First Appearance: The Greatest Star Awards :-)

Hey there friends, 

So for the past few days I have been sick with tonsillitis . . yuck :-( and in the mist of being under the weather I attempted to figure out my life for the next year. It was an epic challenge I will admit, however after close to 2 hrs. on my laptop without moving I think I finally got it all sorted out. The problem with me is I manage to get myself involved in so many things and get so attached to everything I do that I refuse to give any of it up lol. Even if it means I may lose a small part of my sanity I am determined to make it work !   

Anyway, moving on from my schedule :-) . . . On October 24th I had my first Miss Brooklyn Appearance at the Block Institute! The event I attended was called the Brightest Star Awards and it is a play off of the Academy Awards. It recognizes people in the Brooklyn community with developmental disabilities and highlights their achievements in a variety of categories ranging from talent to leadership. The event was started last year with the help of a former Miss Brooklyn, Keelie Sheridan, who is such an inspirational woman and should be so proud of putting on this eye opening event. I want to thank her for giving me the opportunity to help this year because it was an experience that will stay with me for years to come. I looked around the room and couldn't help but smile, because I realized that despite their disabilities these people are strong, courageous, intelligent and HAPPY.

Title Winners with Calvin, The Brightest Star 20091

Some of the contestants :-) 

Out of all of the amazing people I encountered their was one woman in particular that truly touched me. Her name was Mrs. Armband (yess that is really her name) and she was an 89 year old woman who lived her entire life in Brooklyn. I sat and talked with her for about a half an hour about her life growing up here. She told me the cutest little stories and just put this huge smile on my face. She reminded me so much of my Granny who passed away a few years back, and I just didn't want to stop talking to her. I am so thankful that I met this woman, she really left an impression on me and I hope to see her again in January for the Finals Gala (Sunday was the preliminary awards where the finalists in each category were announced). 

In addition to helping out at the event I had the privilege of meeting two special people. The first was Diana Greene, a 2009 Miss Brooklyn Contestant and fellow Brooklynite and the second was Miss New York herself Claire Buffie :-). I had so much fun getting to know these wonderful girls. Diana and I discovered we know a lot of the same people through dance, which is what I love about Brooklyn, everyone is connected somehow. As for Claire, in addition to being a poised, beautiful and kind person, I learned she has freakishly long arms lol and can capture up to 6 people in a photograph at once lol. 

Me with Miss New York Claire Buffie

Diana Greene, Keelie Sheridan, Claire Buffie, Christina Moore

Bye Bye Crowns, Hello Long Arm Picture lol !

Overall my first appearance as Miss Brooklyn was a memorable one and I can't wait for January for the Gala when I can reunite with the Brightest Stars <3 

Until next time xoxo

Christina :-) 

Pageant Day !

Hello All :-) 

These past few days have been quite hectic so I apologize for the delayed blog. I have been attempting to organize my life for the next year and it is proving to be a tedious task, but I am determined to figure most of it out this week lol. I know I mentioned that I have a few fun facts from the pageant itself so here is goes . . . 

I started the day with butterflies in my stomach and will admit I was quite nervous, but I kept telling myself "what ever will be, will be." After meeting all of the amazing girls and getting to know them backstage my nerves started to subside because everyone was so genuinely kind. It was nice to just relax and chit chat a little before the actual pageant started. After the private interview, walking practice, talent practice, and make-up touch ups it was time for the show. It started with the onstage question (which is the part that makes me the most uneasy). Thankfully that was quick and painless, however I messed up my walking pattern and exited the rear curtain rather than the front one . . Whoops :/. Next was swimwear, followed by talent, both of which went smoothly, sadly I cannot say the same for EVENING GOWN. After I finished my talent portion (a jazz solo called "Let Me Entertain You") I ran backstage to put on my gown. Here's wear things got a little hectic. I put on the gown successfully !!!! However, when it came time to put the lovely shoes on I must have twisted my body oddly and the strap in the back of my dress thought it would be a fantastic time to POP. Well needless to say I was very disheveled , I went into slight panic mode, but ended up laughing at myself because of course I would be the one to have a wardrobe malfunction. Long story short someone saved me backstage and pinned the strap, but I did not have time to put my double sided tape on to hold up the side of the dress without a strap (it was a one shoulder gown). So I made my way to the stage praying to every God imaginable that the gown would stay up lol. I walked on stage and all was fine and dandy until I started my walking pattern and felt the dress shift eeeevvvvvveeerrr so slightly. I was panicking on the inside lol, but put my hand on my hip and held onto the dress for dear life while I walked. (So if you saw the pageant and wondered "why on earth is this girl walking with her hand on her hip?") You now know it was to prevent a serious wardrobe malfunction. 

