Girl Power!

Today I was asked to visit the Boys and Girls Club. This after school organization lives under the motto of "Inspiring and enabling all young people to realize their full potential as productive, responsible, and caring citizens."


It is such a great program and I was very happy that they asked me to join them this evening. I had been excited all week to see the kids, but when I had arrived I was almost nervous! For the first time I felt nervous because it all of a sudden hit me. When I was these little girls ages, I use to watch Miss Mississippi on tv with my mother every year. I looked up to those women, and they became my role model. I could not believe when I saw my reflection walking in, with that crown on my head, that I was about to be that role model for those girls, I had once admired. It's so crazy to think this is what I have dreamed of for so long. I had carefully planned out what the younger generation needed to hear, to care for them, to give them the very best of me, and now its what I'm doing everyday! 


The girls were instantly fascinated by the crown. So we had a little one on one time. We discussed dreaming big, the importance of working hard for your goals, the success of rewards from dedication, and last but not least.....making good decisions, good morals, and picking good friends. I wanted these girls to understand that the importance of their future starts NOW. They were full of questions and eager to listen. 


Words cannot describe how thankful I am for the opportunities I have been given to be a role model to the younger generation. It really is a motivation to keep working hard. I want to give them the very best of me. And I have had so many wonderful talks with kids making a ton of changes in attitude and behavior. They are my biggest fan. Honestly, I need them just as much as they have shown they need me. God is so great for leading me into such wonderful opportunities. I hope I can continue to glorify His name, with my many blessings He has so graciously rewarded me. 

There is no such thing as a dream too big....

So as always I have big things planned for the future! Had a great meeting this morning with some awesome people. Hopefully by the weekend I will have all information organized and I can hit the ground running, and I can share exactly how YOU GUYS can eaaaaasily get involved! So stay tuned, and get excited! :)

With all the big things coming up, I know how an email dedicated specifically to this! Of course I always appreciate and respond to all comments, and the wonderful messages received on fb, but now for bigger things I can be reached at HumanizingtheHomeless@yahoo.com Like I mentioned earlier a lot of big things are currently being planned so this email is needed to keep business organized. Plus it will be easier to send attachments, applications, and flyers to YOU ALL :) It is such a wonderful feeling to see how big this organization is becoming. It really is heart warming to see my 16 year old dream, becoming so real, so strong, so amazing.

                                                                         <3

Another awesome thing that happened today.......So I'm sitting in my religion class where I always chat it up before class starts with the students I have met in there. Of course I'm always sharing my awesome news or stories that are constantly going around me with the homeless, etc. Randomly one of the girls, who had listened all semester, pulled out her check book and asked if SHE could donate!!!!! What a w o n d e r f u l blessing!!! God is SO SO good ALL the time!

People are always asking me if I ever get discouraged when I talk to hundreds of people a day, and sometimes walk away empty handed. The answer? NEVER! If one person out of that group has a change of heart, or years later makes a decision to better another person, then I am successful! I have tooo much proof to ever believe other wise. Just take a look at what started out to be a 16 year old dream. There is no such thing as a dream too big =)

Fundraiser Results

Finally I have time to post more details about the WOMANLESS BEAUTY PAGEANT! It was def a success! Like I mentioned earlier I am so impressed as well as THANKFUL for the boys who volunteered! They really did go all out and truly out did themselves! It was a great show! Very entertaining, and so much fun!!! We had parade of beauties where the men walked and showed off their dress, hair and make up. Then we had TALENT! Everything from a tumbling act, Katy Perry, Snake whisperer, Glow Stick dance, Animal balloons, and Patty LaBelle! We finished up with on stage questions, and then the winner! I'm very thankful to the staff who volunteered, the fellows aka the contestants, the sponsors who donated gift cards to my winners, my friends and faculty who were judges, and of course the audience. A lot of people were very nice and gave donations. I did not expect to make a large amount due to this being a student function, and wanting to keep it reasonable so the student body could have fun and get involved. But people were very gracious, and like I've said countless times, a little bit goes a long way!!!! I believe we came close to $300. That was 300 more than the shelter had, and I'm super excited to surprise them with the check!

William Carey's Motto is "Expect great things from God, Attempt great things FOR God." With this idea in mind I felt like WCU was a great place to hold the fundraiser, and I was very thankful for them allowing me the opportunity.

