The Beginning of a New Year..2012!

Hello everyone!

I haven't posted in quite some time and I have much to update on! Back in December, I volunteered at an amazing event, the DECA Central Region Leadership Conference! This event brings in high school students from 13 states that are involved in their school's DECA Chapter. I volunteered both as a chaperone for the 2,000 kid DECA Dance, and I was also a "Clue Agent" for a very fun scavenger hunt that took place at the Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo!

Desert Dome Clue Agents!

My Brother Ryan and I with our DECA Adviser from High School, Tracy Hinchcliff Smith

With State Officer Aleah Peters and Millard South Chapter Officer Michelle Goodman!

With the DECA Mascots..

 Bringing in the new year was exciting as always! I was in Florida for the Capital One Bowl with the UNL Marching Band! We were there for 4 days and had a great trip! The game didn't turn out as we wanted, but the rest of the trip was wonderful! It is always fun to take trips with the marching band!

Game day! Waiting for the team to come through..

Waiting for the parade to start..

After being back in school for 4 days, it was time for anther vacation! The Miss America Pageant took place January 14th and I had the pleasure of attending with my mom, sister, brother-in-law, and brother! It was a great experience! It was my 4th time attending a Miss America Pageant, but my first time since the pageant had been in Las Vegas! It was so much fun to cheer on Miss Nebraska, Kayla Batt, and also visiting the trade show, trying on dresses, and exploring Las Vegas for the first time!

My mom and I at the Miss America Gala

Finally got to see Kayla!

It was great talking to Katie Stam, one of my favorite Miss Americas!

The wonderful Teresa Scanlan, Miss America 2011!

Mindy and I before the final pageant!

Family..

My mom and I just before the pageant started!

With Danae Couch, a fellow twirler and pageant friend!

Now things are finally starting to settle down, but not for long! I have three more trips planned for this semester including a collegiate twirling competition in Florida, a fire-twirling performance in Denver, and the World Baton Twirling Championships in Switzerland! In between all of this (and of course going to school full time) I will also be busy with appearances for the Children's Miracle Network, The American Heart Association, and much more! I will also be promoting my platform, speaking to numerous different groups about the dangers of texting and talking on the phone behind the wheel. It will be a busy semester, but a great one!

Until next time,

Rachel Foehlinger

Miss Lincoln

Children's Miracle Network Family Day!

Hello All!

Time for another update! :)

This past weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to spend time with some children that are involved with Dance Marathon! A husker tailgate was held for families of children that are a part of the Children's Miracle Network.  I was asked to come (both as Miss Lincoln and as the Husker Feature Twirler) and share some baton twirling tricks and spend some time with the kids. I could never have guessed what an amazing experience it would be! I loved every moment spent with the kids!

Carly was one of the first children I had the pleasure to meet, and she was so sweet and very excited to learn some baton tricks!

Here is a picture of the group of children I spent the morning with learning new baton tricks and poses! :)

What a wonderful experience it was! I want to thank the members of the Dance Marathon committee for having me come and be a part of this wonderful event! I am hoping to make it to Dance Marathon this year to see these kids once again! 

Until next time,

Rachel

October so far...

Hello everyone!

So far, October has been wonderful! I have had the opportunity to take part in some awesome events, I have been able to enjoy some great Husker football (finally) and October is also my birthday month! If you saw my last blog, you know that I had the opportunity to give a presentation at the Fall Leadership Conference for DECA, and I was also a judge for the Monday Night Live event at UNL! 

The week of October 8th, I was very excited to be the first Husker Baton Twirler to ever be allowed to twirl fire at a Husker home game! 

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to volunteer at the Miss Applejack Pageant in Nebraska City! I was honored to have been asked to judge this event! Each year, Nebraska City holds the Little Miss Applejack, Junior Miss Applejack, and Miss Applejack pageants! The contestants take part in an interview, introduction, on-stage question, and (for the Miss) the presentation of a talent! It was a wonderful event and I was very honored to be a part of it! 

Here I am with the other Judge, Nicolette, and the winner envelopes!

 The Apple Angel was a wonderful gift to always remind me of this event!

The Little Miss contestants! (Ages 5-10)

The Junior Miss contestants! (Ages 11-13)

Here are the winners!

The winners and runners-up for each category.

The director, Rose Ralstin, and I!

Our lovely hostess!

Just after returning to Omaha from the Applejack Pageant, I headed over to the JCC and I made it just time to watch the Miss Omaha pageant! I had several friends in the Miss and Teen pageants, so it was a very fun pageant to watch!

 Miss Nebraska, Kayla Batt and I!

Kayla and "her twirlers" :)

Stepper-Ette pageant girls!

More Stepper-Ettes! Kayleigh (in the pink) competed in her very first pageant and received 1st runner up! The Stepper-Ettes are very proud! Aleah (in the blue) was giving up her title as Miss Omaha's Outstanding Teen!

Kayleigh's Support group!

So as you can see, October has been a busy month so far and it isn't over yet! I hope to end the month with a bang and hopefully another W for the Huskers! 

I'll write again soon.

Rachel

Miss Lincoln 2011-2012

Ups and Downs

Hello everyone, I have got quite a bit to write about so I hope I don't bore you!

Last week started with a very scary Monday morning. I was driving Westbound on I-80 and got into a car crash on the interstate right between Omaha and Lincoln. My car rolled into the ditch, but I came out without a scratch. I was very, very lucky to have come out of this with nothing but a headache and a little soreness the next day. The accident could have been a lot worse, so my family, friends, and I have been saying our prayers the past week because I was very lucky to have made it out okay. Things like this make you so appreciative of what you have. As I learned from my brother's accident in 2003, life can be gone in a matter of seconds, which is why it is so, so important to live every day like it is your last. Make sure that you are doing everything that makes you happy, because life is precious.

Here is a photo of my car after the crash, completely totaled.

But enough of the sad stuff, after a week of recovery and prayers, I was ready to start this week off on a much better note! Yesterday I had the opportunity to attend two events as Miss Lincoln. The first event was the annual Nebraska DECA Fall Leadership Conference. This event is held every year in Omaha, and it is for high school DECA students that want to learn leadership skills, and network with other DECA students across the state. There are rotations, where the students get to choose whose workshop they would like to attend, and I was one of their choices!

I gave a workshop titled "Hang Up and Drive," which is also the title of my platform! I gave two 30-minute presentations explaining the dangers of texting and talking on the phone behind the wheel. I love talking to high school students the best, because they are just beginning to drive, so I can stop the habit before it becomes to permanent!

Aleah Peters, the Nebraska DECA VP of Business Partnerships and I!

Presenting my first workshop..

Explaining the activity that shows how distraction can lead you into a crash.

I love talking to the DECA members, they are great kids and they were all eager to sign the No Texting Pledge that I wrote!

These two students from Millard South are working on a project about distracted driving, it was great to talk to them about what they are doing with the project!

With two of my fellow baton twirlers!

More students signing the pledge!

Always time for a Ralston Picture!

After the DECA conference, it was time to head back to Lincoln just in time for "Monday Night Live," one of the first events of Homecoming Week at UNL! This event is held at the lied center and any greek house or student organization can create a skit to compete with. The winner of this event scores major Homecoming points for the week! I was honored to be named a judge for this event this year! It was so much fun to see what all of the students had been working so hard on!

Here are pictures of each of the other judges and myself! What a fun event!

Needless to say, this week has started off much better than last week! I am thankful to be alive and well, and I plan on taking advantage of that and living life even more fully than before. 

Take care and God Bless!

Rachel Foehlinger

Miss Lincoln 2011

Video of the day: