3,000 Words

So after I wrote my last post I asked my mom to scan and send some pictures of my old glory days.

This is what she sent:







So, a picture is worth a thousand words? I will let these speak for themselves.

I hope everyone enjoys their Passover and Easter!

Best Wishes!
Ashley

Saving The Best for Last

Hi Everyone!

First of all, welcome back to Cleveland, Z!

Next, I want to say good luck to all the sweeps contestants. It has been, almost, one full year since I gained my first Miss America Local Preliminary title, Miss Heart of Ohio, but it feels like yesterday!

I began my journey with this organization when I was around seven years old. I attended Miss Ohio first as a spectator and then was introduced a few years later to the stage where I was to do the most important duty of them all, hand out the crown. As I stood backstage I remember teetering in my two and one half inch heels, grasping on to the crown and anxiously awaiting Miss Juanita's guiding push (that sometimes, accidently, catapulted me onto the stage...obviously she was a little jittery too!). I still remember the faces of the contestants when I walked onstage because as everyone was looking at me (or the crown, but I am going to let my ten year old ego get in the way here and say me) I was looking at them. Amazed at their courage, talent, intelligence and beauty I was almost overcome by complete and total joy. I was on the Miss Ohio stage! I would be one small puzzle piece to this epic story! I hope Mom is getting a picture of this because no one is going to believe me at recess! Fast forward ten years and again I am on stage, teetering in twenty two and one half inch heels (exaggerated of course) getting ready for the results of my first Miss America Local Preliminary pageant. It took a lot of hardwork, a positive attitude and great people all around me to win my first local title (quite awhile after my first local), one year ago. Although it seems like an obvious story it was never always so clear to me. I never imagined I would be standing on stage in a swimsuit or answering intense questions. I, at ten years old, was just happy to be where I was. Now, I am happy (and to be honest, a little shocked) to be where I am.

So, I am very excited to place that coveted crown on one lucky and deserving young lady's head this weekend. It is such an honor to be a part of this organization and knowing that six more women will be added to the 2010 Miss Ohio class is beyond thrilling (cheesy word but so true!).

I thought I had it all at ten but, little did I know...

Good luck contestants!
See you all Saturday!

Ashley Warholic

P.S. Major thank you's to Kim Baker Canary for helping me through out this year! You are the best and I really appreciate all your advice and guidance! In addition, Courtney Monk, Heather Wells and Kristy Moneysmith you will all hold a very special place in my heart!

True Life: I am Miss Greater Cleveland

Hello!
I hope you all have been enjoying the beautiful weather we have been getting lately! It's nice to know that warmer days are ahead of us even though I am sure Mother Nature has some more snow in store.

I apologize for not updating in awhile but with my semester in full swing, Miss Ohio paperwork deadlines and just life in general I have been really busy! However, with spring break underway I have a second to finally breathe and share with you a few things that I have been working on!

Recently, I returned from an FCCLA Regional Meeting in Painesville, Ohio where I got to be on the other side of the table and judge students in the Concept and Curriculum category of FCCLA STAR Events. I listened to Junior and Senior Early Childhood Education vocational students share their themes and the connection to the subjects that are essential in the classroom. I had such a great time conversing with the other judges and learning about their journey with the program. In addition, it was great to see students that are working so hard and are dedicated to teaching children and being positive role models. After my job as judge was finished I had the opportunity to meet with some of the students and hand out awards. I had a great time seeing young adults engaged and participating in the same organization and events that I was as a student.

Also, my sorority, Alpha Phi, just finished our Fourth Annual Red Dress Ball. This great event benefits our philanthropy, The Alpha Phi Foundation, which supports women's cardiac care. We had a fabulous silent auction with tons of goodies, a delicious dinner, dancing and great conversation between family, friends and sisters. My job was to sell raffle tickets for a chance to win fifty scratch-off lottery tickets! I had the best time tearing off an arm's length of tickets (which was about the equivalent of Lebron James' arm length!) and talking with all the supporters. This event was also a great way to spread the word about women's heart disease and the importance of cardiac care. Overall, we raised around $3,000 which is such a blessing to the foundation and will be able to provide for so many sisters and women effected by heart disease.

In other news, my first event after being hired as the Event Coordinator Intern in the Office of Admission at Baldwin-Wallace went really well! I am in charge of organizing prospective student overnight visits in addition to planning get-togethers in hometowns. All our students had a great time, I learned so much from the experience and I am looking forward to developing my skills professionally and helping students make their college decision!

