2 Weeks Under the Sash!

Well, today marks 2 week since the Miss Westchester/Hudson Valley pageant where I was crowned Miss Westchester 2012. These past two weeks have definitely been exciting to experience! They've been a great sneak preview of all of the busy-ness that is sure to come with my upcoming year of service here in Westchester. I thought I'd highlight some of these 'recent happenings' here on my blog.

The gangs (almost, we miss you Sam & Bianca!) all here -- Tina, Megan, Jackie & I

• Friday, September 9: Jackie (Miss Westchester Teen 2012) and I made our first official appearance after being crowned at the Serve & Learn: Westchester Remembers 9/11 event held at the Westchester County Center. I had actually heard about Serve & Learn prior to the Miss Westchester pageant and thought it sounded like a great event. As September 11 approaches each year, I often feel emotional about the terrorist attacks that took place on 9/11/01. For me, Serve & Learn was a way to really pay tribute to the lives lost that day and respect those who have answered the call to serve since then. Jackie & I joined a lovely group of volunteers who were making cards to send to our injured servicemen, women, and the medical personnel taking care of them. We had a wonderful time getting to know the volunteers sitting at our table -- they taught us to make pop-up cards and shared some of their stories with us. I hope that the cards we created can bring a smile to the face of someone serving our country. I am so appreciative of our armed forces and am glad to give back to them, even in such a small way.

• Monday, September 12: The Miss Westchester/Hudson Valley pageant family (well, most of us!) got together to have dinner and watch the Miss Universe pageant together. Our pageant directors, Dee and Laura, are so great about doing things like this with all of us! It was fun to get to know each other a bit better, and cheer for our favorite contestants. I was fiercely #teamAlyssa, for Miss USA Alyssa Campanella, and was so excited that she made the top 16. I was definitely sad when she didn't move on to the top 8, but excited for the new Miss Universe 2012...Leila Lopes from Angola! She truly had such an elegant grace about her and looked phenomenal in her evening gown.

Leila Lopes being crowned by Miss Universe 2010, Ximena Navarrete

• Sunday, September 18 (today!): Today, I made my second official appearance as Miss Westchester 2012 at Sales Day in Mt. Kisco. This appearance was to support the wonderful Miss Westchester 2011, Christina DeLeon, in her quest to become Miss New York 2012! Jackie (Miss Westchester Teen 2012), Megan (Miss Hudson Valley 2012) and I all joined Christina this morning at the Mt. Kisco Promenade Stage. I had never really visited Mt. Kisco before, and was so impressed by all of the shops they have to offer! I'm definitely going to make a return trip soon. Everyone we encountered today was so kind -- from the Girl Scouts who opened the day with the Pledge of Allegiance, to the different vendors at the sidewalk sale, to the firemen who kindly let us use their truck for a photo op:

Jackie, Megan and I

So, as you can see, it has been quite a fun-filled two weeks! I'm looking forward to more adventures in the coming days and can't wait to share them here with you.

Love,

Sarah