My party still hasn't stopped :)

Hello everyone!

The last couple of weeks have been VERY busy! Since my last blog update, I have had such a variety of events that I attended and they all kicked off in Phillipsburg, NJ. I had the honor of crossing state lines and speaking at the Lopatcong Township Middle School. I gave SEVEN presentations on my platform and spoke to grades 4-7. We talked about peer pressure, bullying, and having a positive body image. From the questions that they were asking me, there is no doubt that children and teens in this day and age are growing up much faster than my generation and those preceding me. I was thrilled to be able to give so many presentations that day, and reached over 800 kids. I can only hope that those that I spoke to will take my message and apply it to their daily lives.

My next event was the Cookport Fair in Green Township. My parent's band--Diamonds in the Rough--has played there for the past 15 years, so I saw many familiar faces! When I first arrived, a gentlemen came over and said, "Miss Pennsylvania, your carriage awaits." He wasn't kidding! It really was waiting for me--my mom and I were about 15 minutes late due to construction. It was so beautiful and the horse was what they called a Miniature Work Horse. I was escorted around the fair where I had the opportunity to say hello to the fair attendees and invite them to the stage to watch me perform!

I had planned on using my two CDs as background music for my performance, but unfortunately--due to technical difficulties--I was not able to use the CDs. Because I have such a musically inclined family we just happened to have a guitar in the back of the car and my mom ended up accompanying me on my two songs! There are always bumps in the road, but everything always manages to work itself out for the better! I played one of my favorite fiddle tunes, "Ragtime Annie" and the non-techno version of "The Orange Blossom Special". I also spoke to the audience about the Miss Pennsylvania & Miss America Scholarship Organization as well as my platform!

The next day I was off to Lebanon, PA for the Annual Pennsylvania Trappers Association Banquet. I attended this event with our Outstanding Teen, Jocelyn and her mother. I love Jocelyn so much, and every event that I attend with her is always a lot of fun! The event was really nice, the food was delicious, and Jocelyn and I shared our experiences as state titleholders with the audience. Despite my hatred for cold weather, I cannot wait until the first winter parade when I can finally wear my beautiful fur that they gave to me upon winning Miss Pennsylvania!

The next evening I was off to Scranton, PA for the National Association of Abandoned Land Mines event. Now, to be quite honest, I had no idea what this event was about when I asked to be in attendance. I did some research and WOW, what a remarkable organization this is! The NAALMP reclaims land and water resources that have adversely been affected by past coal mining and that have also been abandoned or inadequately restored. I learned quite a bit about land mine reclamation and the dangers that abandoned land mines can have on communities. At the event, I signed autographs and mingled with the attendees during their meet and greet. I met the mayor of Scranton and was even serenaded by Van Wagner and The Breaker Boys!

I would be remiss if I did not mention that my wonderful chaperone for the evening was Mrs. Doyle! You could tell that she was an experienced and seasoned chaperone! (I wonder why J) It was nice to finally have the opportunity to catch up with her and I was so grateful that she was able to attend!

On Tuesday I was at the Senior Health & Lifestyle Expo in Lewisburg, PA. They had all kinds of vendors set up that in some way benefit the health and fitness of senior citizens. I met a lot of Miss America fans who watch the pageant every year!

I don't know what it is with being serenaded lately, but no sooner did I get settled into my booth a quartet came over and sang to me! It was so beautiful. I had such a nice time there! I signed many autographs and was the one that drew all of the tickets for the door prizes and cash giveaways! There are several of these expos that go on during the year. I will also be attending one next month and several in the Spring as well.

To wrap up this stint of appearances I scheduled my first session with Jeremy Hoy at Finish First gym. I really had NO idea the pain I was about to inflict on myself upon making this appointment. Before the first session started I told him I would be back the next day as well. That was my second mistake.... My thighs, hamstrings, and abs have never hurt so bad in my life. I had dinner with Chet, his brother & wife, Bob, and Mark last night and I could barely get up the stairs to go into the restaurant! Embarrassing, I know. However, despite the difficulty and pain from the workout, Jeremy will DEFINITELY be getting me into shape for the swimsuit competition at Miss America!! I will be seeing him for a workout every Wednesday to make sure that I am staying on track with my diet and my own workouts.