This past week B-W held their Second Annual Sustainability Symposium and I had the opportunity to attend a few of the conferences that were offered. I have grown increasingly aware and passionate about the issue of sustainability over this semester and these meetings furthered my knowledge and interest in the subject. I met with small business owners that are located in the Cleveland area that are world renowned for being "green businesses." Their discussion was inspiring and helpful and I can't wait to continue my studies in this subject.

Lastly, I wanted to extend a huge congratulations to our beautiful Miss Ohio, Erica Gelhaus! She did a fabulous job representing our state at Miss America and I was so proud to call her my friend and my Miss Ohio! Furthermore, congratulations to former Miss Virginia and current Miss America, Caressa Cameron. She had outstanding performances in all areas and I am excited to see more of her in the future!

So, although my brain has been permanently scarred from midterm exams I think I have shared all the information I wanted about what I have been doing over the past month. I have a busy few weeks ahead of me but I will try my best to keep everyone posted!

Pray for more sunshine and higher temperatures!

Best Wishes and Much Love!

P.S. Try to engage in one random act of kindness this week! I spent $4.88 on two fish filet sandwiches, a diet coke and a small fry for the lady behind me in the drive-thru and it was the best money I have ever spent (even with a quickly depleting bank account)! Make someone's day!

Keeping Up with Miss Greater Cleveland

Hi Friends!

First and foremost, I want to say Good Luck! to Miss Ohio, Erica Gelhaus! I cannot wait to see that Miss America crown on her head and literally every time I THINK about watching the pageant I get so excited! I have been watching Miss America since I was a young girl and I have many pleasant memories from those experiences (mainly being able to pick the winner out of all the women for several years in a row without any knowledge on any of the contestants. Kind of cool, right?!) One of my most vivid memories was when I was in the fifth grade and had my best friend Nicki over to the house the night of the pageant. We set up shop on top of my mom's bed with our tipped over laundry baskets as desks and all the Pretty Pretty Princess jewelry and fake tiaras we could find. Oh, in addition, we had sashes made out of toilet paper. We kept score and had the best time picking out the most fabulous dresses on stage. It is amazing to me that now my friend Erica will be on that stage and could very well be in that coveted spot. My fingers are crossed....

Next, I want to address my platform, Creating Strong Leaders for Tomorrow. My platform focuses on the organization FCCLA which I have been greatly involved in throughout my life. FCCLA stands for Family, Career and Community Leaders of America and was formerly FHA (Future Homemakers of America). I began my involvement in eighth grade as a member and by the end of that year held a position as Vice President of Public Relations on the State Executive Council. Along with fourteen other high school students I was in charge of 14,000 FCCLA members statewide. The next year I was re-elected as Vice President of Membership and helped increase Ohio FCCLA's membership from fourth in the nation to second. I had the opportunity to speak in front of thousands of people, be a part of a team that was in charge of a major event, and participate in activities that expanded my knowledge on creating and maintaining a better family, the potential I held as an individual to higher my education and be successful and to enrich the lives of the people around me. Myself and students my age arranged a memorial for September 11th, planting 2,819 flags in the ground to commemorate those who lost their lives. We visited nursing homes and created flour bag babies to take care of for a week. We learned about internet safety, how to execute a complicated recipe and how to balance a checkbook. FCCLA enables students to experience many things that they would not normally get the opportunity to experience. I believe so strongly in this organization not only because it seems to be a worthwhile program but because I know it is a worthwhile program. I know the possibilities and I want to help others realize their own.

In other news, three of my eighteen credit hour schedule is dedicated to a class entitled, Green Business: God, Ecology and Money. The course load has been out of control but to be honest I really enjoy the work! The main project of the class is to conduct a sustainability audit on Baldwin-Wallace College and form ideas on how to lower the ecological footprint of the school. I know it is going to be intense and complicated but I am really looking forward to learning a new skill and being a part of a groundbreaking effort!

I hope all of you have been enjoying the chilly winter months! And let's keep our fingers crossed that the Cavs beat the Lakers tonight! :)

Tumbleflump Dancing-Baubles

Hello Friends!

I hope everyone has been staying safe and warm!

These past few days have been such a blessing and I want to fill you in on some of the special moments this holiday season has brought me.

