Miss Banks of the Wabash visits the Big Apple!!

God works in mysterious ways ...

My junior year of high school, I wrote an essay about a man named Chiune Sugihara through my involvement with the Anti-Defamation League (visit http://www.adl.org/). As a result, I was granted the opportunity to visit Japan.

A couple of weeks ago I sent an email to the Director of Education at ADL to ask if the family I stayed with while in Japan was ok. After he assured me that the Naka family was fine, he informed me that some people from Japan would be visiting New York. He wanted me to come speak to them about my experiences in Japan and how I've used the lessons of the ADL since 2003.

So of COURSE I said yes. :-)

I met a woman that described her escape from the concentration camps in Poland. She is in the above photo in all red. She walked us through how each situation she and her family came across was life or death and God made a way. For example: She and her family got stopped by a Russian soldier with a gun who was about to kill her. The only reason he didn't was because he had a sister who was the same age, had the same name (which was a Russian name and it was odd that this woman had this name), and had the same two pig-tail braids in her hair. Her narrow escacpe seemed unreal.

The picture below is of two of the girls from Japan. For some reason, we had tuna and turkey wraps instead of food that would have been easier for the Japanese guests to eat. Watching them attempt to eat their food with fork and knife reminded me of how I tried to use chopsticks in Japan. I had to explain that wraps were finger food. It was a cute moment.

Below is a photo of me at ADL Headquarters the Monday after the Japanese guests came to visit. The Director of Education for the ADL introduced me to the staff in charge of their web publications. He told her about my experience with ADL and how that led to many decisions later. He explained how my Miss Indiana platform was linked to ADL's mission, so she asked me back to do an interview. They treated me like a real celebrity. Once they send me notification that my story is posted, I'll be sure to add a link here.

I can't believe how one simple email checking on my host family turned into this ... God is awesome. :)

Remember ... Unity Starts with YOU. Learn who you are. Respect the person God made you to be. It will help you respect (and not just tolerate difference) those around you.

Pole-Vaulting, scholarly Class President to ... Beauty Queen???

Most people who know me well and have known me for years wouldn't have EVER guessed that I would be competing for Miss Indiana. Yet and still, I will be the first representative of the Miss Banks of the Wabash Organization at the Miss Indiana 2011 Pageant.

One of my favorite cousins asked me about a month ago, "Why are you doing this? What happened to you? You used to be so fiesty and competitive and such a change agent ... now you're competing in pageants?"

I laughed. Yes, I'm competing in pageants. In fact, it's those other characteristics my cousin described that led me to pageantry.

My junior year of high school I was selected to go to Washington DC for a leadership conference sponsored by the Anti-Defamation League. I met Erin Gruwell, the real woman behind the book and movie, "Freedom Writers," Holocaust survivors, ADL executives, and 104 other high school leaders around the country. This conference, which later led to a trip to Japan, helped me realize my passion for fighting for the civil rights of others.

My Senior year of High School, as Class President, I helped lobby for the change of one event just because it was held on a Jewish holiday and would prevent many students from attending.

In my Sophomore Year at Northwestern University, I helped start something called, "Community Conversations" on Martin Luther King Jr. Day (which was the first time the University had the entire day off). We held several conversations around campus asking the question, "What would MLK say about race relations at NU?" This Community Conversation idea became a popular way to open conversation about several issues of difference on campus.

After graduating from Northwestern, I helped revamp the "diversity" requirement for all incoming freshmen after taking a course entitled, "Inclusive Excellence".

While I was learning about how I could affect change, I was simultaneously learning to be a bit more refined, so to speak. In 2004, I was crowned Miss Circle City Classic (Which came as a complete surprise. I was satisfied with making the Top Ten). This competition is NOT a pageant, but a coronation for high school girls in Indiana. Miss Circle City Classic is judged by poise, workshop participation, academics, leadership, a current event essay, and an answer to a Top Ten question.

In college, the men of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. heard about my being Miss Circle City Classic and encouraged me to compete in their Miss Black and Gold Pageant. Though I was MORE THAN NERVOUS (for this was my first "pageant") I fared well. I did not win, but this event led to the next domino.

My sorority sister and pledge daughter heard about my experiences with the Miss Black and Gold Pageant and pursuaded me to try out the Miss America system. She was from Virginia, and told me about a great competitor there named Caressa Cameron. Caressa had persevered in the Miss Virginia system but had never won the title. I repeatedly told her no. Later, after learning about the wonderful things titleholders do in the community, I agreed. I placed 1st Runner up at my first competition which was Miss Southern Illinois (even though I was from Indianapolis and went to school at Northwestern which is north of Chicago). I won my next competition which qualified me for Miss Illinois.

Two months after I won a local pageant, the first ever Miss America from my home state of Indiana was crowned. :-) I had Katie Stam picked from the beginning. So did a very helpful Northwestern staff member who was a former first runner up to Miss North Dakota.

The next January I traveled to Katie Stam's hometown of Seymour, IN to watch her crown Miss America 2010.  It was no surprise to me that the Virginia competitor my sorority sister had mentioned took the crown.

I lost Miss Illinois in 2009, but gained a wealth of knowledge about competition in general. When I moved back to Indianapolis, I decided to keep competing. I lost all three competitions I attempted in the 2010 season. I even gave up. However, I believe God instructed me to dust myself off and try again. Now, I'm Miss Banks of the Wabash and preparing for Miss Indiana. It may not be in His divine will for me to win, but it is in His will for me to compete. I'm grateful for the opportunity, and I'm glad I'm competing in my home state. :-)

The JOB of Miss Banks of the Wabash or Miss Indiana or Miss America would give me the opportunity to advocate for a cause of my choice without having to worry about please a political party or running for reelection! lol :-)  I am a naturally competitive person, so it's a fun way to compete and then do good!! My cause of choice, or my platform, "Unity Starts with YOU". It combines the idea of self-confidence and inclusion (Details to come but I prefer not to make these posts painfully long).

Aside from smiling and waiving, as Miss Banks of the Wabash I have paricipated in a number of community service activities and had several opportunities to speak to audiences about my platform. This is EXACTLY what I wanted to do with my title ... and I hope to continue as Miss Indiana. We'll see what happens in June.