Providing Hope for Haiti

It is hard to believe that it has been over a month since the earthquake hit Haiti. Just seeing the images on the news is a constant reminder of how this country is suffering. Despite all the relief efforts, it is prevalent that the country is still in complete devastation. I first heard of the earthquake at work through a co-worker. My workplace consists of a melting pot of employees. We have people from all over the world working at the facility, including those from Haiti. My heart broke when I found out that several co-workers had family members in Haiti and had no idea of their whereabouts. Some eventually found out they had lost a brother, a father, cousins, aunts, and uncles. One co-worker, in particular, has her whole family living in Haiti including her husband who runs an orphanage in Port-Au-Prince. Impacted by these distraught men and women who waited patiently to hear anything from their loved ones, I felt that I had to do something to help the relief efforts.

For the past six weeks, I have been collecting donations from co-workers to aid the earthquake victims. Through my involvement with the Rotary Clubs as Miss Staten Island and now as Miss Richmond County, I knew they would be doing something as well for the relief efforts for Haiti. I contacted the Staten Island Rotary Club and found out that they were collecting donations that will be distributed to the Rotary Clubs in Haiti, which are endeavoring to help those in need. The Rotary Clubs in Haiti are paying for plane fuel so special flights can bring needed goods, medical supplies, and medical specialists to the island country. The Rotarians will be unloading and distributing the supplies that are being donated. This is expected to be a long-term assistance effort.

In aid of the earthquake victims in Haiti, the Staten Island Rotary Foundation has announced it will match up to $2,500 in donations received by the organization. I have been able to raise $625 in donations for the Rotary Clubs in Haiti. The Staten Island Rotary Club matched the donation, bringing the total to $1,250. This was the first donation the club has received thus far. It was rewarding to be able to organize my own relief effort and make a difference for a country in desperate need for hope.

Oh, and in case you were wondering...Yoli, my co-worker, found out several days later that her whole family was alive and that the orphanage was still intact with all the children surviving.

At the Staten Island Rotary Club

Speaking to the Rotary

Presenting the check to John Amodio, Vice President of TD Bank on Staten Island and Rotarian

Save Haiti's Children

Tonight I attended the Save Haiti's Children's Benefit Concert at All Saints Episcopal Church. I saw the event advertised in the Staten Island Advance and thought this would be a great way to show my support for the people in Haiti who have been devastated by the aftermaths of the earthquake. With general admission being a tax-deductible donation, my family and I enjoyed a night full of love songs, Broadway and pop music, poetry, and readings by some of New York's extremely talented performers that included Maria DeSantis, Miss America's Outstanding Teen 2007, and Alexandra Mazzucchelli, Miss New York's Outstanding Teen 2008. All proceeds were distributed to God's Littlest Angels and Partner's in Health.

Alexandra Mazzucchelli

Maria DeSantis

God's Littlest Angels is a non-profit organization founded on Christmas Day 1994. Its mission is to save the lives of Haitian infants who are in need of intensive nursing care and nutritional support. There are two houses in Haiti: the main house for babies up to two years old and the toddler house for children up to age seven. For more information on how you can help this Haitian baby ministry please visit http://www.glahaiti.org/.

Partners in Health was founded in 1987 to deliver health care to the village of Cange, Haiti. The mission of this non-profit organization is to provide a preferential option for the poor in health care focusing on patient care, program administration, drug procurement, technical assistance, and fundraising. Besides Haiti, Partners in Health is active in Peru, Lesotho, Malawi, Russia, Rwanda, Mexico, Guatemala, and parts of the United States. To learn more about this organization please visit www.standwithhaiti.org/haiti.

After the concert with Maria and Alex

National Wear Red Day

On February 5th, women all across the country will be wearing something red for National Wear Red Day. The American Heart Association's Go Red for Women campaign helps bring the awareness of heart disease, the number one killer in women.

Make sure you spread the awareness by wearing red all day!

I wore my red at work today...I hope you did too!

Miss America- The Final Night

We finally have a new Miss America!!! This has been an amazing week full of excitement and insightful tips for the future. Here is the rundown on how the final night at the Miss America Pageant went (just in case you missed the TV airing):

TOP 15 (Swimsuit Competition):

Miss Oklahoma, Taylor Treat
Miss Arkansas, Sarah Slocum
Miss Kentucky, Mallory Ervin
Miss Tennessee, Stefanie Wittler
Miss Colorado, Katie Layman
Miss California, Kristy Cavinder
Miss Indiana, Nicole Pollard
Miss Hawaii, Raeceen Woolford
Miss Louisiana, Katherine Putnam
Miss District of Columbia, Jen Corey
Miss New Mexico, Nicole Miner
Miss Virginia, Caressa Cameron
Miss Texas, Kristen Blair
Miss Nebraska, Brittany Jeffers
Miss Oregon, CC Barber