Now for the moment you all have been waiting for!!! Let me post a few pics of the evening :)

For a full album and a variety of entertaining pictures go to https://www.facebook.com/HumanizingTheHomeless  "LIKE" the page, and check out the other albums as well. You may see something you "LIKE". Always feel feel to comment and message me, and COME HELP OUT! We always have a great time (if you can't tell by the pics!) =)

Dude looks like a LADAAAAY!

TONIGHT TONIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SO EXCITED! After a lot of organization tonight is finally the first Fundraiser of the year Humanizing the Homeless is getting to put on. William Carey University has let me use their Student Conference building to host a WOMANLESS BEAUTY PAGEANT! We had a rehearsal last night, and I can promise it is going to be a great show! I can guarantee laughter all night! The guys are not only BRAVE, but so wonderful for volunteering their time to do this for a good cause! The Stage is all set up, and I'm putting finishing touches on our prize packages for the "Contestants". These guys have gone all out! We have dresses, wigs, and talents galore!!!!! I will post more later, because I have a TON of thank you's to give =) !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  It is going to be a great time for everyone involved! Prayers we have a lot of donations, and a good audience to support these brave fellows, and support the HOMELESS!

If you haven't heard....................7PM TONIGHT STUDENT CONFERENCE CENTER $5 for WCU STUDENTS and $10 FOR NON-STUDENTS

                                                      You are NOT gonna want to miss out! :)

A FEW Moments of One's Time Can Change Another One's LIFETIME

This post is dedicated to my BEST friend Lindsay Lockert. We met years ago at Mississippi State University. Never did I think we would be as close as we are today. After MSU we have gone our separate ways, but never lost touch. By that I mean we talk almost everyday!  :) I have been very lucky to have a good friendship like hers, even tho we live over an hour away, and stay busy with our own lives!

All in all no matter what she has always supported me, and believed in me no matter how big my goal was. This is very important to me, because I stay very busy, and some times it can be overwhelming! I have always appreciated her kind words, and friendship.

This shout out is dedicated to Lindsay. I am lucky enough that all my friends support me, but Lindsay has actually taken the time to join me on a few of my journeys of helping the homeless. As everyone knows, the homeless have a huge spot in my heart. Humanizing the Homeless is a nonprofit organization that I created myself. I started working with the homeless at the age of 16, Humanizing the Homeless began at 21 years old, and now I am 23. The organization is still not huge, but so much has been accomplished over the years, it really brings happiness to my heart. Nothing could be as amazing if it was not for the few who unselfishly decided to give up their time to help along the way. Lindsay joined me to visit her first homeless shelter. This was a smaller shelter for battered woman who are trying to get back on their feet. It is more like an apartment, because living arrangements are not permanent, so it is very important for the less fortunate to establish goals and get back on their feet with a plan. In the meantime the children, who are innocent and clueless on the situation, get little if any attention. Lindsay joined me as we met with 2 little girls and 1 little boy, who were all siblings to a single, homeless mother. They were so excited to have new friends to play with them. After only a few hours, the kids had really opened up to us and started sharing information about themselves, their personalities, hobbies, school, etc. Heading home Lindsay instantly shared how she found herself attached to the children, and heart felt for them. We knew we had to go back. But she did not go back just to offer them her company again, we talked about ideas for an inexpensive arts and crafts project to give the kids something out of the ordinary to do! After a trip to Hobby Lobby, Lindsay eager chipped in and paid for HALF of the supplies. Needless to say the kids had a great time, and even more heart warming was the response "We were hoping you guys would come back", from the children. Lindsay and I knew we had made the right decision.

It did not stop there. She still asks about the children, and even called me up to say she had saw a few things out that they kids needed and so she bought them. She came to visit me and brought all kinds of FUN things!! From toys, to crafts, to jewlery, to goodies, everything nice for boys and girls and JUST IN TIME FOR EASTER! Hooooraaay! It could not have been better timing, So many children got to have AWESOME treats because of Lindsay!!!!!!!!!!

