A week of purple!

Saturday was a pretty fantastic day, and I would like to start this blog off by saying how incredibly thankful I am for the blessings that God has provided me with. He is so powerful and I am blown away by his incredible power. Thank you Jesus for being all around awesome! :)

On Saturday morning I was asked to speak on WCCO 830 radio with Denny Long about my story with Alzheimer's and statistics about dementia and Alzheimer's. I spoke from the heart and what I knew, and I hope I did the Alzheimer's Association proud! It went so well and we were invited back. I had an amazing time speaking to Denny , the host, his mother passed away from this awful disease a few years back. Although waking up at 5AM was not fun, being in the studio and seeing the rooms and rooms of equipment was! Crazy how much machinery goes into produceing a radio show that reaches all over the state of Minnesota.

On Monday, the Brainerd Area Walk to End Alzheimer's committee and our Honorary Chair family "Painted the Town Purple" in order to raise awareness about Alzheimer's and our upcoming Walk on Saturday! Purple ribbons were tied around lightpost and around businesses. If you live in the Brainerd Area, make sure to look for them! Also make sure to look for the giant purple ribbon wrapped around the historic Brainerd water tower... it was wrapped around on Friday and will be there until Monday, so make sure to drive by and take a look! :)

A few hours ago, I arrived home after an awesome day in Walker, MN. My schedule was absolutely packed, so I was looking forward to the day. My morning started early, and I arrived at Hope Lutheran Church for a conference on aging. Lori, my contact person who got me connected, introduced me. Immediately after, I was escorted by members of the Interact Club to the Elementary school where I did about 10 presentations to 2nd-4th graders and presented them with the book "What's Happening to Grandpa" by Maria Shriver. Following that, I attended the Rotary Meeting and had lunch with them and the Interact club. Then we raced back over to the high school for my final 3 presentations of the day. The first one was to 5th and 6th graders, which I wasn't so nervous about because I had spoken to that age group many times before. The last two were to 7th-9th graders and then 10th-12th graders. These I was increidbly nervous for, as I had never spoken to a group of students my age! Both ended up going better than I had originally thought, which is great! :) I would like to thank the Interact Club for escorting me around and to Lori Gooch for setting all of this up. My very first trip to Walker, MN was a SUCCESS :)

All-in-all, I've had a pretty crazy week! And it's only the begining. Tomorrow is World Alzheimer's Day (wear your purple), then Saturday is the Walk to End Alzheimer's in Brainerd. With only 18 days until I give up my title, I'm happy to pack as much as I possibly can into these next few days. Thanks to everyone who has made this past year so incredible. Hope to see you all at the 2011 Miss North Metro and Miss North Metro Outstanding Teen pageant on October 9th!

Blessings,
Bailey