Sunday, April 7, 2013

The Class of 2013

Last night I attended the last local pageant of the 2013 season. Can you believe it? Time has really flown by. I know that it's hard to remember who is who in the Pageant World, but don't worry. I've got you covered. Below is a list of what girl is holding what title. I can't wait to see them all at Kickoff on April 28th!

  1.  Miss Limberlost........................................Caitlin Moore
  2.  Miss Harvest Homecoming........................Rebecca Davis
  3.  Miss Northeast..........................................Kaitlin Karr
  4.  Miss White River.......................................Gabrielle Bunn
  5.  Miss Northwest Territory...........................Alyssa Slater
  6.  Miss Three Rivers Festival..........................Taylor Knox
  7.  Miss South Central.....................................Courtney Jurick
  8.  Miss IPFW.................................................Okara Imani
  9.  Miss Indiana State University.......................Kyla Eubank
  10.  Miss Vincennes University............................Laura Merida
  11.  Miss Metropolitan........................................Hannah Clingan
  12.  Miss Southern Heartland..............................Lauren Mnayarji
  13.  Miss Central................................................Gracie Lyons
  14.  Miss South Bend.........................................Megan Layne
  15.  Miss Kosciusko...........................................Shana Patel
  16.  Miss Crossroads to America........................Presley Moreland
  17.  Miss Ball State University.............................Megan Thwaites
  18.  Miss Banks of the Wabash...........................Ayanna Sykes
  19.  Miss West Central........................................Christen Lord
  20.  Miss Purdue University.................................Lexie Costa
  21.  Miss Indiana University.................................Terrin Thomas
  22.  Miss Collegiate Indy.....................................Marisa Beaty
  23.  Miss Fort Wayne..........................................Lindsay Carden
  24.  Miss Elkhart County.....................................Emily Mischler
  25.  Miss Hoosier Heartland................................Brittany Winchester
  26.  Miss Haynes-Apperson Festival....................Zarah Mumaw
  27.  Miss Duneland..............................................Rachael Bazzell
  28.  Miss Collegiate North...................................Sunee Fleshman
  29.  Miss Huntington............................................Sara Alford
  30.  Miss Indiana South........................................Erin O'Brien
  31.  Miss Heart of Indiana....................................Gretchen Reece
  32.  Miss Wabash Valley......................................Audra Casterline

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Could 1423 be our new lucky number?

We often hear about bullying in the news and some of us think that it's something that only happens locally or just statewide. In reality, it happens NATIONwide. This is some serious business that deserves some serious solutions. Are we doing what it takes to stop this nationwide epidemic? Are we taking a step in the right direction? They say it only takes one person to make a difference. But, yesterday, it was more than just one person.

Danielle Green from West Lafayette went to the Statehouse in support of House Bill 1423 on Wednesday. For those of you who don't know what this House Bill is, I'll give you the skinny: House Bill 1423 requires school districts to track and report the nature of bullying incidents in an annual performance report. It also requires school employees, volunteers, and students to be educated on bullying prevention and schools would have to share information on bulling investigation procedures with students and parents.

Now that you know all of that, you should also know how effective this House Bill will be. Educating teachers and students is an extraordinary step in fixing the problem of school safety and violence.

Angel Green, daughter of Danielle Green, the woman you read about a little earlier, committed suicide because of bullying. She wrote a note to her mother stating "P.S. it's bullying that killed me. Please get justice." Guess what? She was only 14.

Danielle wasn't the only mother in this stand, Lana Swoape, mother to Tori, who, like Angel, committed suicide because of bullying when she was 15.

It's important for us to see the severity in bullying. Over 73% of people are bystanders to bullying. Kids lead by example and it's dire that we target those kids. I truly believe that if we all stand together, we can do this, we can conquer this. House Bill 1423 might be our saving grace.

Monday, April 1, 2013

Surprise Homecomming

It's not very often that you're a witness to something amazing. But, in my case, this weekend I was.

I took a trip to Chicago for the very first time this weekend. The first day there, I decided to take a train to downtown East Chicago. As I was waiting to get on the train, I noticed a beautiful pregnant woman with what looked to be her mom and dad and her in-laws waiting to get on the train, as well. I couldn't help but overhear the woman say that this was her first time to Chicago and hoped that she brought enough money. I told her that this was my first time, too, and we talked a little bit, and I really thought nothing of it.

As I was turned talking to my friend, the train we were to get on came rolling in. There were people getting off the train, and I noticed a man in his Army greens getting off the train with some luggage, the soldier was coming home. In the bustle of people getting on and climbing off, I also noticed the pregnant woman drop to her knees in surprise. There were tears flowing down her face in shock. The soldier was her husband! Her family had told her they were taking her to Chicago, and instead, her husband came home from Afghanistan.

The man who looked like her dad (which I later found out it was) came over when he saw me crying. It was such a moving moment. The woman found out she was pregnant a week after her husband left, her dad told me, and she is 6 months pregnant. I walked over and congratulated the woman, and shook the man's hand and told him how thankful I was for his service. He told me he graduated college with a degree in engineering and never imagined he would be defending his country. He said somethings in life that are unplanned, or come as a shock to us, are the best moments in life. What amazing words, I thought.

I just had to share this moment with you all. The weekend in Chicago was so much fun, but this was the best part, by far. We don't know how fortunate we are when it comes to safety in the US. These men and women leave their families, friends, EVERYTHING to fight and defend our country. I plead with all of you reading this; when, or if, you ever see a service man/woman, take time and thank them. You won't regret it.