KaBoom for A Kid's Place

Frontier Civitan

Happy Tuesday!

Today was a busy, yet not-so-busy day. I slept in until 8:30am (which has been much nicer than my usual 6am), attended my Femmes de Couer meeting at the Citrus Club, caught up on my blog/emails/phone calls and then had an appearance. I also, began on my list of handwritten thank you cards. It is amazing how much a handwritten note means in this age of technology.

Shortly after I won the title of Miss Florida USA 2010, my friend Denee' was elected President of the Frontier Civitan Club of Orlando. Founded in 1974, the Frontier Club became the first all women's club to be charted in Civitan International. There club now has over 30 members and focuses on community service, leadership, working with their Junior Civitan clubs, and fellowship. Today was her first meeting as President and she asked if I would be there guest speaker. I spoke about my life, my new title and the Glam Doll Strut. Afterwards, I was presented with a $250 check for the Glam Doll Strut which benefits the UM Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. I know the Glam Doll Board will be thrilled to hear of the donation.

Now I have a few more things to catch up on and then I am off to bed! Tomorrow I have the whole day OFF! Woohoo! The plan is to attempt to get out of bed and hopefully clean my apartment, do laundry, work on more emails/thank you cards, and take a dance class! I miss dancing sooooo much.....I have to squeeze it whenever I can :)

Love Always,

Megan Clementi

Miss Florida USA

Play Golf, Fight Cancer

Hello :)

One of the many perks of being Miss Florida USA is having former titleholders introduce you to some of their contacts which can lead to more appearances, job opportunities, friendships etc. For a while now, I have been planning to attend the 6th Annual Golf Classic, Play Golf Fight Cancer. This tournament supports one of the main objectives of the University of Florida Proton Therapy Institute - research. This research will allow UFPTI to improve the outcomes of all cancer patients and to add more cancers to the treatment list. http://floridaproton.dojiggy.com/index.cfm?PageID=12135

Melissa Witek, Miss Florida USA 2005, and Allison Kreiger, Miss Florida 2006, both attended this event as UF Alumni and as the reigning Miss Florida or Miss Florida USA. Although I did not attend UF (I am a UCF grad), I found that I had something else in common with everyone there. The majority of companies in attendance were representing engineering firms. For me it was a double whammy! I was able to support a great cause while learning about potential job opportunities!

I started off the day at registration. You could already tell that it was going to be a scorcher outside. My contact Larry even joked that we should postpone the event until next week when it cools down :) Anyway, at one point I was talking with a three-some and out of no where one of the guys says, "Hey, YOU are Miss Florida USA'. Now being that I was wearing my sash, I thought that was pretty clear. I told him I was and he began to ask me where and when Miss USA was. It is as though I could see his light bulb turn on and he says, "I am supposed to go to Vegas to see you!" Turns out that my Dad has been telling everyone that they have to come to Vegas to support his daughter and those people have been telling their people.

Thank you Dad and Raj for rounding up an engineering section to be at Miss USA to support me :)

I left after registration and came back for the dinner, silent/live auction and awards presentations. I had the honor of sitting with Dr. Nancy Mendenhall (Medical Director of UFPTI) and Chris Doering (Gator Great and NFL veteran). Both were accomplished in their respective fields and it was wonderful being able to speak with them. Once the live auction started, the money started to fly!It was really neat to listen to the live auction and watch as an item start at the bid amount and climb to $3350! There was a lot of money raised today for a great cause and I am so thankful that I could be a part of it! In the end, $72,000 was raised!

Congratualtions to all the award winners and Congratualtions to Larry for a fantastic day of golf!

Love Always,

Megan Clementi

Miss Florida USA

The weekend to walk!

Although, I did not participate as Miss Florida USA, I did have the privilege of attending two other walk-a-thons this weekend.

Yesterday at 7am, I assisted my boyfriend (Dave for those who know him) at the Miami Heat booth at the Annual Domestic Violence Walk and Expo in North Miami Beach. Every person who pre-registered for the walk was given a Season Opener Miami Heat ticket for the Oct 28th home game. It was sweltering outside, but that did not stop people from attending this event. It was really neat to see so many people there and to hear there stories of survival. In the picture you can see posters in the background. All of them were created to send the message of Stop The Violence. It was a very powerful statement.