TOP 12 (Evening Wear Competition):

Miss Oklahoma, Taylor Treat
Miss Kentucky, Mallory Ervin
Miss Tennessee, Stefanie Wittler
Miss Colorado, Katie Layman
Miss California, Kristy Cavinder
Miss Hawaii, Raeceen Woolford
Miss Louisiana, Katherine Putnam
Miss District of Columbia, Jen Corey
Miss New Mexico, Nicole Miner
Miss Virginia, Caressa Cameron
Miss Texas, Kristen Blair
Miss Nebraska, Brittany Jeffers

TOP 10 (Talent Competition):
Miss Kentucky, Mallory Ervin

Miss Tennessee, Stefanie Wittler

Miss California, Kristy Cavinder

Miss Hawaii, Raeceen Woolford

Miss Louisiana, Katherine Putnam

Miss District of Columbia, Jen Corey

Miss New Mexico, Nicole Miner

Miss Virginia, Caressa Cameron

Miss Texas, Kristen Blair

Miss Nebraska, Brittany Jeffers

Top 7 (On Stage Question):

Miss Kentucky, Mallory Ervin

Miss Tennessee, Stefanie Wittler

Miss California, Kristy Cavinder

Miss Hawaii, Raeceen Woolford

Miss Louisiana, Katherine Putnam

Miss New Mexico, Nicole Miner

Miss Virginia, Caressa Cameron

Based on the total scores of the competitions and the final ballot, the judges determined who could do the job of Miss America. This was the end result:

4th Runner-Up: Miss Kentucky, Mallory Ervin

3rd Runner-Up: MissLouisiana, Katherine Putnam

2nd Runner-Up: Miss Tennessee, Stefanie Wittler

1st Runner-Up: Miss California, Kristy Cavinder

And the new MISS AMERICA is..... Miss Virginia, Caressa Cameron!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am so happy for Caressa because she has been working towards this goal her whole life. She has been developing and promoting her platform, Real Talk: Aids in America, since she was thirteen years old. This is the same platform she had when we competed at Miss Teen America in 2005 (I competed at the pageant as Miss New York Teen America; Caressa was Miss Nation's Capital Teen America). She is such an inspiration to all of us.

THEN: Caressa and I at the Miss Teen America Pageant with a few other contestants

NOW: Caressa Cameron at her first appearance as Miss America 2010

We cannot forget about Miss New York. I am so proud of Alyse for everything she has accomplished this year. She is doing a wonderful job representing all of us. I wish her continued success as Miss New York.

All you need is LOVE

My Mom and I finally got a chance to leave the Planet Hollywood Hotel and see all that Las Vegas has to offer. Since we had the day off from pageantry, we walked down the Vegas strip to the Mirage Hotel. The plan for today was to spent some time with my performing arts teacher Maria Militair. She was the Head of the Performing Arts Department at Moore Catholic High School for many years. She moved to Las Vegas right after my senior year of high school to work for Cirque du Soleil. She is such an amazing woman who is committed to the arts. Her productions were always at a professional level. FAME, Gypsy (I played Dainty June), and Footloose (I played Urleen) are just some of the many productions I performed in under her direction. Just watching these shows on video reminds me that she constantly took these high school productions to a new level. Her legacy still remains that she turned the Moore Catholic Performing Arts Institute into the best high school performing arts program on Staten Island.

One of my mentors: Maria Militair

Ms. Militair works in the costume and wig departments for the Cirque du Soleil Beatles LOVE show. She took my Mom and I on an exclusive backstage tour. It was incredible seeing all the departments, props, costumes, make-up, and the actually stage up close and personal. I could not believe how HUGE the backstage area was! New York City theatres cannot compare to the amount of space the area has. There is so much room for quick chances of costumes and props. We were taken to the basement of the theatre where there was another backstage area! There were cushions all over the place, which are used when the performers fall through the stage during the show. There is even a gym and dance studio for the performers to practice their craft. After the tour, we stopped at the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace for some much needed shopping. We headed back to the Mirage that evening for dinner with Ms. Militair.

The night could not be completed without seeing the show. We had the best seats in the house compliments to Ms. Militair. The show was outstanding! The dancers and acrobats were incredible. The stamina these performers have is extraordinary. It was great to see this concept of the Beatles' influential music come to life. Well, the night sadly is over and it is back to pageant world. Remember to tune in to TLC at 8PM tomorrow night to see Katie Stam crown the next Miss America!

Miss America Preliminary Night Three

My mom and I decided to kick off the day by watching the contestants rehearse for the final night of Miss America. Well...they mainly sat around while the technical crew worked out all the lighting and music cues. However, we did get to see them walk through their blocking for Top 15 Swimsuit Competition and Top 10 Evening Wear Competition. It was an insightful experience to get a chance to see what happens behind the scenes at Miss America.

