Car Show, Parade, and Published Article!

I promised that I wouldn’t be away for long; after only two full days of college life I hit the highway and headed back to the lakes area to represent Baxter at the Staples Railroad Days celebration!

I started the day by attending the “Still Cruisin’ Car Show!” Not only did I get to see some pretty sweet rides, but I also was able to have a “meet Miss Baxter” booth. On my breaks from walking around and checking out the cars I was busy at my booth signing autographs and promoting my platform while raising money for the Children’s Miracle Network by selling my personalized bookmarks!

At my booth!

Next up was the Railroad Day’s Parade! I’ve attended this parade every year with my family since I was very little, so it was very fun for me to be riding in the parade for a change. This event always draws a big crowd with lots of kids… I love seeing the little girls who do their “princess” waves, and then smile big when I wave back at them! I want to thank my Miss Brainerd Lakes/Baxter Pageant sponsors from Thrivent Financial (aka Aunt Kay and Uncle Bob) for chauffeuring me through the parade in an awesome Ford Mustang! Today was a great day in Staples Minnesota; I got to see some awesome cars and I even snagged some parade candy!

Aunt Kay and Uncle Bob! Thanks for being awesome sponsors!

I have more exciting platform news! My article on National Literacy Month was published by the Brainerd Dispatch! In honor of back to school and the upcoming National Literacy Month which takes place in September I composed an article regarding the importance of children’s literacy and how parents and adults can get involved to help their kids learn and grow! Check it out!

http://brainerddispatch.com/news/2012-08-21/literacy-cornerstone-education

 

It was nice to come home from school for the weekend, and I’m glad that I had the opportunity to represent Baxter at another event. Now it’s back to school for me again; I’m all settled in to my dorm and ready for classes to start on Monday. Wish me luck!

Yours truly,

Maren Goff

Miss Baxter 2012

Ps. Though I was not able to attend the Miss Waseca County Sleigh and Cutter and Miss South Central Pageant I would like to congratulate and welcome Drew Trahms Miss Waseca County Sleigh and Cutter, and Tiffany Buszta to the Miss Minnesota Class of 2013! Can’t wait to meet you girls!

Walk a Mile in Her Shoes, and a New Chapter for Miss Baxter!

Greetings again from your Miss Baxter 2012! I’m sad to say that my summer vacation is coming to an end.  When I look back on all the events that I’ve been able to participate in so far, and all of the exciting strides that I’ve already made with my title, I’m proud to say that I have truly put my summer to good use! Here’s what I’ve been up to recently…

Over the past few days while doing some literacy research I stumbled upon Scholastic’s “Read Every Day, Lead a Better Life” Global Literacy Campaign. The main goal of the campaign is to support a child’s right to read. They have 8 core beliefs (I’ll summarize them)…

1.       Literacy is a birthright of all children

2.       Young people need to develop an understanding of how to think logically and interpret information

3.       Literacy of all forms is part of our heritage, and it can help develop what it truly means to be human

4.       “You are what you read”

5.       Every child should have access to books and reading material

6.       Literacy builds confidence

7.       Every child should have someone who helps them to develop a love of reading

8.       In the 21^st century the ability to read is necessary to succeed and survive

I think that all of these core values really ring true, and are equally important to children on their journey towards literacy. After reading about the campaign I decided to join by committing myself to helping children read…and you can too!  Join the literacy campaign today!

http://www.scholastic.com/readeveryday/

On August 18th Elvis (aka Bill), Savannah and I headed out to Mills Ford for the 5^th annual Walk a Mile in Her Shoes! This event is put on by the Mid-Minnesota Women’s Center, and Sexual Assault Services; Walk a Mile is a men’s march with the goal of ending rape, sexual assault and gender violence. Even though this event is in honor of a very serious cause it is still lots of fun! It is named “Walk a Mile in Her Shoes” because that’s exactly what the men are asked to do…they walk a mile in women’s high heels! All in all the entire event was a huge hit; it drew support from the local area law enforcement, politicians and government officials, and even the Brainerd Warrior Football Team! I want to thank the Women’s Center for putting on this great event, and I want to thank all the men who participated and looked fabulous in their huge high heels!

Posing with the big shoe from the 2012 walk!

