Hello friends and family,
I just wanted to keep you up to date -- I have completely updated my website with a new design to match my blog! I hope you enjoy it!
www.SashaTownsend.com
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
National Wear Red Day is February 6.
Wear red
- To show your support,
- To honor those who have lost their lives to heart disease,
- To inspire conversation and share your story,
- To inspire compassion, conversation, and a heart-healthy lifestyle.
- I choose to eat baked, not fried.
- I choose to be empowered.
- I choose to show my support.
- I choose to connect and inspire.
- I choose to move, not sit around!
- I choose to WEAR RED.
Become a You're the Cure advocate.
You can make a difference by:
- Responding to You’re the Cure Action Alerts by sending an email or making a phone call to your lawmakers asking for their support of a bill,
- Sharing your story with legislators and others to help bring the facts to life,
- Stopping by your lawmaker’s local office to deliver information about an issue,
- Attending a town hall meeting in your area,
- Writing a letter to the editor of your local paper,
- Getting friends and family involved.
Emceeing Miss Northwestern OSU, Thoughts on Pageantry ...
This weekend I will emcee the 2009 Miss Northwestern Oklahoma State University Pageant held in Herod Hall Auditorium at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, January 31, in Alva, Oklahoma.
The director has included my biography in their press release. Click the link below to read it!
http://www.nwosu.edu/miss-northwestern-emcee
This Saturday, Miss NWOSU 2008 Michelle Bruffett will crown one lucky lady Miss Northwestern OSU 2009. Although only one woman will take home the crown (and all of its opportunities and responsibilities), I believe that all contestants will benefit from their participation. Pageantry develops interpersonal and public speaking skills. Pageantry provides extra motivation to stay healthy and fit. A pageant title opens doors for your community service efforts. The volunteers and staff of each pageant believe in the pageantry and what pageantry can do for young women, and what these young women can do for their communities through the skills they learn in competition. As an added perk, as a contestant, you make a lot of great friends! I still keep in touch with women I competed with at the state and international pageants. I have become friends with women who inspire me; To me, it doesn't get any better than that!
I am an avid supporter, even though as titleholders, we are often misunderstood. (Who can forget how Sarah Palin was made fun of?) Like one recent reporter said, I see nothing wrong with using our beauty, interpersonal skills and talent to earn scholarships and the opportunity to serve as a titleholder. And I am always amazed at the difference a year makes: Watching Kirsten Haglund as she gave up her Miss America title, I noticed the poise and confidence she gained in a year, after traveling 20,000 miles a month, speaking, teaching, and representing our pageant and our country as Miss America. She matured. She grew up. I witnessed the same increase in interpersonal competence and maturity in Oklahoma's Lauren Nelson in her year as Miss America. Kirsten also earned over $50,000 in scholarship money, and devoted a year of her life to promoting awareness of eating disorders and representing the Children's Miracle Network. It all begins at your local or state pageant. One woman will begin the journey to Miss Oklahoma America this Saturday. Who will it be? I hope you'll join me at the Herod Hall Auditorium to find out.
For more information about pageant opportunities in Oklahoma, in particular, the Mrs. Oklahoma, Miss Oklahoma, and Miss Teen Oklahoma International pageants, visit www.OKPageants.com. The International pageants are affiliated with the American Heart Association's Go Red for Women movement, a nationwide movement that celebrates the energy, passion, and power of women to band together and wipe out heart disease. Our pageant is different, because we don't compete in swimsuit (just fitness wear) and although we are all talented women :), there is no scored talent competition. Our state winners go on to the Mrs. International, Miss International, and Miss Teen International competitions, competing with state titleholders and titleholders representing other countries from around the world. (It is an incredible experience.) While I don't support every pageant system (I don't support pageants where children wear make-up, for example), I do support pageantry in general and hope you will get involved, as a volunteer, a contestant, a member of the audience, or pageant or contestant sponsor. If you decide to enter my state pageant, let Lauri know that I recommended you!
Being Mrs. Oklahoma has been an incredible experience and I have grown tremendously because of it; and I still have three months left! In our system, your year is what you make it. You can be as active or as inactive a titleholder as your schedule allows you, but the more active you are, the more of an impact you can make on your community and the more you can personally benefit from the program. I never want to be a titleholder whose crown and sash are on a shelf, collecting dust! I hope to see you all at the Miss NWOSU pageant this weekend and our state pageants in April!
The director has included my biography in their press release. Click the link below to read it!
http://www.nwosu.edu/miss-northwestern-emcee
This Saturday, Miss NWOSU 2008 Michelle Bruffett will crown one lucky lady Miss Northwestern OSU 2009. Although only one woman will take home the crown (and all of its opportunities and responsibilities), I believe that all contestants will benefit from their participation. Pageantry develops interpersonal and public speaking skills. Pageantry provides extra motivation to stay healthy and fit. A pageant title opens doors for your community service efforts. The volunteers and staff of each pageant believe in the pageantry and what pageantry can do for young women, and what these young women can do for their communities through the skills they learn in competition. As an added perk, as a contestant, you make a lot of great friends! I still keep in touch with women I competed with at the state and international pageants. I have become friends with women who inspire me; To me, it doesn't get any better than that!
