Ringing the Bell for Salvation Army

I volunteered to ring the bell for the Salvation Army this Christmas season for a few hours in Moorhead. This was my first time ever volunteering to ring the bell and I'm so glad I did. Sure it may have been a little cold, but I really saw the best in people. Almost everyone who passed by had to give a few dollars or any change they had in their pockets. It was nice to see such generosity, especially going towards a great cause.

The Salvation Army provides hot meals for people who do not have the funding to feed themselves. I have to sit and give thanks everyday for the blessings I have been given. Something that may seem so simple, like getting up to have breakfast is something that many others do not have the comfort of having. The Christmas season is about giving :-) I hope we all found a way to give back to our community this holiday season!!

Always,

Bethany Beniek

CMN Fundraiser

Pizza Ranch located in Dilworth, directly outside of Moorhead, agreed to partner with me and the Miss Moorhead Organization to raise money for the Children's Miracle Network (CMN). Fifteen percent of all the sales that evening was contributed toward the fund. It was a great success!! We made more than our goal of $250!! Thank you Pizza Ranch for hosting this event and everyone who came to support this great cause and to eat some incredible pizza!!

Bethany Beniek

Eventide Nursing Home

On Monday, December 21, Paige and I went to visit the Eventide Nursing Home located next to Concordia College. We got to serve cheese cake and coffee and visit with the residents. One of my favorite conversations was with Bessie and Gladis. They were dear friends who play aggregation together every evening. I used to play that game with my grandma when I was younger and I forgot how fun that game trully is :-)

Bessie has a cat named Arthur who loves to be pet, they said he is sooo spoiled! I know when I get a pet it will be spoiled too! They were so lively and chipper it was nice to talk with them. They of course had to make fun of their own age and I finally asked them, "How old are you?" and they replied cheerfully, "Oh hunny I'm 93, and Gladis here is 91." I was SHOCKED!! They did not act that age at all, I told them they didn't look a day over 70 and we shared a laugh.

They gave me some tips of wisdom that I will never forget:

Tip #1 - Keep your mind working, play simple games like sudoku or aggregation to keep your brain running

Tip #2 - Sit up straight, don't get used to slouching or otherwise it will catch up to you

and Tip #3 is the most important - Always have a good sense of humor!

Thank you Bessie and Gladis! It was so nice meeting you!

Always,

Bethany Beniek

Big Brother's Big Sister's

Happy Holidays everyone! Now that finals are over and after having a few days to recover from the semester, I finally have some time to sit down and tell you a little bit about my little sister Ashley. Now she isn't my "real" little sister, we were matched together through the Big Brother's Big Sister's (BBBS) of America Organization. We meet together once a week for an hour during school and simply hang out, chat with each other, and play games :-) Ashley and I were matched in September and we clicked immediatley! We couldn't stop talking, we had so much in common. She even has a German Shepard as a pet, which by the way will be my future dog (I LOVE DOGS-I never had one because my mom was allergic)! Ashley is in 5th grade and recieved her first cell phone in October, we have been texting each other almost every day since then!

If you didn't know, "Mentoring with the Big Brother's Big Sister's of America Organization" is my personal platform and I have been involved with promoting this incredible association for over 2 years. Please visit http://www.bbbs.org/ if you want to learn more about the program and how you could get involved in your area. The movement of BBBS has been helping children for over a century and is deemed the most effective youth mentoring program in the United States. Its success is based on an exceedingly effective, yet surprisingly simple concept: a One-to-One friendship between a mature, caring adult volunteer and a child who can benefit from that friendship. The organization reaches out to all children between the ages of 6 and 18, but places a special emphasis on the children who are deemed "at-risk," many of whom reside in a single parent household. One of the most rewarding characteristics of being a big sister myself is forming a strong friendship with someone who really looks up to you. I love getting texts from Ashley saying, "When are we meeting next week?!" when we just met earlier that day. Not only does she get excited to see me, but I get very excited to see her as well :-) I don't consider it volunteering anymore, it's just time out of every week to hang out my good friend.