Today, I drove up to Jacksonville to be with a couple who is very close to my heart. James and Kim Antos entered my life when I won the title of Miss Volusia County USA 2009. Kim was my director and since then she has become a very close friend. Last fall, we celebrated the news that Kim and James were going to become first time parents. If you have ever met Kim and James, you would know that these two people have been together forever and were ready to bring a child into their loving family.

After 19 weeks of pregnancy, problems began to surface. Apparently the baby was experiencing seizures inside the womb which if you can image was incredible painful for Kim and detrimental to the baby. This continued on until Kim gave birth at 32 weeks. From what the doctors know, this is a very rare case with not a lot of case study work. There is nothing that Kim or James did wrong, genetics did not come into play; the doctor describes it as a fluke incident that if given enough time, Kim's body should be able to heal so she can have the opportunity to have a healthy child.

Now I shorten the story to the basic points, but you should know that Kim and James went from living in Ormond Beach, working full time, and arranging the house for a new baby to weekly doctor visits in Jacksonville and a daily fear of the unknown. Alexander was born on June 23, 2009 and passed on July 22, 2009. During that one month period, Kim and James stayed at the Ronald McDonald House in Jacksonville and saw Alexander as often as they were allowed. He was in a very fragile state, still experiencing seizures.

At 3 weeks old and at 4 weeks old, the doctors took an MRI of Alexander's brain. Instead of seeing development, they saw the opposite. Alexander's brain was deteriorating at a rather quick pace and Kim and James were given two options. First option, understand that if Alexander lives he will be a vegetable his entire life unable to breathe without being attached to a machine or second, let him go. It was an incredibly difficult decision, but they decided to let him go. They never imagined that it would come down to this decision, but they truly felt that their child had endured enough pain in his 30 day life.

When Kim told me about the Wolfson Children's Hospital's Walk To Remember, I knew we needed to attend. Families gathered to remember their lost one for the short time that he or she was on this earth. There were personal messages written on purple and white balloons as well as banners that were carried throughout the walk. Everyone wore a yellow butterfly with the name of their child who had passed. Once we all reached the furthest point of the walk, there was a prayer, we listened to Over The Rainbow and the balloons were released. It was a afternoon of sadness but also of hope. My heart goes out to all the families. Kim and James are very thankful to the Ronald McDonald House and Wolfson Children Hospital for being so supportive during this incredibly difficult period in their life. If you would like to donate to the Wolfson Children's Hospital please visit https://dnbweb1.blackbaud.com/OPXDONATE/AddDonor.asp?cguid=D7C2333D-C9FF-498A-8732-92985A5249D2&sTarget=https://dnbweb1.blackbaud.com/OPXDONATE/donate.asp?cguid%3DD7C2333D%252DC9FF%252D498A%252D8732%252D92985A5249D2%26dpid%3D12919&sid=9392C7D8%2D08E2%2D4C54%2DB161%2D9AC6AEB748C0

Glam Doll Strut

WooHoo! I promise no more emails and posts from me about donating for the Glam Doll Strut! LOL

The Strut is over and it was a HUGE success. Raising over $95,000 for the UM Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, this money will be distributed amongst the woman suffering from Breast Cancer in the local area. A ton of men, women, children, and pets showed up in their Fab attire to kiss goodbye to breast cancer. The walk started with registration and a fashion show on the main stage in which Lynn Martinez, of Deco Drive, was the hostess. The Miami Dolphin Cheerleaders kicked off the festivities and the walk was ON.
There was a flood of high heels moving through Las Olas Blvd for a half of a mile. This was not just your typical walk-a-thon. There were of booths to visit, photo ops, and a judges station (to Strut your stuff); plus food and refreshments
throughout. Once the walk was over , it was time to announce the 2009 Glam Doll Strut Queen. This was the team captain who raised the most money. For the second year in a row the 'Boobies' took home the title raising an amazing $10,000! Congratulations to the 'Boobies' and everyone who participated in this Fabulous event!

PLEASE VOTE!

Hi everyone :)

I have a very special little friend who has been in and out of remission (She was diagnosed with a rare cancer called neuroblastoma in February 2007) since she was a little girl. She is now 10 years old and loves Arnold Palmer Hospital for everything they have done for her.