So again I cannot describe my thankfulness for people like Lindsay who do these acts of unselfishness. Of course, I am constantly working with children and trying to provide them with the best. And I know I say over and over these things are so inexpensive, but when I am the only one providing for the children and families it really does add up. Because Lindsay was so thoughtful to pick up a few items that were on sale to donate to me, these kids really got a great EASTER. I can still hear her say, "It's just junk, but it's a little something to help out." No it was a BLESSING! I know I say this phrase a lot but it's so true. A few moments of your time, can really change another person's lifetime. 

One teenager who received a gift that had some of Lindsay's goodies in it, explained to me while we were talking about her goals and dreams, that she wanted to be a social worker. She said she had such a hard life, and it was people like me who took the time to remind her to believe in herself. She went on to explain its the little things that she will remember forever, and she wants to make sure she can make a difference in other children who go through a tough time. I will continue to do what I can for these kids, but like I just said it is not JUST ME.....Sometimes God has sent special people like Lindsay to continue to make this opportunity a success. 

This is one of my longer blogs, but I think about it all the time. I wanted to share my thankfulness and pride to call Lindsay my friend. All well as share at how easy it is to change another person's life, and help make a difference,

Lindsay Lockert and I <3 

Practice Makes Perfect

So I went back to a local shelter where I have been talking to the children about the importance of their future. They are all at the age where this tough time they are going through really makes them grow up faster. Because of this I want to make sure that they stay focused, and motivated so that they can be the very best of their potential. I hear so many people say, "oh they are hopeless because of their background, nobody leads them in the right direction, and due to what they are raised in they have no future." THIS HURTS MY HEART SO BAD. It is not true. I am so thankful God has led me to be a role model to these kids, because they really do pay attention. Every time I come to visit they eagerly sit down, and are so polite and full of questions! The other day I shared good people skills, as well as how to speak, stand, posture, etc. I then sat down with them to hear  THEIR dreams! The children really painted a beautiful picture in my mind of how focused they were on their goals, and motives. One kid wanted to be a Psychologist so he could he could help others. (Sound familiar?!) Another wanted to be a football player for the NFL not just because he loves the game, but because he wanted the opportunity to be a role model, and DONATE money to children who needed it. Another girl wanted to be a social worker, to prevent children going through a hard time such as she had to do. All of their dreams were so planned out, so unselfish, it really was beautiful.

Each girl received a crown, because everyone was a winner. Also everyone got goodie bags for working so hard, and being so eager to learn. Another Successful day!

Easter Bunny Surprises

I had the joys of bringing Easter Baskets to two small children this weekend. A brother and sister, are in a temporary foster home due to their parents being homeless. It was a great successful weekend. The kids were so excited to have the gifts!!! I am so thankful to have wonderful friends that donated gifts for me to be able to use in the Easter baskets.

The total visit took lil over an hour. It just goes to show that a few minutes of one's time can change another person's lifetime! The gifts were very inexpensive dollar items, but worth so much more to the children. It does not have to be a holiday to get involved! Feel free to contact me if you are ever free and want to help out!!!

If any parents have any children's clothes they would like to donate please please please contact me. I am always looking, and children are always needing!

Busy Busy Busy

So I have not posted on the blog in a while, but HAVE NO FEAR, it does not mean that nothing has been done! I have been so busy organizing so many great things for the future! So for those of you looking to get involved feel free to message me at any time! A lot of great things are coming up. And for those of you who are supporters, MANY GREAT STORIES HEADED YOUR WAY!

One event currently going on is a fundraiser I have organized at my college. William Carey University will be having its very first, WOMANLESS BEAUTY PAGEANT! 100% of all proceeds will go to the STEWPOT of Jackson, the homeless shelters I have mentioned in earlier posts of visiting. I wanted to do something fun the student body could get involved in. I have faith this will be entertaining, and very memorable for the students! This event is opened to the public so I ask everyone to mark their calendars for APRIL 12!!!!! at 7pm!!!!!! Like I said ALL money raised will go to a homeless shelter. Please come to support a good cause and support the men BRAVE enough to get on stage! :)

I will try to keep everyone updated. Right now I am collecting items for prizes for the pageant winners, and CONTESTANTS! We have some brave souls coming in the office now and again to sign up, so I'm hoping for a big crowd because I will defiantly make it fun!!!! SPREAD THE WORD =)

"A Heart of Compassion"

http://leadercall.com/local/x223905313/A-heart-of-compassion

This turned out to be a beautiful article!!! I was so happy to be able to not only capture this experience, but to also share it. What I'm even more thankful about, is the feedback I have received from it. I had no idea how many hearts it was going to affect! God is so wonderful. This was exactly what I had always hoped for. I posted the link on here to be able to share it with you guys. I hope everyone enjoys it. :)

SURPRISE!