With Christmas rapidly approaching I wanted to get Ashley something special, but I didn't want to just buy her something from the store, I wanted to get her something that we could do together. So I decided to make a Tie Blanket with her that she could keep as her gift :-) We had a lot of fun making it! It's tye dye on one side and blue on the other. The photo is of Ashley and I showing off our final product :-) She said her other sister at home will be so jealous, I laughed and told her that she should probably share it with her.

I can't tell you enough how this organization has changed my life and how important it is to think about becoming a volunteer yourself. Just within a 10 county radius of the greater twin cities there are over 800 children on the waiting list to get a big brother or sister. Children who simply want someone to rely on, someone they could talk to and possibly get help from. If you have any questions about BBBS, please don't hesitate to ask me!

I hope everyone is getting their Chritmas shopping done and getting their stretchy pants out for all those home cooked meals :-) I can't wait for my Mom's cheesy mashed potatoes, I can honestly eat 4 helpings!!

Always,

Bethany Beniek

Miss Minnesota's CD Release Party

I have been looking forward to Brooke's CD Release Party for quite some time. It was held in the Best Buy Rotunda at the Mall of America on Sunday, November 29th from 1:00-3:00pm. Before the concert, Brooke held a Pre-Event Party for the Gillette Children and local title holders. We were able to meet and visit with many children who have been helped by the Children's Miracle Network (CMN), one of them being Brandon Wittrock, CMN 2009 Champion! He remembered me back when I met him this past summer at the Minnesota Zoo :-)

After visiting and eating, we had an hour to spare before the concert began. Some of the girls and I quickly visited the dress store Glitz!, which is a sponsor for the Miss Minnesota Organization! Of course I wanted to buy about ten more dresses, but I had to resist.

The concert was incredible. Brooke sang all three of her songs from her CD, Carry You Through, Jo Bender performed two songs on her fidle, and the band Select Three serenaded us with multiple songs. At the end of the concert all the local title holders were asked up on stage to present the giant check to Brandon which totalled $9,000!! Brandon said he felt like a millionaire holding that huge check :-)

Thank you Brooke for making this entire event happen! It was a beautiful concert for such a great cause!

Always,

Bethany Beniek

Fargo Force Hockey Game

I had the incredible opportunity to sing the National Anthem for the Fargo Force Hockey game on Friday, November 27th at the Urban Plains Center. The arena was very nice! The building was only a couple years old so everything was very high-tech :-)

I have sang the national anthem many times for high school basketball games, and football games, but I have never sang it in a stadium that holds over 5,000 people! When I arrived I had a sound check, it was so surreal hearing myself sing in a such a large place. I had some time before the game began so I walked around and watched the hockey players warm up.

When the time came to sing, I met up with Whitney, who lead me to the penalty box. We walked by the players' locker room. I have never smelt anything quite like a Hockey Locker room! It smelt nothing like roses that's for sure!

I waited in the box and within seconds the Fargo Force rushed out onto the ice! The lights were flashing, the players were being introduced, and I kept singing the first three words to myself so I would start on the correct note. Finally, "and please welcome, Miss Moorhead, Bethany Beniek, as she sings the National Anthem."

My boyfriend Travis, was nice enough to video tape me singing on his camara :-)

Fargo Force won 5-4 in overtime! Go Fargo!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I want to say Happy Thanksgiving! When I woke up this morning, I realized how thankful I am for everyone in my life and for everything God has blessed me with! I want to offer my expressions of thanks and gratitude for all the good things, big or small :-)

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!

Fargo-Moorhead Parade of Lights

Paige and I had the opportunity to be in the Fargo-Moorhead Parade of Lights on Tuesday November 24th. I have never been to a parade that was later in the evening and that wasn't in the summer! When I arrived I saw a big red truck that we were going to ride in, it was decorated with many christmas lights and a big silver christmas tree! I realized why it was called the "Parade of Lights."

Many of the floats were decorated beautifully. As Paige and I walked around to check out all of the other floats, we met a large group of Harley bikers whom all had lights on their Harleys, a big ginger bread cookie, and the Grinch! Not to mention we got to lounge around in a hummer stretch limo that was promoting Toys for Tots :-)

Before the parade began I put two pairs of socks on, three coats, a scarf and gloves. I stayed very warm! There were many people who attended the parade. I have never seen so many bundled up toddlers in my whole life. They looked like colorful little marshmallows waving back at us :-)

Thank you Melissa, Amber and Shelley for decorating the truck, Ryan for letting us borrow your truck, and Travis for driving us through the parade! I appreciate all your help!