Tonight's preliminary competition was the best night out of all three preliminaries. That is due to the exceptional hosting skills of Dena Blizzard, Miss New Jersey 1995. The last time I saw her host a pageant was at the Miss New Jersey Pageant this past June. She is absolutely hysterical!!! She created her own little pageant for the judges that turned out to be the highlight of the whole night. She judged them on their ability to "connect with the people" with the waving competition. Next, she judges them on their ability to answer questions. The final competition was based on their dancing abilities. The first runner up was Vivica A. Fox, who received a Las Vegas picture frame with a cut out picture of herself and Dena Blizzard. And the winner was....Rush Limbaugh due to his fantastic dance moves and fist pumping. He could not be crowned Miss America, so he was named Mr. New Jersey instead. Also during the night, Sam Haskell, Chairman of the Board of Directors for Miss America, honored Lynda Mead, Miss America 1960, on her momentous fiftieth anniversary of being crowned Miss America.

Alyse performed her talent tonight and did a great job. She performed a Ballet en Pointe to Christina Aguilera's "Fighter". She looked amazing in her black tutu and pointe shoes. It was a powerful routine that showed off her technique. However, Nicole Blaszczyk, Miss Michigan, won the preliminary talent award for her contemporary dance performance to the song "Lifetime". It was one of the greatest talents I have ever seen grace the Miss America stage. The technique she had during her routine was effortless, especially with her turns, flexibility, and leaps. It was truly a talent you would want to see again (I know I did). CC Barber, Miss Oregon, was the preliminary swimsuit winner. That is a wrap on the 2010 Miss America Preliminaries. Can't wait until Saturday night to see who will be the new Katie Stam!!!!

Claire Buffie, Miss Jubilee 2009 and fellow Miss New York Class of 2009 queen

Kara Jae Kowalski, Miss New York's Outstanding Teen 2009 and Brenna Weick, Miss New Jersey's Outstanding Teen 2009

Ashley Shaffer, Miss New Jersey 2009

CC Barber, Miss Oregon 2009

Nicole Blaszczyk, Miss Michigan 2009

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MISS NEW YORK! Miss America Preliminary Night Two

Did you know I was suppose to be on EXTRA tonight??? Ok so here is the rundown of my very interesting morning...I was on my way to the gym when an EXTRA reporter stopped me and asked me if I watch American Idol. At first, I thought he was some crazy guy but I realized he was legit when I saw the camera and EXTRA microphone. I responded, "Yes?" (not sure what he wanted). He was shooting a segment that dealt with what happened on American Idol last night. Apparently, Katy Perry and Cara got into a heated argument and wanted people who were at the Planet Hollywood to comment on it. I decided to go with the flow and went with him to Starbucks in the hotel to shoot my response. Here is a little inside scoop: the question segments are all staged! There was a list of answers that had to be said. So I picked "Katy looked genuinely annoyed with Cara, and plus I think Cara is a little annoying to me." I had fun with the segment. The reporter told me he had to find three more people before a certain deadline in order for the segment to air....well it looks like he did not find three other people because my family from New York told me they showed the fight from American Idol but never showed the questioning piece. Oh well =( ...at least I can say I have been interviewed by EXTRA.

Andrea Plummer, Miss New York 2001

Back to Miss America! My Mom and I spent some time at the Miss America Trade Show. Everything pageantry is at the trade show. This gives contestants an opportunity look for gowns, shoes, jewelry, accessories, etc. Some companies present at the trade show were Red Carpet Pageant and Prom Gowns, Regalia, Crown Clips, and Aliz International.

Kara Jae Kowalski, Miss New York's Outstanding Teen 2009

Tonight was the second night of preliminaries and I knew it was going to be a great night. Alyse competed in swimsuit and evening wear (her strongest phases of competition). And she did not disappoint. She looked INCREDIBLE in both competitions. Her body looked amazing in swimsuit. Her confidence was so dominant over the other contestants. And her evening gown...S-T-U-N-N-I-N-G!!! She wore a purple couture gown that looks amazing on her. She worked that gown so well. It was definitely the most unique out of the whole pageant thus far.

RaeceenWoolford, Miss Hawaii 2009

Finally, it was time to announce the winners...."and the swimsuit preliminary winner is....Miss New York Alyse Zwick!" I just remember screaming my head off when her name was announced. I am so happy for her! Also, Miss California, Kristy Cavinder, won the preliminary talent award for her Ballet en Pointe to the Slave Maiden Variation from "Le Corsaire". It was a technical and powerful routine. However, it was hard to pick a winner because all the talents tonight were on point.

Alyse Zwick, Miss New York 2009

Kristy Cavinder, Miss California 2009

Finally, I want to wish Alyse a very Happy Birthday!!! What a great birthday present: Swimsuit Preliminary Winner!