On Tuesday, December 22nd my mom and I set out for some last minute shopping for the girls of the Berea Children's Home. We purchased DVD's, pajama pants, hairbrushes, headbands, chapstick, body spray, scarves, gloves, some candy and a partridge in a pear tree (kidding about the partridge of course!). We brought it all back home and added it to our collection of tote bags, fleece blankets, manicure sets and Bath and Body Works hand sanitizer and began assembling the gifts. They turned out really cute and I was excited to give them to their deserving owners the next day!

(I am a fashion disaster in this photo, please do not hold that against me.)

So, on Wednesday my mom and I hopped into the car and made the hour and fifteen minute trip up to Berea to drop off our eight little gifts. I met with the girls and explained to them that I was Miss Greater Cleveland, a little detail that gave way to millions of questions. We spoke for awhile and then I distributed the packages. They were all so grateful and excited and I promised that I would visit soon and we would have lunch and next time I would bring my crown!

Christmas Eve was spent with my family watching the traditional, The Christmas Story, along with some other holiday movies. A few hours later it seemed, we were exchanging our presents and then heading to the place we have been going for about 12 years, The Brown Derby Roadhouse. Since I was nine years old my parents, brother, and occasionally aunt and uncle have been making our way to the banquet room of this local restaurant. There we serve the less fortunate a hot Christmas meal that includes turkey, mashed potatoes, dessert, and a plethora of side dishes. The opportunity to enrich others lives on such an important day has really shaped my life and helped me realize the importance of community service and, more importantly, it has taught me generosity and love. The family that owns the restaurant donates all the food that is used to serve the hundreds of people that come through the door. The volunteers donate their time that they could be spending with family and friends. The individuals that are perhaps down on their luck, without a family, or in need of meal bless everyone that is helping with gratitude and appreciation. The day is a beautiful mixture of thanks and benevolence, there are people who are genuinely thankful for what they are receiving and people who are happy to be able to give. My family and I finished up our day and came home to leftovers and more movies, a perfect Christmas day.

Since then I have been enjoying time with my family and bracing myself for my next semester at school. I have also been teaching snowboard lessons at my local ski resort and practicing driving in the snow (I have SO not mastered this skill yet so if any of you have any tips please fill me in!).

I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday and I will be sure to update soon!

P.S. The title of this blog is the name a Christmas elf name generator created for me. You can now call me Tumbleflump.

Grown Up Christmas List

Hi Friends!

I am trying to keep my promise of staying on top of my blog and in celebration of finals being over I figured tonight would be a great night to update!

After my last update, which happened to be on Thanksgiving Break, I went back to school to finish up the semester. However, right in the middle of that was my birthday! YAY! My friends and my family were so sweet and I was sent flowers, my door was decorated and one of my best friends took me to get a pedicure (first one ever! and I can definitely say it won't be my last!). I had a great time and everyone made it one of my best birthdays ever!

I finished up my last week of classes that week and prepared for..dun dun dun. FINALS. I was so upset that I could not make it to the Miss Mansfield Pageant on Saturday but literally my brain was about to explode just thinking about all the work I had to do. So I sent my mom. (She was a very willing candidate!). The next morning I got a call with all the news from the show. She mentioned everything from how the stage was BEAUTIFUL to how I was now the proud, new owner of a Christmas tree designed by Miss Sasha Eby! She told me everything...everything. It was great to hear about the competition though and I was very excited to hear that Amber and Heather won! Congratulations! and I cannot wait to spend another week at Miss Ohio with you two!!!

So, after the chat with my Mom it was back to studying for a crazy week.

Although there was not a lot of time to get many other things done besides sleeping, eating and studying one of my good friends, Colleen, and I went shopping for some friends that were in need of some Christmas cheer. The little buddy I was shopping for was Jessica and she was two and a half years old and Colleen was looking for goodies for Isabella who was six. We had the best time picking out clothes and looking for the perfect toys to make the holiday season a little bit brighter for these two little girls. Colleen also had a great time picking out miniature sized clothes for me and selecting outfits she envisioned me wearing as a child. Overall, we walked away with some great things (these girls are about to be stylin' at school!!) and a great feeling!

In addition, I have been collecting things for some of the residents of the Berea Children's Home. I cannot wait to deliver the bags of treats to the kids! (If anyone knows where some cute pajama pants are, let me know!)

Today, I had to tear down my Christmas tree (which I set up only two weeks ago) and pack all of my belongings that I could maybe, possibly, sorta-kinda, potentially need over the course of a month and head back home to Mansfield. I am really looking forward to the break (even though I will be working..if teaching little kids to snowboard is considered work!?) and the holiday season!