I am an avid supporter, even though as titleholders, we are often misunderstood. (Who can forget how Sarah Palin was made fun of?) Like one recent reporter said, I see nothing wrong with using our beauty, interpersonal skills and talent to earn scholarships and the opportunity to serve as a titleholder. And I am always amazed at the difference a year makes: Watching Kirsten Haglund as she gave up her Miss America title, I noticed the poise and confidence she gained in a year, after traveling 20,000 miles a month, speaking, teaching, and representing our pageant and our country as Miss America. She matured. She grew up. I witnessed the same increase in interpersonal competence and maturity in Oklahoma's Lauren Nelson in her year as Miss America. Kirsten also earned over $50,000 in scholarship money, and devoted a year of her life to promoting awareness of eating disorders and representing the Children's Miracle Network. It all begins at your local or state pageant. One woman will begin the journey to Miss Oklahoma America this Saturday. Who will it be? I hope you'll join me at the Herod Hall Auditorium to find out.
For more information about pageant opportunities in Oklahoma, in particular, the Mrs. Oklahoma, Miss Oklahoma, and Miss Teen Oklahoma International pageants, visit www.OKPageants.com. The International pageants are affiliated with the American Heart Association's Go Red for Women movement, a nationwide movement that celebrates the energy, passion, and power of women to band together and wipe out heart disease. Our pageant is different, because we don't compete in swimsuit (just fitness wear) and although we are all talented women :), there is no scored talent competition. Our state winners go on to the Mrs. International, Miss International, and Miss Teen International competitions, competing with state titleholders and titleholders representing other countries from around the world. (It is an incredible experience.) While I don't support every pageant system (I don't support pageants where children wear make-up, for example), I do support pageantry in general and hope you will get involved, as a volunteer, a contestant, a member of the audience, or pageant or contestant sponsor. If you decide to enter my state pageant, let Lauri know that I recommended you!
Being Mrs. Oklahoma has been an incredible experience and I have grown tremendously because of it; and I still have three months left! In our system, your year is what you make it. You can be as active or as inactive a titleholder as your schedule allows you, but the more active you are, the more of an impact you can make on your community and the more you can personally benefit from the program. I never want to be a titleholder whose crown and sash are on a shelf, collecting dust! I hope to see you all at the Miss NWOSU pageant this weekend and our state pageants in April!
Mrs. Oklahoma 2008 to Speak at Family Relations Conference
The Oklahoma Council on Family Relations (OCFR) will hold its 29th annual Healthy Families conference on March 6, 2009 at the University of Central Oklahoma, Edmond, Oklahoma. In keeping with the conference theme and the stated motto of OCFR, Building Family Strengths, I will be leading a round table discussion entitled, "Supporting Children and Youth After Divorce." We will focus on building on current family strengths, recognizing and addressing warning signs and typical post-divorce reactions, and promoting family resiliency through individual and community support.
This year's theme is "Healthy Families: Physical, Sexual, and Emotional Wellness". The theme was selected to develop a better understanding of the various aspects of family wellness and promote resiliency within the family. The conference will pay particular attention to practices that promote physical, sexual, and emotional wellness in families with implications for research, policy, and practice. Additionally, the importance of building relationships with families through engagement, accessibility, and responsibility and the impact of this upon family wellness will be emphasized.
The conference program is designed to address a balance of academic, research, application, and policy interests with a theme that is broad enough to capture a variety of topics relating to families of all forms and family members at any age or stage.
OCFR presenters include students, instructors, researchers, family life educators, practioners, and advocates from a variety of interest areas and issues including diversity, aging, applied programs, parenting, marriage, interpersonal relationships, family development, violence and neglect, childhood and adolescence, mental health and wellbeing, professional education and development, theory, research methodology, risk and resilience, prevention and intervention strategies, and public policy.
This is a fantastic opportunity for me to present and share my opinions and research with family researchers, educators, and practitioners, who work with families year round. It could be a tough group; I know that my platform can be controversial. However, through preparation, passion, and personal experience, I feel that we will have a lively and productive discussion about how we all can better support children after divorce, and the resulting thought-provoking conversation are certainly worth it. Afterall, it all begins with people thinking differently about divorce and divorce support. The conference is cosponsored by the Oklahoma Marriage Initiative and the National Council on Family Relations.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Learn skills to help make your relationship last. Forever. For Real.
The Oklahoma Marriage Initiative (OMI) is celebrating 10 years of serving Oklahomans by offering more exciting workshops with new skills and activities for couples at all stages of their relationships. This year, the annual Forever. For Real. program will be held in Oklahoma City and Tulsa on the same day! Join us at whichever venue is closest to you! Attend the free Forever. For Real. program on Saturday, February 7, 2009 to learn simple, hands-on, fun ways to strengthen and renew your relationship. More than 165,000 Oklahomans already have experienced an OMI program, and we invite you to set aside time to focus on your own relationship.The Oklahoma City program will be downtown at the Cox Convention Center, Saturday, February 7, 2009. Check-in begins at 9:30 a.m. The Forever. For Real. program will begin at 10 a.m. and end at 4 p.m. Lunch will be provided. To register for the Oklahoma City program click here. For more information, please visit our website at ForeverForReal.com or contact Kristin at 877-435-8033.
The Tulsa program will be at the Tulsa Convention Center, Saturday, February 7, 2009. Check-in begins at 9:30 a.m. The Forever. For Real. program will begin at 10 a.m. and end at 4 p.m. Lunch will be provided. To register for the Tulsa program, click here. For more information, please visit our Web site at ForeverForReal.com or contact Kristin at 877-435-8033.
And another exciting part? Engaged couples can receive a $45 discount on their marriage license by completing the “Forever. For Real.” program. Additionally, we will be giving away great prizes throughout the day!
I hope to see you there!
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