This weekend I will be in the 250th Anniversary Palmyra parade! I have several appearances coming up next week as well. Check out the Miss Pennsylvania Scholarship Organization Fan Page on Facebook for more updates on upcoming events! Also as the pageant season gets underway, if you are interested in competing, check out www.MissPA.org for pageant dates and deadlines!

As always, thank you for following along J

With love-xoxo,

Courtney Thomas, Miss Pennsylvania 2010

A Weekend of Heroes - September 10-11, 2010

“I come here today not just as First Lady, on behalf of my husband and a grateful nation. I come as an American, filled with a sense of awe at the heroism of my fellow citizens. I come as a wife, a daughter, and a sister, heartbroken at the loss so many of you have endured. And I come as a mother, thinking about what my daughters, and what all of our sons and daughters, can learn from the 40 men and women whose memories we honor today.” –Michelle Obama, Septmber 11, 2010

September 11^th will forever be remembered for the heroes that lost their lives at the World Trade Center in New York City, The Pentagon in Washington D.C., and Somerset County, Pennsylvania.

This past weekend was about heroes, and I had the opportunity to meet some myself—both big and small. Friday night was the Brookville Volunteer Fire Department’s 101^st Anniversary Celebration. As soon as I got there, one of the volunteers ran out from behind his milkshake booth—camera in hand—and darted over to greet me with a hug. He was so excited that he could barely get the words out to ask me for a picture. I could not believe how thrilled he was to finally meet a Miss Pennsylvania! It was such a special moment, and the rest of the night was no different.

One of the perks of being Miss Pennsylvania is the plethora of free food that you get when you go to events—especially fairs and festivals. The vendors feel that if people see MISS PENNSYLVANIA eating their pizza, french fries, cotton candy, etc. then the general public will want to go to that particular vendor for the food. In other words, they want me to be a walking advertisement. Which is great and all, because there is no doubt that I LOVE to eat, but the cotton candy that I was given is not exactly in the “swimsuit-friendly” category. I believe I had—no joke—the world’s largest cotton candy ball that evening. But my goodness was it D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S!

Later that night, I performed a couple of fiddle tunes on the grandstand and had the extraordinary opportunity to play a song with Pork McElhinny—a hometown country music star. We played “Let the Circle Be Unbroken” and during the song Pork turned to me and said, “Hit it, Courtney!” and I broke down on my fiddle and had my very own solo!!

The volunteer firefighters at the event were so kind and friendly. I spent the evening with them listening to their stories and experiences about firefighting and was so happy that I could spend the September 11^th weekend at such a remarkable event!

The next morning I drove from my hometown in Sigel to Philadelphia to be a part of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia CMN Radiothon. This will go down as the most fun, emotional, and humbling appearance of my entire year. The children at that hospital are truly heroes. It was such a perfect, Fall Saturday and these kids were fixed to their beds and wheelchairs—unable to enjoy the weather outside. I shared the day with Andrea Helfrich, Miss Philadelphia 2010, and we both left the event feeling so touched by all of the children we met. Their positive attitudes made me realize how much I take for granted and how often I should count my blessings. Vikram, Brandon, Alexander, Sarah, and Delaney were a few of the children that I met that day and they are all heroes—heroes that I look up to for their strength and determination.

I really hope that I have another opportunity to revisit CHOP to see them all again. I will never understand why these children were chosen to have to go through life with such painful diseases, but we can certainly be taught a lesson from their strength of mind and fortitude.

I hope that you all have an excellent start to the Fall season! Thank you so much for following along and don’t forget to “Like” the new Miss Pennsylvania Scholarship Organization fan page on Facebook!

Until next time…

With Love,

Courtney Thomas

Miss Pennsylvania 2010