What a busy day today has been! From my last post I could barely sleep from excitement. I finally prayed for organization and guidance and went to sleep to start today. This morning everything fell into place! The truck was loaded by this afternoon, and the surprise was on! Ms. Cooley had no idea of all the wonderful things headed her way. WDAM actually contacted me on the way and came to cover the story. I was super excited to catch the surprise, and to offer the public more information on how to help. The best was the children. The little boys were super excited for their new BUNK BEDS! :) I would have to admit today was a very successful day. I thank God so much for bringing me to read the article in the paper about the woman, for showing my heart the direction it needed to go, and for bringing all this together.

We found love in a hopeless place

She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. Proverbs 31:26 


I am so thrilled with how the awareness of homelessness is spreading. It is so touching to see people curious about my passion and asking for ways to help. Anyone can help, and it is so EASY!!!! For instance it is finally SPRING and summer and coming quickly. I am a firm believer in physical fitness, so with my free time you can defiantly find me in a gym. I have noticed so many people training, and working hard to slim down for their summer bodies. High fives to those guys! It is a great feeling to be confident in a tank top and shorts during this Mississippi heat. But with losing weight comes NEW CLOTHES! So I'm very eager to spread the word/motivation to get HEALTHY, get FIT, and GIVE ME YOUR OLD CLOTHES! hahaha ok I do not mean it to that extreme, but what a wonderful thought it that? Set a weight goal, and after all your hard work, reward yourself with more flattering outfits and clean out your closet of all those old clothes you will NEVER wear again. I will have no problem finding a new home for them.  :)   Plus is that not what SPRING cleaning in all about?? You will see signs soon in the local gyms, with my contact on them to collect those old clothes, so GET EXCITED :)))))) 


Another note that I am so excited about is earlier in the month I read in the paper of a woman who lost her home in a fire. Not only did SHE lose everything, but so did her 5 children!! Losing everything and starting over in Hurricane Katrina I know how she feels, but I could NOT imagine starting over with 5 children as well! The article simply read WOMAN MADE HOMELESS AFTER FIRE. There was no information about her, or her children. Contact info, of info of how to help. I started by calling fire departments and police departments. Finally someone shared her cell phone number with me. After speaking with her I knew I had to help her. So I started calling furniture stores to see if they had anything they were not using or would throw away. And after a week of calling, I now not only have a few items BUT 2 sets of bunk beds! How great for these kids to have a bed now! If everything goes as planned tomorrow, and I can find a truck to borrow, I will be surprising this lady with her new furniture! GOD IS SO GOOD! 


Please pray not only for this families new beginning, but for me to have the organization to bring all of this together to help her to my full ability. I'm so excited I can barely sleep. But a busy day for me tomorrow, school starts back as well, so I will lay my head down and "Count my blessings, not my problems" =)

Feeling Famous

So today I had a wonderful opportunity of working at a local shelter for children right here in my hometown, HATTIESBURG! I had never heard of this shelter before, and that is because it is a secret. Due to confidentiality and protection of the children, I was sworn to promise that I would not share any info on the kids, or about the location of the shelter. I was so honored that these people found me and ask ME to come!

