CMN Radiothon and More!

Hello friends!

What a wonderful weekend I had at Shands Hospital in Gainesville. On Friday I participated in the last day of the Children's Miracle Network Radiothon and was able to visit some of the children. I learned a lot about CMN and its impact on the lives of children and families all over the state. Seeing the personal testimonies made me very proud of the partnership between MAO and CMN. In total, the Radiothon raised over $240,000!!

On Sunday me, Courtney, and six local "Miss" titleholders were back at Shands for the CMN Art Day. It was so nice to see my fellow Miss Florida sisters! We mingled with the children and helped them paint their blues away! Once again, it was a great opportunity to interact with the children and families on a personal level. The art will be auctioned off on October 30th as another fundraiser for CMN. What a neat idea! I painted the "sun" on a big wooden puzzle and then autographed the back in hopes to attract a higher bidder!

On Monday night I met Mary in St. Petersburg for the 2009 Miss America Contestant Placement Lottery. I wasn't really nervous about it until "Florida" was the 42nd state called!! That means that I was the 42nd contestant to pick my group (order of competition) and placement within that group. Needless to say, most of the spots that I had picked out as favorites were taken by then. I ended up sticking with my first choice for group which is Sigma (the other two are Mu and Alpha) and then chose spot #3. Therefore I will have Interview on Tuesday morning, Swimsuit/Evening Wear Tuesday night, Talent on Wednesday night, and On-stage Question on Thursday night. Now we're just one step closer to January!


Yesterday I had an interview on the Studio 10 Morning Show in St. Pete. It was my first "Talk Show" experience and it was a lot of fun! I was accompanied by Bill and Kim Doniel who then took me to Gold's Gym to take pictures with the owners and thank them for their sponsorship. Next we went to Pepin for lunch - a delicious authentic Spanish restaurant! It was a busy morning, but I wouldn't have it any other way!








As of tonight, L.A. is less than two weeks away! I'm excited and know I'm in for quite an adventure! I wish I could tell you more, but I don't even know where we're staying when we get there! Everything is going to be a surprise...you'll just have to tune in in January!

Love,
Sierra

P.S. Here are the pictures from the ESPN Reception I promised:

with Mike Alstott!

Recent Appearances

Hello everyone!

I am happy to say that I have been busy with appearances this week! Yesterday morning I visited the All Children's Hospital here in St. Pete. All Children's is one of the 170 Children's Miracle Network hospitals across the nation. What a heart-warming experience! I was enthusiastically welcomed by the staff and had the opportunity to visit with some beautiful children who were at different stages of their stay at All Children's. I let an 8 year old girl named Alicia try on my crown and she gave me a picture she had drawn with crayons supplied by the hospital. She was truly a princess! As I toured the facility it became obvious that the children at ACH are cared for with thoughtful sensitivity, cutting-edge technology, and most importantly love. I look forward to future visits and partnership with All Children's. Follow the link below for a picture of my visit.

http://www.allkids.org/body.cfm?id=396&action=detail&ref=270

Last night I had the privilege of attending the ESPN Reception for the upcoming St. Petersburg Bowl. This new bowl game versus Big East and Conference USA will be played at Tropicana Field in December. It's an exciting honor to be the host city for such an event! At the reception I was able to meet many community leaders, (including football superstar Mike Alstott from the Tampa Bay Bucs!), and enjoyed explaining what "Miss Florida" is all about! Keep your eyes peeled for the two lucky teams and please check back later for pictures!

Well, it's off to be a well-educated voter as this will be my first opportunity to participate in a presidential election!

Blessings,
Sierra

New Slideshow!

Hello friends!

Due to some technical difficulties (mainly operator error!) I have not been able to upload new pictures into my computer! However, I have had a few notable appearances lately. Last Thursday I had an interview at Moody Radio her in St. Pete. We pre-recorded and it is being edited right now. I'm not sure when it will air, but the station reaches far and wide so I will let you know when to tune in!

Today I went to the Columbia restaurant at the St. Pete Pier to congratulate 66 students from Boca Ciega High School for getting the highest score on their FCAT! It was fun to mingle with the students and to see how they were rewarded for their hard work. I had a wonderful conversation with their principal and other administration in addition to seeing Mayor Baker, which is always a treat!

Tonight I spent time with Lynne Dalton checking off some things on my "wish list" for L.A. We found some great pj's that are "suitable for TV" and had a delicious dinner at Maggiano's. We both agreed that the evening together was a lot of fun and that we truly enjoyed each other's company. I feel so blessed to have people like Lynne who truly care about me and this program.

Well, until I figure out this picture issue, please enjoy the new slideshow!

Blessings,
Sierra