Miss & Teen Hollywood USA Pageant

Yesterday I had the honor of being a judge at the Miss & Teen Hollywood USA Pageant. My fellow judges were a blast to be around and they made the entire experience a memorable one. The first area of competition was the panel interview that was held in the morning. What a hard job! I now understand the pressure that judges have on them in finding the right canidate for the title. That night the girls competed in the 3 other areas of competition; swimwear, formal wear and on-stage question. All of the contestants did a fabulous job but at the end of the night there can only be two titleholders. I am proud to announce that the new Miss Hollywood USA 2011 is Nia Sanchez and the new Miss Hollywood Teen USA 2011 is Chloe Keller. Congratulations ladies! Additionally I would like to thank the director of this amazing pageant, Toay, for asking me to judge and be a part of this amazing pageant.

Hacienda Heights KIWINS

Today I spoke at Glen A Wilson High School in Hacienda Heights. Kiwins from several surrounding schools attended to hear about my background, the challenges I have faced, and the choices I have made not to be a statistic. This particular speaking engagement went really well. At one point it seemed like everyone had their hand up to ask a question. At the end of the event Luggage of Love implemented a coin collection jar program with the
different Kiwins groups in attendance. In total 25 jars were distributed. I am very excited about this program and can not wait to see its results. A big thanks to all those who attended and asked so many interesting questions. Thanks for taking the time to inquire and learn about how you can make a difference.

Lunch with Marion Witte

I was able to spend a glorious afternoon catching up with a wonderful lady, Marion Witte. She is a fellow former abused child, a children's rights advocate, founder of The Angel Heart Foundation, and author of "Little Madhouse On The Prairie: A True-Life Story of Overcoming Abuse and Healing the Spirit". It was wonderful to share my current goals and ambitions for Luggage of Love with Marion and to hear about her new calling of helping children by focusing her efforts on re-education through parenting. Marion is such an inspiring woman and I am so fortunate to have her in my life.

Another Pallet of Love

It always warms my heart when people take time to help Luggage of Love and the many children in transition today. Together with the help of a few volunteers, we packed up a load of luggage headed into the hands of many deserving children. This pallet was sent up North to the Placer County Emergency Children's Shelter, and the whole process was documented by a special guest photographer from Brooks Institute, Suzanne Tylander. Suzanne selected Luggage of Love for her photo story project and she was able to capture amazing photos of our entire packaging and shipping process. Thanks you Suzanne and my wonderful volunteers who helped make today possible!