The last two weeks of summer

Greetings Friends!

The last two weeks of September were a whirlwind!  As soon as I flew back into Orlando from my trip to Washington D.C., I was in a car traveling to St. Petersburg for a weekend full of appearances.

On Saturday, the 17th, I drove from St. Petersburg to Tarpon Springs to meet with the Boys and Girls Club of Tarpon Springs, the Green Education Foundation, and members of Amway to partake in the kids' "Positive Sprout" project.  

"The Amway Global Positive Sprouts project invites community volunteers to teach kids how to start and maintain their own edible gardens. An accompanying educational curriculum will educate youngsters about nutrition, organic gardening practices, and cooking from the garden."

I had the best time helping the kids plant their very own garden of tomatoes, onions, and marigolds!

That same night, the Miss Florida Board of Directors, Rachael Todd (Miss Florida 2009), Jaclyn Raulerson (Miss Florida 2010), and some friends went out to dinner.  It was so much fun to just relax and share stories!

The next day was the Miss Florida franchise meeting, all of the local executive directors were in attendance.  Rachel Strever, our new Miss Florida's Outsanding Teen came with her family to have her first official meeting with Mary.  I was so excited for her when she signed her contract and received her official crown and sash.  I couldn't be more proud to call her my sister queen.

Rachel and I received a heartwarming welcome as we were introduced at the Franchise meeting.  I was given the opportunity to speak about my experiences as Miss Florida thus far and about my Miss America preparations.

The following day, Monday the 19th, Mary, Keith who is our Chairman of the Board, and I attended meetings throughout the city.  After our meetings we each set out on our separate ways for home.  

That Thursday, the 22nd, I spoke at the Challenger Learning Center in Osceola County.  As I drove towards the school, I was pleasantly surprised to see a "Welcome Miss Florida" sign posted on their bulletin board!  The teachers had rounded up 175 students to listen to my speech about character building, goal setting, the Miss America Organization, and my platform: America's Wake Up Call - Protect Our Environment.  The students were so attentive and when the floor was opened up to questions they peppered me with many of them!

I was up early the next morning for a photo shoot with Deanna Meredith.  My make up was done by her friend, Carrie, who was an absolute joy to work with!  The photo shoot was a blast as Deanna took me to different outdoor locations.  I can't wait to see how they turned out!

Sunday, the 25th, my sister, Samantha, and I met with Cathy Droke, the Executive Director of the Greater Orlando Children's Miracle Network for an appearance in Downtown Orlando.  The appearance was for a walk hosted by an organization called B.A.P.S., which stands for Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha.  B.A.P.S. is a socio-spiritual Hindu organization.  The people who were in attendance were so hospitable and were so excited to have my sister and I there!  I was given the opportunity to greet the people and to release balloons which signified the kick off of the walk.  

The following day, I spoke at my Alma Mater, Bishop Moore Catholic High School's Ecology Club.  I spoke to them about my platform and also spoke about the benefits for the Miss America Organization and the importance of character building and goal setting.

September 21st marked the first day of Autumn...well for most states...haha...Florida will catch up eventually.  The past two weeks were filled a load of fun and hard work!  I am looking forward to sharing more stories with you as my journeys as Miss Florida 2011 continue :-)

Stay tuned!

Kristina

Green Tip: If you have the option, choose fresh vegetables over canned or frozen ones.  Freezing and canning fresh vegetables in the United States uses about three billion kilowatt-hours of energy per year, which is enough power to light every light bulb in the state of New York for three years!  When in season, fresh vegetables can also cost less than canned or frozen varieties.