I hope everyone has been enjoying these past few weeks. I want to leave you with one of my all-time favorite Christmas songs! If anyone saw me on road between Berea and Mansfield you most likely saw me belting this song (luckily no one else was in the car. YIKES!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxtluFgCRW8&feature=related

Keep warm!
Ashley

Forgive thyself little, others much.

It's official: I am the worst blogger known to man. I want to sincerely apologize for dropping off the face of the planet and leaving you all in the dark! I created this blog with the intention to keep everyone up to date with what I was doing during my reign as Miss Greater Cleveland and to use it as a means of communication with the community. However, I failed... miserably, and I want to say I am sorry and I am going to do my best from now on to update! So, I am hoping you can all find in it your hearts to forgive me and read on about all the fun things that have been keeping me SO busy!

First, I started my Junior year at Baldwin-Wallace College! My schedule this semester was jammed packed with classes ranging from Legal Environments of Organization to Dance in America, with everything else in between! As I am sure you can imagine it's a ton of work and I feel like I always have an Economics test or a presentation in my Business and Professional Speaking class. On top of that my involvement in my sorority, Alpha Phi, and my on-campus job as a tour guide keep me really busy!

However, just a few short weeks into school I participated in a fashion show at Catan Fashions! I had such a great time chatting with the other girls, laughing with Meggie and of course, trying on clothes! Down below are a few pictures from the day!

All the models in our fun outfits!

Erica!

The lovely Erica Gelhaus was in attendance and entertained the Catan's crowd while "Sylvia's Girls" were the models for the day. In addition, all the profits from the ticket sales went to help the Miss Greater Cleveland and Miss Cuyahoga County Scholarship Program's future show! We all had a fabulous time and it was really nice to spend a day with some of my favorite people showing off great clothes!

Next, Meggie Wittman, Miss Cuyahoga County/ Partner in Crime/ Sister Queen and I had the opportunity to speak with Alison Nottingham, a former Miss Ohio Local Contestant turned Cleveland.com journalist. She asked us questions on all types of different subjects. She mainly focused on fashion but did ask us our opinions on Toddlers and Tiaras! (Click in to see our responses! http://blog.cleveland.com/seasonal-cle/2009/10/miss_ohio_hopefuls_share_fall.html ) Alison also asked us to wear a typical, everyday outfit, a cocktail dress, and an evening gown. Down below is my favorite picture from the day, Meggie and I in our cocktail dresses!

So once all the glitter had settled from all the fashion shows and interviews I decided it was time for me to re-focus my energy and start helping the community!

First, I started by helping my sorority with our annual Cardiac Arrest philanthropy event. We raised over one thousand dollars for our foundation that supports women's cardiac care! Heart disease is the number one killer of women in America so it was really important to me and my sisters to educate women our age, and older, on the importance of cardiovascular care. It was also great that we were able to raise money for the continuation of research in this field.

Next on my agenda was to assist another fabulous sorority on campus with their philanthropy event! The sister's of Phi Mu decided to hold an event entitled, "BW's Best Dance Crew" in order to raise money for the Children's Miracle Network! As soon as I caught wind of this fantastic idea I asked to be involved in every way possible. So, the Vice President of Community Service appointed me as one of the judges for the event! I had such a great time watching the teams compete (most were fraternity men with no rhythm!) and interacting with the other members of the judges panel. The women of Phi Mu did such a great job with this event and I am proud to say that they raised over five hundred dollars to go towards the Children's Miracle Network and even graciously contributed fifty dollars to my efforts! I am truly honored that these women asked me to be a part of their event and it was really great to see every one's hard work pay off in the end!

So, now that I have brought everyone up to speed with what I have been doing these past few months I think it would be important to add what I am currently working on!

Recently I have been in touch with the Berea's Children Home and after discovering their need for common goods and fun little treasures I am working on putting together tote bags for some of the main residents of the facility. I love children and I am SO looking forward to surprising the little ankle biters with some treats around the holiday season.

In addition, I have been working on creating a leadership activity coloring book that I can take into schools and facilities like the Berea's Children Home to help kids get a better grasp at what being a leader is really all about. It's in the process of being produced right now and I cannot wait to see the final product!

I am going to leave you now with two photos. One depicts the true joy I feel every December 2nd, the day of my birth. The other should remind everyone to eat and be merry during the holiday season!

"Happiness is the experience of living every minute with love, grace and gratitude."

Ashley Warholic