Mrs. International 2010

I had the experience of a lifetime!!! Mrs. International 2010 was soul-shaping and life-changing! I want to express my deepest gratitude to my dear husband Ryan; my amazing parents, Don and Rhonda Redeker; and our amazing friends Greg and Susen McCallum for being my on-site support crew all week!!! I couldn't have been the Mrs. Iowa I wanted to be without you!!

Huge gratitude to Mary Richardson and the entire International Pageant Family for making this more than I ever imagined! You truly know how to treat us like queens!! I feel blessed to be a part of your pageant family!

Congratulations to our new Mrs. International 2010, Shannon Devine! May you be blessed throughout your reign and forever more! YOU are a wonderful woman and I can't wait to witness all the amazing things you do for Go Red, The International Pageant Family and Adoption!

Much love to you all and I will post pictures very soon!

Light the Night Kick-Off Party

Light the Night in Eastern Iowa had it's Official Kick-Off Party on July 8th at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City. What a great way to start our 2010 Light the Night in Eastern Iowa! We had several teams represented while enjoying pizza and other refreshments.

I had the opportunity to introduce Team Live ... Learn ... Survive and am honored to serve Eastern Iowa as Honorary Chair for the walk this year.

WE walk for a cure for blood cancers, for advocacy, and to improve the lives of those who have been touched by blood cancer ... let's show cancer just how serious WE are!

Pictured above with MiKayla VanWay. MiKayla is our honor patient this year. She is a leukemia survivor ... what a brave and adorable little lady.

Pictured above: I was able to share my family's story. This one was for you Grandma O, Uncle Red, Uncle Wilmer and Mom! Live ... Learn ... Survive!

Brent (MiKayla's Dad) shared their story when their lives changed forever after MiKayla's leukemia diagnosis.

Pictured above: MiKayla helps Jessica (Light the Night Eastern Iowa Campaign Coordinator) and Dillan (Jessica's Assistant) draw names for door prizes. "And the winner is ..... Ryan York!" Way to go Mr. Iowa ... you deserve a prize for all your hard work for LLS and Live ... Learn ... Survive!

Pictured above with Larry. Larry is a team captain for Light the Night and is a two time cancer survivor. You ROCK Larry!!! It was a pleasure to meet you and your lovely wife ... you are more inspiring than you will ever know.

What an honor to celebrate our kick-off at Kinnick Stadium ... GO HAWKS!!!

Live ... Learn ... Survive and Paws and a Cause reach Utah!

I'm so EXCITED to announce Live ... Learn ... Survive and Paws and a Cause have reached Utah! We have now had the opportunity to touch lives directly in Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, Utah and Colorado! Finding a cure for blood cancers is a nationwide calling ... together WE can make a difference!

These "pawsitively" perfect pooches in Utah (thanks Vonya!) are showing their support for blood cancer by donning their Paws and a Cause bandannas!

MCCA Dinner

The Montgomery County Cancer Association (MCCA) held their largest fundraising dinner to date this year! On June 26th, 2010, over 400 people came together to celebrate survivor-ship, remember our loved ones with memorials, and raise funds for cancer research.

I was honored to share Live ... Learn ... Survive to MCCA! I had the opportunity to share our mission with many individuals and we were excited to be part of the silent auction too!

Spending this evening with my family, especially my mom, was beyond words. It was an evening that will be in a special place in my heart and mind forever! Celebrating the strength of those individuals whose lives have been forever changed by cancer was a soul-shaping experience.

The evening was marked by the Survivor Ceremony. Each cancer survivor present received a special shirt and rose during the evening. There are very few times in my life that I have been left speechless, but this was truly one of those rare moments. Watching my mom and Aunt Sandy receive their roses brought me to tears of sadness for their diagnosis, joy for their will to fight, and hope for cures for these horrible diseases.

Pictured above: My mother receives her survivor rose.

Mom and Aunt Sandy (aka Aunt Turkey) find strength in each other. Aunt Turkey is a survivor of breast cancer and mom continues her fight with leukemia.

A HUGE thanks to Aunt Shelley for her work with MCCA! She is pictured hear with Aunt Turkey and mom.

Live every day to it's fullest ... Learn to make a difference with passion ... Survive with grace and diligence!

2010 Montgomery County Fair

On June 23rd, 2010, I had the amazing opportunity to take a walk down memory lane. The Montgomery County Fair celebrated 25 years this year. I spent a large amount of my growing years at our county fair. I showed my first sheep, worked at the concession stand, and won my first pageant ever ... all at our fabulous fair! It's more than safe to say the fair has been a staple in my life and inspired me to many life adventures!

Congratulations to Bridget Stieren! She won the title Miss Montgomery County 2010! I'm so excited for her ... we had the same final question aaaannnndd we gave almost the same answer! Also our mothers were childhood friends ... how FUN!!

What better way to fight breast cancer than with this tough, pink camouflage truck!? The Montgomery County Breast Cancer Group is out to fight for a cure! The provide advocacy, education, and patient care assistance throughout Montgomery County. You GO FIGHT LIKE GIRLS!!!!

No fair is complete without a corn dog!

Once a queen .... always a queen! Several of our "retired royalty" returned to the fair on opening night. It's always so great to catch up with these wonderful ladies ... such inspirational women!

Queens reception prior to the 2010 Montgomery County Fair Queen Pageant. A HUGE thanks to Missy and Toby Dean for directing such a wonderful pageant and reception. You two have made more of an impact on so many of our lives ... we LOVE you forever!

We may be retired queens, BUT we still LOVE to pose for pictures!