It was such a wonderful visit, I ended up staying for hours! At first the kids were shy, so I began to tell them how I became Miss Riverbend! I told them about all the areas of competition, and how hard I had worked to win, and how hard I am continuing to work to keep getting better. Most importantly I shared with them the story of how I became a pageant girl. I did not grow up being in pageants, in fact I never thought in a million years I would be that girl walking across stage on tv. Growing up I looked up to these woman, they were smart, they were beautiful, they were talented. I cannot even begin to describe the feeling I get that I am now that role model. With that attitude I shared with the girls how important it is to start concentrating on their lives now if this is something they see in their future. Good grades are important NOW, as well as good moral conduct. They were all so eager, and started to share with me their favorite subjects in school, as well as their talents. Many explained that they want to be in a pageant one day. One girl confessed that because she gets picked on at her school, she does not participate in all the school activities that she would like to. I stood there, all dressed up, in my high heels, make up done, and a crown on my head. I then took the crown off my head and handed it to her to simply explain, "Do you know how many people didn't think I could do this." I told her that she needed to believe in herself and do what made her happy. The best feeling in the world is not only to prove people wrong, but to find out who you really are. I told the girls that I am not going to cry if I leave the pageant without a new crown on my head. I truly believe I have a real reason to be there. It may be to support some one else, to learn more about myself, to push myself to be the very best, or to make a difference in some one else's life. There is no losing in this. So far I have done so much, including the memories from this shelter, that no one can take that away from me. No one can call me a loser. You hold your future in your hand. No one can take away your positive attitude, unless you allow them to. With new hopes and dreams the children all made me a promise to do better in school, and show me their good grades next time I return :) :) :)
BUT before I left, some one had a SIGNATURE  magazine. I was lucky enough to be one of the models in the Spring Fashion section. The kids instantly called me out on it. The Shelter had enough magazines for each kid to have one, where they all asked for my AUTOGRAPH! haha They did a wonderful job of making me feel like a superstar! Two girls had even wrote me letters, telling me how much I meant to them. I'm going back next week, because I could not stop thinking about how important these kids were to me now. After several phone calls with the director, next week we are going to have our very own PAGEANT at the shelter!!!!!!!!! I will teach the girls how to walk and introduce themselves. Then they can dress up and walk one by one, completed with a photoshoot and crowns! If anyone wants to donate lip gloss, or nail polish, or simple girly things to be made into goodie bags, I would TRULY appreciate it! I'm going to make goodie bags for each girl, so bloggers STAY TUNED! I have big plans coming up, and I'm very excited to share them all with you =)

To top it off, some neighborhood kids were riding bikes outside the shelter. As I was leaving, they saw my crown and ran over to talk to me, so I shared with them my story of motivation. Turns out all of these kids were friends from school, who had no where to lived and all lived with one girl's grandmother. Just goes to show everyone has a story; you can never judge a book by its cover. I did not have my camera with me, but they saw my phone so we took some pictures and I emailed them to their grandmother to have! Feeling famous once again!

Counting BLESSINGS not Problems

This has been by far the most rewarding spring break ever! I have been dying to get on here to write and share with everyone what I was lucky enough to experience these past few days. I am such a firm believer that everything happens for a reason, and God sets up opportunities before we even realize it. 2 years ago I had the joy of working with StewPot, a homeless organization located in Jackson, MS. I had heard that this organization is actually growing by adding a new house for abused women and children. Jackson is only 2 hours from my house, so of course I had to go and check it out. I called the CEO of the company, and he instantly remembered me and was excited to have me back.

2 friends of mine joined me. Not only was I excited to have company to share such a rewarding experience, but this was their first time to ever visit a shelter!We had such a blast! We first started out making bracelets, and key chains out of beads. By the end of the day, the children had trusted us, and shared stories of their school life and hobbies. We spent the rest of the day playing on the playground until dark. The children, myself, and my 2 new volunteers has a wonderful time!

A part of me knew this was not enough. My best friend from college, Lindsay happens to live in Jackson. With her heart now touched by humanizing the homeless, she offered her home to me, and I stayed the night, anxious to spend another day with my new friends at the shelter. The next day Lindsay and I went to lunch before going to the shelter. She shared with me her new feelings towards the homeless, and we recapped our previous day. We then realized that we had grown up complaining that we did not have this or that, when in reality, we had it all! It was such an eye opener. We saw that these children had nothing. When we were their age, we did not have to dream of clothes or toys. Before going back to the shelter we stopped at hobby lobby. We wanted to give these children something to have after we left. Lindsay and I put our money together and bought them each a coloring book, and a box of crayons. Something so inexpensive, and simple was going to bring the biggest smiles I've seen all year!We also bought some things to make picture frames out of as just another arts and craft idea. Returning to the shelter was the best thing we could have done with our day. We asked the kids what had they been doing all day and they responded, "Waiting and Hoping you guys would come back." My heart melted, I knew we had made the right decision. Later that evening their mother opened up to us, and told us stories about her family.