For a while now, Children's Miracle Network has been having a competition to see which children's hospital in the nation can get the most votes. That hospital will win a upgraded play station for their hospital. Arnold Palmer has been stuck in 24th place and the competition ends on Oct 16th so please visit:

http://xbox.childrensmiraclenetwork.org/Default.aspx

You can vote 10 times in one day at the same time. The zip code for Arnold Palmer is 32806. You don't have to live in Florida to vote.

Please pass this to as many people as you know by email and facebook if you have one.

Thank you for voting and helping us be the #1 Children's Hospital in Florida.
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Love Always,
Megan Clementi
Miss Florida USA*

6th Annual Georgette's Celebrity Fashion Show

GOOD MORNING! Today I was introduced to the most wonderful non-profit organization, HARC (Hillsborough Achievement Resource Center). HARC is One of the oldest and most respected agencies serving people with disabilities in the Tampa Bay Region since its founding in 1953. HARC is a non-sectarian, non-profit organization founded in 1953 by parents of children with mental retardation to provide services to individuals with developmental disabilities. Since that time, HARC has evolved into an organization that serves people of all ages with many different kinds of disabilities.

For the past 6 years, HARC has been known for their one of a kind fundraising event; Georgette's Celebrity Fashion Show. The event took place at the Tampa Hyatt Regency and I would declare the event a huge success! I believe there were 450 people in attendance, mostly women ready to mingle with others as well as see some great clothing. Georgette has transformed your average fashion show into a Cirque de Soliel experience. Fun music, dancers, aerialists, and celebrity models made the show highly entertaining and very memorable. Today was no different. I had the honor of attending this event to model a beautiful 14K gold 'Y' style necklace from Continental Jewelers. This piece was worth $1100 and was being auctioned off following the fashion show.

The picture to the right is of myself with Glenn and Sally Smith from Continental Jewelers. They have donated a jewelry piece every year since the inaugural fashion show and were so wonderful to speak with during the luncheon. I wish I could have taken the necklace home as it looks great against any V-neck styled clothing piece and compliments all two-tone jewelry. The compliments were non-stop; hence it was a great piece to have for the Live Auction :)

All in all, this event was completely worth the drive. Everyone inside of the HARC organization was so professional, organized and involved for the right reasons. They have hearts of gold and I am very grateful to have been apart of their event.

Love Always,

Megan Clementi

Miss Florida USA

On the Flip Side segment aired TODAY!

An email from Aubrey...


On this star-studded episode of On The Flipside, Aubrey Aquino is coming to you from Sandbar in Salt Lake City Utah! Up first, NBA sensation, LeBron James talks about his big screen debut in "More Than a Game' along with the film's director, Kristopher Belman. Then shop til ya drop! Miami Dolphins Jason Taylor takes some deserving youth for a "Cool Gear or the School Year outing at Old Navy. Watch the fun festivities, as he's joined by teammates like Greg Camarillo, Akin Ayodele, Joey Porter, Yeremiah Bell, the Dolphins cheerleaders, as well as Miami HEAT James Jones, Udonis Haslem and alum Alonzo Mourning, AND South Florida rappers Rick Ross and Trina.
For this edition's Sideline Distraction we feature Miss Florida USA Megan Clementi, who's a 5-year veteran and captain of the Orlando Magic "Dunking Dancers." And finally, we round it in Las Vegas at the Bali Hai golf course, by taking a spin in the Garia Golf Car with NFL kicker Morten Andersen.
Keep spreading the word about On The Flipside and thanks for the continued support!! ~Aubrey
P.S. I edited this entire episode ALL BY MYSELF! :)
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AUBREY! You are amazing! Great job!

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If you would like to see just my portion of the segment follow this link
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Love Always,
Megan Clementi
Miss Florida USA*

Miss Florida Teen USA Preliminary Day

Good Evening Pageant Fans!

