10 Things I’m Thinking as I Prepare to Emcee

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Cafe Lulu, Cecelia Margraff, emcee, fears, gown, heels, Lions, miss america, Miss St. Francis, miss wisconsin, pageant, scholarship, St. Francis, stagefright

Volunteers make it happen, whether for Special Olympics, United Way, a community project or a fundraiser to support a family in need. They fill out paperwork, organize people, haul supplies, staple, copy, pour coffee, seek donations and do whatever needs to be done. The causes may be different, but the overall intention is to help someone or something.

This week is the 50^th anniversary of the Miss St. Francis scholarship program. Hundreds of young women have passed across the stage to win hundreds of thousands of dollars in scholarship money and compete at Miss Wisconsin and Miss America. To make that happen, volunteers not only put on the show, but also give their time during the year to keep the program growing. I’m thankful for this small army who give of their time and hearts to make the magic happen.

I had the honor of winning the title of Miss. St. Francis 1995. The money I earned paid for a semester of graduate school. Without that additional education, I’m pretty sure my life would probably have taken a different path – one of those sliding door moments. This year my friend Kelly (MSF 93) and I are donating a Professional Preparation Scholarship to one contestant for her internship or job search. We’re also co-emceeing the program. This is something like Kelly’s 10^th time emceeing. She goes with the flow. I’m on the edge of my seat, taking notes and paying attention. The show is in two days.

Things I’m thinking as I prepare to emcee the Miss St. Francis pageant this weekend:

1. Will the microphone work? Check one…check two.
2. There are 10 incredible contestants with great talents and service platforms. One will become Miss St. Francis and then maybe Miss Wisconsin?
3. I have to walk up and down stairs in a gown and high heels repeatedly to enter/exit the stage. I’m bound to take a header.
4. Our outgoing queen is Cecelia Margraff, a student in the Marquette University School of Dentistry. What does she think of my teeth?
5. I probably shouldn’t have eaten that yummy east Indian chicken pita with onions and tzatziki sauce from Café Lulu prior to tech rehearsal. (Sorry, Kel!)
6. Can one suddenly develop a stutter?
7. I’m going to wear high heels for at least three hours straight. I usually work out of my home office, wearing slippers. I’ve already apologized to my feet.
8. There’s no cough button. I must remember not to swear.
9. I will have to endure the “lamentations” of several of the past titleholders who brag about being able to fit into their competition gowns even though they ate one malted Easter egg candy this year. Mine gown looks lovely on its hanger.
10. Thank you to all the volunteers, throughout all 50 years.

Stage Crew

St. Francis Lions

Christmas reading at the Library

The Patti Family

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Not In My Generation

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Atlantic City, Gen Y, literacy, miss america, Miss USA, miss wisconsin, musings, service, volunteer, writings

So it’s pageant season again. Of course — and I almost want to add “as usual” —  last week’s Miss USA finals provided plenty of fodder for nearly every media outlet who couldn’t help replaying Miss Utah’s inability to speak extemporaneously. Who hasn’t had that brain-fart moment when the synapses don’t connect and your mouth and brain feel a million miles apart? Unfortunately for Miss Utah, she had her moment on broadcast television and it will live forever in infamy.

This week I’m attending the Miss Wisconsin preliminaries and finals. We’re hoping for another Miss America – Wisconsin only has two so far, but the two we have are exceptional women and we’re proud of both. The Miss America state preliminaries have been going on for a few weeks and will continue into July when all 53 representatives (50 states plus D.C., Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands) will be crowned and then prepare for the return of Miss America program in Atlantic City in September. Of course, in Atlantic City there’s always more pageantry going on in the lobby and the boardwalk than on stage, but as the program has shifted to more of a service focus, underneath all the sequins, rhinestones and shiny lip-gloss, we can’t forget how this program is helping communities.

A few months ago, I wrote of my participation in this scholarship program and it fueled my passion for service work with literacy programs and volunteering.

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Well, during last night’s competition, the contestants discussed their service platform programs and how they are influencing a community, a group or even just one person. Their causes are as diverse as the contestants’ eveningwear but their passion is what makes you take a second look. These young women are between 18-24 years of age, and it’s thrilling to know they won’t be lumped into the stereotypical complaints of Generation Y – they are not lackadaisical, unmotivated or lazy.

It’s an interesting concept – to give of your time even when there isn’t much to give. These women attend higher education, work and have active social lives, and yet they still donate time and energy to a cause. It’s not just time management, but also a sense of responsibility to make their community a better place. And it becomes a positive trickle-down effect. The young lady gets involved with a cause, then her family and friends support her, and then the community, and then it continues to expand. There’s a lot of talk how this generation and the one to follow spend too much time buried in computer games, video games and mobile phones and don’t do anything. We worry about their impaired interpersonal communications and social skills. Maybe if someone creates an app that challenges them to make a difference, we’d see a shift in perception and action. Then when naysayers try to come down on them for their apathy, they could say ‘maybe that was once true, but that’s not my generation anymore.’

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Finding Miss America

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miss america, miss wisconsin, pageant, scholarship, writing

This past weekend Wisconsin welcomed home its own (and only second in its history) Miss America. There were events, dinners, shows and pep rallies held throughout the state from Kenosha to Green Bay where crowds turned out to cheer on her accomplishments and meet the young woman who is given a national opportunity to affect lives by promoting her own personal platform, along with serving as a spokesperson for the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.

I had the opportunity to work with Miss America when she was Miss Wisconsin, and interestingly enough when I met her it came on the heels of me writing a book I titled, Finding Miss America. The story is that a local pageant director has cemented in his mind what a Miss America should embody, and then his perception is shattered and altered by the young woman who wins his local and shows him a new way. It seems kind of risky to write on this subject when I work closely with the Miss Wisconsin Organization and I know people will be looking into it closely to try and find resemblances, but I was only inspired by the pageants and am not using any one in particular. Except for my friend Becky, who was the inspiration for Lex Ann Rodgers, the Applewood choreographer from originally from Texas. I expect that with this personal connection to a Miss America, I stand a good chance of getting published.

The opportunity to present an enlightening viewpoint and insight to a program that many people think is outdated and antiquated is essential. I recently read an article in Entertainment Weekly, where in preparing for hosting the Oscars, Bill Crystal was asked if he thinks “the Oscars will ever become as irrelevant as Miss America?” My response is I hope the Oscars become even more irrelevant than Miss America, because what this program does is offer millions in scholarships to young women each year, as well as give them a venue in which to voice and promote their personal platform issues. I think that is extremely more relevant than a bunch of actors receiving golden statues.

So, if you know of an agent who is interested in a good story with topical relevance and strong writing, send him or her my way. Finding Miss America is just waiting to be published!

Me and Laura Kaeppeler, Miss Wisconsin 2011 and Miss America 2012