Leaving the shelter once again, Lindsay shared with me that she was going to become frequent volunteer now after her experience. She had realized that so many days go by that she takes advantage of, when she could spend her time with children, who crave attention so badly. 

SO THIS WEEKEND WAS A SUCCESS!!!!!! I made some new friends, the kids at the shelter had a pretty fun spring break, and another heart has been given to the homeless. Special thanks to Nic and Lindsay who took a few moments of their time to change another person's life time. 

Thought for the day

Proverbs 14:31 “He that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker: but he that honoreth him hath mercy on the poor.” We sometimes forget that God made the poor as well, and it is because of the lack of His blessing that one remains poor, so that to oppress one simply because of his poverty is to assume that the poor is God’s enemy and that one is justified in mistreating them. Many people forget that this world is now in Satan’s hands, and is used by him to reward his people, (Luke 4:5-6). A poor man is more apt to be a man of God than is a rich man. It is an honor to God when one has mercy on the poor. “It is not enough merely not to oppress, we must also show positive mercy whereby we honor the Lord, who hath commanded the poor to be relieved."


With this said, I hope people will understand that the homeless is NOT hopeless. I am working every day with different things trying to give back to these people who NEED us! If anyone has ANY ideas, or wants to help please PLEASE please feel free to comment, or contact me! I am always accepting help! :)


It's a beautiful day, let our gratitude show through our actions today as a way to give back to our Father, our GOD!

Just the Beginning :)

Finally I have decided to start a BLOG! I wanted something REAL to share with my public, as well as a personal documentation of my journey with the homeless. I am currently Miss Riverbend 2012, heading to the Miss Mississippi competition this summer with the hopes of then heading to MISS AMERICA! Competition is as follows: Interview, Physical Fitness,Talent,Evening Gown, On Stage Question, annnnnnd PLATFORM! The Miss America Organization is truly a wonderful program for any young woman. Not only are all these wonderful features in creating a well rounded woman for the future, but how awesome that each and every girl can create and work with her own community service that she is so passionate about to give back to her community, her state, her AMERICA! Choosing my platform, Humanizing the Homeless, was easy.....let me tell you why!!!

2005 Hurricane Katrina took everything away from me. After being trapped in my basement for 2 days with no food and no water, the National Guard came and rescued us! My mother and I ended up at the Jackson Airport where we got the last tickets to........CHICAGO, ILLINOIS!! Devastated from the disaster, tired, hungry, and confused, my mother assured me everything was going to be ok. We were going to go on a little "vacation" for a few days, while things go back to normal back in Hattiesburg, MS. Soon we found out our family too, had re-located all over the states, and nothing was back to normal back at home due to the horrific natural disaster.

Weeks turned into months and still no answers. I decided to further my education in Chicago and applied to school. The first school I applied to said, "We do not allow people like YOU here". Confused I managed to whisper, "Like me??"  They replied, "You know...HOMELESS". And that was it, they walked away. That word was such an insult, I was so shocked I did not know how to defend myself. Because they were right...I had no Social Security card, birth certificate, address, or home. I fit the sterotype "homeless" to a tee. Later I applied to another school, and they accepted me, and laughed when I explained to them I was homeless. And there I was a 16 year old Mississippi girl with opportunity #1 to go to high school in the big city! Opportunity #2 came when my new friend from school opened up her home to me with the dreams of "always wanting a sister". My mother moved back to MS to take care of the damage, and I started a fresh new start with a new family, who treated me no different than their own little girl. More and more opportunities came from living in this big city. HOW BLESSED I WAS!

That was my first eye opener to the homeless. My eyes opened even more by every corner I turned, and every street I had to walk down, because homelessness was everywhere! I did not understand why this was such a problem, and how the thousands of people walking those same streets next to me, just ignored it. All my life, I had been guilty of the same thing.

So it began. The journey to fight homelessness. Mother Teresa once said, "If you cannot feed 100, then at least feed 1." I first started to educate myself through experience, by working with the homeless. Then education, by dedicating my entire college career of studying psychology, criminology, and biology.  I have decided my life is meant for Mental Health Care. (one of the major causes to homelessness) I want to help these people mentally, by continuing to help them physically. Now hear I am to educate and communicate with you all!


!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!TOGETHER WE CAN HUMANIZE THE HOMELESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!