What a fun day! This morning I was out the door with the Miss Florida Teen USA contestants as today was the Preliminary Competition. Now I must admit, I started off a bit shakey this morning. Apparently when I went to bed at 2:00AM, I mistakenly set my cell phone for 7:05 PM! YIKES! So I woke up when Sussette (our assistant director) called me at 7:43AM. Somehow I made it out the door by 7:59AM and was downstairs in the lobby by 8am! All those years of practicing my hair and make-up in 15 minutes FINALLY paid off...lol

Anyway, we arrived at the Bailey Concert Hall, had breakfast (yummy pastries, cereal boxes and fruit) and then spent the next 4 hours putting the show together. All the contestants were troopers. I do not think I heard anyone complain about anything. In fact, everyone was so excited about the competition that the time just flew by. One of my favorite moments was watching the Little Sisters Practice their introductions. I made it a point to get ready quickly so I could take a group picture with them before the show started. I love them so much!

Kayla Collier, Miss Florida Teen USA 2009, and myself hosted the preliminary competition. We had the honor of watching 34 amazing teens compete for the coveted title of Miss Florida Teen USA 2010. One of the 34 will be my new sister queen :) The contestants performed the opening number followed by Swimwear and finished with the Evening Wear Competition. Today determined the Top 15, although we will not know who they are until the top of the show tomorrow.

Now, usually the show is at 7pm, but this year we have decided to go the afternoon route so both prelims and finals are at 2:00 in the afternoon. I must admit I sort of like this new concept. After the show, we had a wonderful dinner; all 34 contestants, parents, and staff were able to unwind and enjoy some scrumptious food provided by the Hilton Garden Inn in Dania, Florida. I thought for sure I would have to talk about the pageant for another 2 hours, but my table was rolling in laughter about anything and everything EXCEPT PAGEANTRY! What a relief! I heard the same was true for other tables as well. I am so proud of all these girls!

While I am writing, the contestants are back in rehearsals. Although Finals is not a live telecast, we tape the show as if it were. So I have a feeling the intros will be slightly different, but do not hold me to it :) Tomorrow is a big day and this beauty queen cannot afford to over sleep 2 DAYS IN A ROW...lol I am off to bed. Good Night!

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Love Always,
Megan Clementi
Miss Florida USA *

Hello Everyone!

First of all, I want to thank everyone again for the overwhelming amount of support and encouragement! I am excited for this year and I know this will be a year I will never forget. I promise to do my part as your Miss Florida USA to represent the state at the best of my ability and hopefully bring this organization to a whole new level :)

For starters, a good friend of mine, Barbara Ewald, has presented a great appearance opportunity that I would love to share with all of you. The Glam Doll Strut or High Heel Walk is a 1/2 mile hike in which we can all wear our fabulous high heels and strut our way to fighting breast cancer. The event takes place in Ft Lauderdale on Saturday October 10th on Las Olas Blvd. The day will feature three exciting events.

From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., kids can enjoy free activities, crafts and entertainment at the Little Rock Star Play Day. Then from 3 p.m. to 6pm (Registration 2:00pm-3:30pm....Walk at 4pm), South Florida's most fabulous divas (dudes and dogs too!) will assemble in their stilettos and pumps for the kick-off of the first-ever Glam Doll Strut, to raise funds for the University of Miami's Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. The day will end with Diva Las Olas, a casino night featuring cocktails, food and gaming under the stars.

The Glam Doll Strut is the brainchild of Tammy Gail, herself a breast cancer survivor. "Our mission is to celebrate women and fund important research projects that will hopefully lead to a decline in the spread of breast cancer," she says. "But it takes one step at a time - and in this case, that step is a strut!" I am honored to be the team captain of the Florida Queens Team! I challenge all friends, family, acquaintances and titleholders from all systems to unite as one to fight breast cancer. If you are a titleholder, then wear your crown and sash and show our community that pageant girls are not just pretty girls but intelligent young woman who make a difference in the community everyday! My goal is to raise $1000. If you have a couple extra dollars, please visit my site. It is amazing how quickly a couple dollars from everyone can total to hundreds or even thousands of dollars toward the research and development of finding a cure!

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If you would like more information please check out the website at http://www.glam-a-thon.com/website/home.html

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For signing up on my team or donating, go ahead and visit...Megan Clementi Personal Page Link:https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=315992&supId=262931203

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If you have family members or friends who want to participate, tell them the more the merrier! THANK YOU!Strap On Your Stilettos, Cupcake.the Pink Carpet Awaits! Look forward to seeing you all there!

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Love Always,

Megan Clementi *

Miss Florida USA