) & Carl Schway. My "sister" queens from Georgia, Iowa, and Wisconsin were in attendance as well. Jane had created a wonderful photo collage of the pageant weekend, and Dennis & Cheryl Trainor (pageant volunteers extraordinaire) had made a pageant photo DVD that played throughout the party. Many of the formers lent their advice (which was much appreciated!) and a special highlight was a personalized cake with my photo on it! I was honored and humbled to be welcomed in to such an amazing pageant "family." Thank you to Jane and everyone who made this a night to remember!

PHOTOS:
1) The personalized cake Faith brought.
2) My husband Matt & I.
3) Matt & I with State Directors Carl & Faith Schway.
4) Former Mrs. Minnesotas in attendance (L toR): Mary Johnson ('82), Faith Schway ('85), Cyndi Mack ('00), me, Jane O'Hearn, Tami Krause ('03), Kim Dorn ('05), Robin Duffney ('95)
5) L to R: Pageant staff members Dennis Trainor, Jane O'Hearn (Welcome Dinner organizer), me, and Cheryl Trainor. They are invaluable assets to the pageant! Thanks for all that you do!
6) "Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil, and...???" L to R: Katie Scott (Mrs. IA), Robin Mason (Mrs. GA), me, and Shannon Martin (Mrs. WI) goofing around after dinner.
7) Robin (Mrs. GA) and I...future roommates!

JULY 20, 2006
PHOTO SHOOT WITH PHOTOGRAPHER PAULA PRESTON

I had my good friend Paula Preston take some fun photos. My hubby Matt brought our daughter Ava along later in the shoot for some fun family shots, which I think turned out great. Our little one was an angel and really turned on the charm when the camera was shooting. She sure is a ham! Thank you Paula for the great photos and thanks to Sarah Moses for the great clothes!

JULY 9, 2006
HAMEL RODEO DAYS PARADE (HAMEL, MN)

My hubby Matt, daughter Ava, and I headed to Hamel, MN for the Rodeo Days parade. The weather was perfect and all went well until my car drove by our daughter. At first she was fascinated by seeing "Mama" in the parade, but as my car moved on, she did NOT like that one bit and let us all know. Luckily it was toward the end of the route, so we were reunited shortly thereafter. SO CUTE! (not that I'm biased or anything...)

PHOTO: Just before the parade started...what a beautiful day!

JULY 6, 2006
NORTHSTAR MORGAN HORSE SHOW

My good friend Sarah Moses (owner of The Pageant Shop) asked me to sing the National Anthem at the Northstar Morgan Horse Show. I also handed out a few awards and we got to watch Sarah's new horse get shown in his driving class. Fun!

PHOTOS:
1) L to R: Sarah Moses, the ringmaster John Frye, and myself in the show ring.
2) L to R: My good friend Sue Brown, Sarah Moses, my then 20-month-old daughter Ava, and I enjoying the show.

JULY 4, 2006
FOURTH OF JULY PARADE (DELANO, MN)

I had the honor of riding in the largest 4th of July Parade in the state of Minnesota, held in Delano, MN. According to a parade official, there were over 20,000+ spectators! It was a REALLY hot day but spirits were high. My driver was the delightful Ellie Rux, whom I enjoyed chatting with during the parade route. Happy 4th of July!

PHOTOS:
1) L to R: Catching up with Megan Ehlert (Miss Teen MN Int'l 2006) & Angela Haseman (Mrs. MN Int'l 2006)
2) Ellie Rux generously donates her time and car for the parade
3) Talking with friend and US Congressional candidate Patty Wetterling