Once the parade ended we all agreed that we needed some food. We went to the Pizza Ranch (one of my favorite places to eat-I have many). I brought in some autograph cards to hand out to some of the children who attended the parade. Later on, some employees were asking for some cards to give to their children at home :-) We got in contact with the manager who agreed to host a fundraiser for the Children's Miracle Network (CMN) for me on December 21st. I need to raise $250 for the CMN for Miss Minnesota and I'm so grateful that the Pizza Ranch has agreed to help me! Fifteen percent of sales are donated towards the fund between the hours of 5-9pm and any tips recieved from bussing that evening will also be contributed! If anyone is within the Moorhead area on December 21st please eat at the Pizza Ranch for a good cause!

Upcoming Events :Friday, November 27 - Singing National Anthem for Fargo Force Hockey

Sunday, November 29 - Miss Minnesota's CD Release Party

Monday, December 21st - CMN Fundraiser at Moorhead Pizza Ranch

I made Miss Minnesota's Blog!

I saw that Brooke updated her blog! I love reading about her appearances and what she has been up to. As I was scrolling down I saw the picture of us from Miss Mankato! I feel like a celebrity (I know that sounds silly) but many people read her blog and it was such an honor to see that picture :-) check it out at www.mismn09travles.blogspot.com

Miss Mankato 2010

I attended the Miss Mankato 2010 pageant on November 14th at the Fitzgerald Campus Theater. There were 10 fabulous contestants that put on quite a show! There was such a variety of talent, from baton twirlers to singers to dancers and monologues. Their theme was "Miami Heat." They even had three male dancers come out during the opening number and do some break dancing! It was rather entertaining :-) Before the show I caught up with the newly crowned Miss Capital City, Kaylah Dockter, and Miss North Metro, Tiffany Gunderson. Of course I had to say hello to Papa Kilgarriff (aka Miss Minnesota's Dad) who was selling Brooke's CD for the Children's Miracle Network. I had the opportunity to speak with Brooke about her preparations for Miss America and her CD release party on November 29th which I'm very excited to attend! After intermission the visiting royalty went back stage to introduce themselves at the begining of the second half. We were told backstage to say our name, title, platform, and your favorite part about your year of service so far. I was thinking to myself, okay this is easy I can do this. Well, they call us out on stage, as we are walking across stage, my left high heel decided to slip off my foot in front of me! How embarrassing! I tried to play it off cool by lighty kicking it until I got to where I was suppose to stand on stage. I reached down (while always having a smile on my face) to put my shoe back on. When I was handed the microphone I told the audience my name, title, platform, and continued to tell them my favorite part about my reign so far of being matched with my new Little sister Ashley, and then said that my most embarrassing moment is this evening, and everyone began to laugh. Once we got off stage the visiting royaly and myself started to laugh about my clumsy moment and we of course had to re-enact it in the hallway :-)

Congradulations to the New Miss Mankato 2010 Samantha Phillippi!

Crowning to Appearances

These are all the lovely ladies who competed for Miss Moorhead 2009

Miss Moorhead 2008, Savannah Tate and Miss Moorhead 2009, Me :-)

Local Titleholders at Miss Twin Cities/ Miss Capital City Pageant

My first appearance at the Miss North Metro Pageant

Let the Blogging Begin!

I finally got my blog created and I can't wait to archive everything I do this year as Miss Moorhead 2009! I was crowned on September 12th, 2009 at the Moorhead High School Theater in conjunction with the new Miss Red River Valley Outstanding Teen. Since that date I have been keeping myself busy by attending all of the other local pageants; Miss North Metro, Miss Capital City, Miss Twin Cities, and Miss West Fargo. I love attending the local pageants to not only see all the talented woman compete, but to also see the other local titleholders and catch up, especially with my little sister crown Paige Meyer! I have also continued my partnership with Big Brother's Big Sisters and volunteer one hour every week to meet with my little sister Ashley. She is ten years old and recieved her first cell phone over halloween weekend! We have been texting each other non-stop ever since!