Holy Cow! These are women's size 16!

Our matching hairy leg tattoos!

Let the walk begin!

Smiling at the finish!

Well as I said summer is ending for me, tomorrow I move to Moorhead to start the newest chapter of my life…college! Wish me luck on my first few days at Minnesota State University Moorhead, but don’t worry Baxter I’ll be back soon!

Until next time,

Maren Goff

Miss Baxter 2012

P.S Be sure to check out my bio on the Miss Minnesota Website!

http://www.missminnesota.org/local.cfm?AID=93

Exciting News: Platform Project!

It’s been another fun and eventful week as your Miss Baxter 2012; I have some exciting updates on a platform related project that I’ve had in the works since the day I was crowned!

Before I get to my exciting news, I have to congratulate the new Miss Perham 2012 Leah Wuebben, and the new Miss Heart of the Lakes 2012 Lauren Johnson! Both of these talented ladies were crowned at the Miss Perham/Miss Heart of the Lakes Pageant on August 10^th. I had a great time watching this pageant as all of the contestants were so talented and entertaining…it was also so much fun to have so many Brainerd girls in house that night (both on and off stage)!

Congrats Lauren!

Congratulations Leah!

Just a small sampling of some of the Brainerd girls in attendance!

Now to the big news!! As you know I am very passionate about my platform “Reading Rocks: Promoting Children’s Literacy while Making Reading Fun”, one alarming statistic that I speak about quite often is the fact that 13 million American children go to sleep every night without ever hearing a bedtime story. As a child I was read to on a daily basis and I was always lucky enough to hear a story before bed; for me the fact that so many kids don’t get to experience this, truly makes me sad. Since being crowned I have been looking for a creative way to spread my message to kids and families in a fun and enjoyable way…about a month ago the light bulb flicked on while talking with my directors, together we came up with the idea of creating an audio CD of children’s stories.  I am now proud to say that the production of this CD is in full swing!

For weeks I have been searching high and low for the perfect stories to include on the disc, I eventually chose a collection of my favorite princess related fairytale classics! Yesterday I visited BL Broadcasting where I meet with radio personality Billy Holiday; with his help I was professionally recorded as I read all of the stories out loud. After a few goof ups and numerous takes, we successfully completed the recording process of my CD!

With Billy recording the CD!

After my recording session I was whisked into another studio for an impromptu interview on B93.3 “Today’s Best Country.” While on air I was able to chat with Billy about my year so far and all of the fun events that I’ve participated in… I was also able to do my first official media promotion for my CD! Boy was that a good day!

Live on B93.3 Today's Best Country!

My CD will be titled “Once Upon a Time: A Collection of Royal Fairytales”, and all proceeds will go to the Children’s Miracle Network!

Stay tuned for more!

Maren Goff

Miss Baxter 2012

Crow Wing County Fair, Miss Aitkin, Night to Unite!

This week I’ve learned to always wear boots when walking in the mud, that I really do love speaking; especially if it’s with a microphone in front of an audience, and that driving drunk is scary even if it’s only simulated…here’s what I’ve been up too!

Thursday August 2^nd was my third day at the Crow Wing County Fair. As always the cheese curds were frying and the midway rides were whirling, however on that night people were appearing in droves; this could only mean one thing…Baja Races! Before the race Savannah, Heather and I were given the chance to walk onto the track and introduce ourselves. This was no easy task as the track was loaded with thick mud and dirt; by the time we made it to the middle of the track my feet and sandals were caked with muck. (Now I know why everyone was wearing boots!) We were then able to introduce ourselves to the crowd, and we were the “celebrity” judges of the applause based “best appearing car” award! The Baja Races were certainly a fun and muddy event!

