Three Day Adventure in Moorhead!

Stephanie Tollefson, Miss Fargo, is a nurse at the MeritCare Hospital

Cactus bread at 5AM in the morning :-)

Meet Alfonz :-) The Mascot of the MeritCare CMN Hospital

Hilary and Lane gave us a great tour of the hospital

Elaine had some great stories to share with us! Thank you Elaine

This is Tony, He sure was good with the ladies ;-)

Baby Alfonz was my favorite!

Reading to the children at the Early Years Enrichment Center

Her name was Bethany too :-)

The Manager Dean Larsen, you are the greatest!

I met Tay earlier at her school

Some more friends we met at the Pizza Ranch

Ron gave the best tour, Thank you Ron

Ron was very enthusiastic :-)

The first week of March was my spring break away from school. Since I had some time off, I decided to spend time in Moorhead. My committee had set up some incredible appearances for me and I couldn't wait to get started! I arrived on Monday March 1st to attend another Pizza Ranch fundraiser in Dilworth to raise money for the Miss Moorhead Scholarship Organization and the Children's Miracle Network. It was a wonderful evening filled with fun and food! After the fundraiser I spend the night at the Courtyard Marriot Hotel in Moorhead, who graciously donated two nights for me and my committee member, Melissa, to stay in for the week. The room was incredible and the service was perfect! A huge thank you to the Courtyard Marriot Hotel for giving me a place to stay.

On Tuesday March 2nd I had the opportunity to visit with pre-kindergarten children between the ages of 4 and 5. I read a few books to them and sang a couple of songs. When I grew up, I remember singing songs like the "itzy bitzy spider" and "patty cake," but now children are singing about "sticky sticky bubble gum" and "stinky cake!" Yes, I spelled that correctly, "Stinky cake!" They were great songs to sing and I learned the hand actions to them as well :-) I will never forget those energetic children. One little boy asked me if I lived in a castle! What a cutie. Thank you so much to the Early Years Enrichment Center for letting me come and visit with the children, I had a blast!

After visiting the Early Years Enrichment Center, I was off to the meet with Moorhead Public Service to take some photos and meet with some employees to thank them for their ongoing support of the Miss Moorhead Scholarship Organization. Did you know that Moorhead has the best tasting water in Minnesota! How exciting! I took a photo with a liter flask of water as well :-) Another big thank you to the Moorhead Public Service!

Later in the day I decided to visit the Hjemkost Center. The Hjemkost Center is the home of a Viking Ship replica built by a man named Robert Asp and his family. They sailed it all the way to Norway from Minnesota in 1984. This Viking Ship is a historical symbol of Moorhead. I had a detailed tour of the ship by a very enthusiastic tour guide named Ron. I was so thrilled to learn about Moorhead's history. Not only do I want to compete for the title of Miss Minnesota this June, I want to represent Moorhead to the best of my ability and I think it's important that I learn about its history. Thank you so much Ron for the tour!

Later in the evening Paige Meyer, Miss Red River Valley Outstanding Teen, joined us at the hotel. We were going to be on the Valley News at 5:00AM and we thought she should spend the night with us. We went to bed early and woke up at 4AM on Wednesday March 3rd! Although I may have been tired, I was so excited to be interviewed on the news. Did I mention it was going to be LIVE :-) Paige and I were interviewed 5 separate times within one hour by a very animated host named Steve. Steve made waking up at 4AM easy! He was reciting Shakespeare, singing, and dancing. I couldn't stop laughing at this gentleman. One of the main reasons we were interviewed on the News was because we wanted to promote another fundraiser we were having at the Pizza Ranch that evening. We talked about the Pizza Ranch and what we were raising the money for. I want to give another big thank you to the manager of Pizza Ranch in Dilworth, Dean Larsen! He opened the Pizza Ranch doors for us at 5am and made us some incredible cactus bread. If you haven't ate at the Pizza Ranch, cactus bread is dessert pizza that tastes like a warm, cinnemon role. It was a perferct treat to have early in the morning.

After our successful Valley News interviews, we went to visit the MeritCare Hospital which is an affiliated hospital with the Children's Miracle Network. Just like the CMN Hospital in St. Paul, the MeritCare Hospital is very well designed and decorated. While I was getting a tour by Hilary Mork, she was explaining all the docorations to us. I felt like I was walking through a Disney Land Village. I can see how all of the Children feel at home even in a hospital. One of my favorite decorations was Alfonz :-) He was their mascot. Alfonz was an adorable statue of a mouse who held out his arms opened wide to welcome all children into the hospital. In the neonative care unit they even had a baby Alfonz statue! So cute!

Paige and I visited with a couple of patients staying at the hospital. First we met with Jada, a little girl who had just had her tonsils removed that morning. She was so excited to see us, her eyes lit up when she saw our crowns. Although she may have been in pain she still had the energy to tell us that she thought we looked very pretty. Jada had a very kind personality and I couldn't tell her enough how beautiful her big brown eyes were. Thank you Jada for spending time with us. I hope your recovery went well!

The next patient I met with was a 14 year old girl named Morgan going through Kemo Therapy. When we walked in she was doing a crossword puzzle and watching "Home Improvements." I loved that show when I was growing up and we immediatly connected. As I was speaking with Morgan I couldn't help but notice how mature she was. She was a very strong individual who wasn't afraid to talk about her condition. Could you imagine being a freshmen in high school and being diagnosed with cancer? Could you imagine being a 14 year old girl and not having any hair? Morgan was an inspiration. I hope you all can think of Morgan and realize how lucky we are. Next time we argue about a bad hair cut remember that you are lucky to even have hair. I am so thrilled that the Miss America Organization has partnered with the Chilren's Miracle Network. What a worthy organization to raise money for!

Please consider making a donation to the Children's Miracle Network. If you are interested visit http://www.missamerica4kids.org/m.aspx?i=9703E6+A65A0B7

Become of a fan of the Children's Miracle Network on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/#!/childrensmiraclenetwork?ref=tc

After visiting the Hospital we went to visit the Eventide Nursing Home and Assisted Living home. The first stop was the Assisted living home. Paige and I both gave a 20 minute presentation about ourselves and then visited with the residents. I met an older lady named Anne who connected with me. I had told everyone that I had recently had ear surgery and that I couldn't hear out of my left ear. Anne took me by the hand and said, "I can barely hear out of both my ears darling, I know exactly how you feel" and winked at me. This is the second time I had visited the Eventide Assisted living home and they all have such an incredible sense of humor! Thank you to the residents who came down to visit with me!

Down the hall from the Assisted Living Home was the Nursing Home. We gave a shorter presentation and gave out autograph cards to the residents. Everyone was so kind. I felt like a real celebrity! Everyone cheered for Paige and I when we arrived and when we left. They were so excited to take my photo back to their rooms and show them off to all their friends. I'm so glad I could make someone smile for the day :-) Thank you to the Eventide Assisted Living and Nursing Home for letting us join you, it was a great experience.

To end my three day adventure in Moorhead, we were off to the Pizza Ranch fundraiser. It was so busy! I can't believe how many people get up at 5am to watch the news because almost everybody said, "I saw you on the News this morning!" It was a great success. I met many families and children who were excited to not only eat pizza, but to give back to the Children's Miracle Network. I am overwhelmed with gratitude to the city of Moorhead for all of the support given to me this year.

After eating some pizza of my own, I got back in the car with my parents for a two and half hour drive back home. About an hour after we started driving, I realized I had left my phone in Melissa's car! We were not about to turn around so my phone is in the mail at this moment waiting to be in my hands again :-)

I want to give a special thanks to:

The Courtyard Marriot Hotel for donating their rooms for me to stay in while I was in Moorhead!

Moorhead Public Service for their ongoing support of the Miss Moorhead Scholarship Organization.

The Early Enrichment Center for letting me come visit with the children.

Pizza Ranch in Dilworth, and manager Dean Larsen for letting us use the restaurant for two more fundraisers.

The Eventide Nursing/Assisted Living Home for letting us come and visit with the residents.

Hilary Mork, the CMN Coordinator at the MeritCare Hospital in Fargo for giving us a great tour of the hospital.

My parents for driving me around and taking photos for me.

My committee, Melissa, Amber and Shelley for setting up these incredible opportunities for me. I had a very memorable time.

Always,

Bethany Beniek