Friday August 3^rd was by far my most fun, and most busy day at the fair! At 1:00 Heather and I started by emceeing the pre-teen talent show with Billy Holiday aka Wild Bill from B93.3 today’s best country.  After the pre-teen show Savannah and I were able to do a quick costume change and sound check before we preformed our talents to open the teen portion of the talent show. After our performances we hurried backstage to change out of our costumes (and we took a quick break in the air conditioning!) then it was back to emceeing with Billy! After the teen competition I had the opportunity to judge the open class talent show… I enjoyed emceeing so much that I really didn’t want to hand over the mic, but I knew that judging would be fun too. However it turned out to be very tough because we had such gifted contenders in the competition, now I finally know what it feels like to be in the hot seat! During the talent show I even had the chance to be on radio while chatting with Wild Bill on B93.3! After the fair I was quickly whisked away to the neighboring town of Aitkin to watch their pageant! The pageant was beautifully staged, and was a fun one to watch because of all the diverse talents including auctioneering, watercolor demonstration, hairstyling and photography! Congratulations to the local queen and princesses, and best wishes to the out-going Aitkin royalty.

Finally tonight was the 7^th annual Night to Unite in Baxter’s Oscar Kristofferson Park. Night to Unite is a community event that desires to bring neighbors together with local law enforcement to promote awareness and crime prevention in the area. During the night we got to see karate demonstrations, first aid and CPR instructions, taser demonstrations and a presentation by Officer Matt Maier and his canine Gator a Belgian Malinois! After the presentation Savannah and I were able to meet Gator and officer Maier to learn more about the K9 unit and Gator’s job. Savannah and I also had the opportunity to drive golf carts through a course while wearing goggles that impaired our vision; these goggles simulated driving under the influence of alcohol… boy was that scary! I never took out a cone on the course but I think the officer that I rode with thought that I was going to crash our cart! During the night other activities included face painting and games for the kids, what a fun night with the community of Baxter and its local law enforcement!

Next stop: Miss Perham and Miss Heart of the Lakes!

See you soon,

Maren Goff

Miss Baxter 2012

Miss Frazee Pageant, and the Fair!

Time really does fly when you’re having fun…and with all the fun that I’ve been having I have to ask myself where the summer has gone? It’s hard to believe that it’s already August; but with August comes the Crow Wing County Fair!

Before I get ahead of myself I have to start with July 28^th, the Miss Frazee Pageant! This was such a nice event, and it was very fun to get to meet even more local title holders. I was able to chat with the new Miss Thief River Falls Bailey Sorvig…what an awesome girl! One thing that I really love about this program is the sense of sisterhood that allows young women like me from all over the state of Minnesota to come together and build friendships and connections. I’m so excited to get to know all of the girls in the Miss Minnesota class of 2013! I want to congratulate Rebecca Bellefeuille the new Miss Frazee, and Becca Sorlien-Riewer the new Miss Frazee’s Outstanding Teen, awesome job ladies! Hats off to the outgoing queens Katie Ann Winter and Hailey Jutz; best wishes on all of your future endeavors, you ladies are great!

Congrats to Miss Frazee's Outstanding Teen 2012 Becca Sorlien-Riewer!

Miss Frazee 2012! Congratulations Rebecca!

Tuesday July 31^st was the first day of the Crowing County Fair! This is the fair’s 115^th year, and whether you want to ride your way through the midway or eat your way through the food booth, the Crow Wing County Fair offers fun for the whole family! On our first day Heather and I were able to spend some time with the Minnesota State Honey Queen Emily Campbell; we had a good time roaming around and chatting to fair goers as we tried to beat the heat! That evening we had the opportunity to speak to the crowd at the grandstand during the intermission of the demo derby! After introducing ourselves and speaking about our platforms and our experiences we were back to greeting the public! (We may have sampled a few cheese curds also!)

Today was the second day of the fair! This evening Heather and I were able to assist with the Pig Races. The LA Pig Races came to the fair this year all the way from the small town of Leader Minnesota! Earlier this summer I was able to see my first pig race along with all of the other Miss Brainerd/Miss Baxter contestants; we had so much fun, that today I was eager to help with this event. Tonight the show consisted of several races, lots of games for the kids, and as always some good upbeat country tunes! Heather and I handed out beads and prizes to the kids and helped with the games! After the Pig Races I was able to watch my other sister queen Savannah perform in a 1970s themed 4H skit; awesome job Savannah!

Pig Races!

Showing off my hula hooping skills to the crowd! New talent maybe? ;)

Gary the emcee!

Come out and see me at the 115^th annual Crow Wing County Fair! There’s still a lot more fun to be had!

See you soon!

Maren Goff

Miss Baxter 2012