Once I made it through the evening gown portion, it was time for crowning! I was happy with the way I performed and wouldn't have done anything differently (except not have a gown crisis), but to be honest I truly did not think I had won. There were so many fantastic contestants that I completely took myself out of the running. When it came time for them to announce the new Miss Brooklyn I was prepared to be cheering on someone else, not walking forward having a crown put on my head. I replay that moment over and over and can't believe how utterly silly I must have looked. There were so many emotions going on at once, but the main one was SHOCK. My sister queens who were crowned before me accepted their titles so gracefully . . . Me, not so much lol. I laughed, I cried, I made the most ridiculous facial expressions on the planet, but that's me :-) 

 I am so grateful and so proud to be able to represent Brooklyn and if I have learned anything from this experience it is, never doubt yourself for a minute because you are capable of more than you think. If you have a goal, hold onto it and never let it go because even though you may have to get knocked down a few time on your way up the ladder, once you reach the top success is all the more sweet. 

Well that's all for now, I did my first official appearance as Miss BK today and shall tell you all about it tomorrow, right now need to get some shut eye, got a long day tomorrow :-) 

xoxo

Christina 

Brooklyn, How Sweet It Is :-)

“I went into this experience not in the hopes of winning a crown, but receiving a title that would allow me to represent the place I was born and raised. These past few days have been surreal and I still can’t believe that I have the honor and privilege of representing the sweetest borough in New York. I am truly so blessed and so thankful for this opportunity and know that at the end of the day this journey will be one I certainly won’t Fugetabout!” -Christina Moore  

Hello Everyone, 

First and foremost I am so sorry it has taken me this long to set up a blog. I am literally the most technologically un-advanced person on the planet, therefore blogging was a mystery to me :/

Now that we got that out of the way hehe . . .  I am humbled and honored to be able to call myself Miss Brooklyn, 2011!!! Wow, even typing it still feels so weird to me. The events of last week were truly amazing because to be honest I never thought in a million years I would actually walk away with the title. I have been a competitive dancer for almost 17 years, but I am fairly new to the pageant world. Miss Brooklyn 2011 was actually only my second pageant ever. Last year I competed and was lucky enough to tie with Miss Brooklyn 2010 Mallory Hagan for the talent division and ranked 4th runner up. After learning about the pageant world more and more and after having such an amazing experience in 2010, I knew I had to come back and try again, and boy was that the right decision. I COULD NOT, COULD NOT, COULD NOT have done it without the support of my friends, my boyfriend Marc, his mom Lauren and of course my family Mom, Dad, Keith Grandma and Nana. They are my rock, I have a small family but they are the loudest, most supportive family in the world, ask anybody and they will tell you the Moore's are a crazy bunch, but they are certainly an amazing one! They have been with me every step of the way through every endeavor I have ever encountered and have literally never missed a thing :-) I must also give a special thanks to my coach Kimberly Thomas, she helped me so much and was the first person to jump out of their seat when my name was called lol. 

I want to give a special shout out to all of the outstanding girls who participated in the pageant. Each and everyone of you were beautiful, kind and so talented. I wish you all nothing but the very best and hope to see you in the future. A special congrats to my sister queens, Carmen Mendoza Miss Kings County 2011, Lauren Molella Oustanding Teen 2011 and Brittney Hollingsworth Brooklyn's Outstanding Teen 2011. I am so excited for the upcoming year and can't wait to get to know everyone. The Miss Brooklyn Organization is certainly one I am so proud to be involved with, Amaris Acosta (Executive Director) and Tamara Walker (Communications Director) are absolutely wonderful. I have been in contact with both of them throughout the week and already adore them. They are both such, savvy, strong, powerful women and I am so thankful to work with them this year. 

My Platform that I am supporting this year is one that is very near and dear to my heart. I call it "Performers With A Purpose, Bringing Sarcoma Awareness Center Stage." A few years ago my aunt Josephine was diagnosed with Sarcoma a rare cancer that affects only 1% of adults and 15% of children in the United States each year. Despite the odds my aunt survived and is literally a walking miracle. She was my inspiration for my platform and throughout this year I want to spread Sarcoma Awareness and raise money for a not-for-profit organization called the Sarcoma Alliance. Though my platform focuses on Sarcoma Awareness it is a multipurpose platform because I plan on raising the money by teaching dance clinics in our Brooklyn public schools. The arts is a very big part of who I am, and I thought what better way to raise money for the Sarcoma Alliance then by using what I do best and what I love to do, to my advantage. The performing arts is such an important tool to be exposed to because it is a creative outlet. In these days when arts programs are the first to get cut from the budget I feel it is imperative to make sure children do not lose their arts education. Therefore I will teach at as many elementary and intermediate schools in Brooklyn as I can throughout the year and at the end of it all I plan to host a dance benefit, where dancers from all over Brooklyn INCLUDING those I taught in the schools can come and perform and all of the proceeds will go to the Sarcoma Alliance, hence Performers With A Purpose. 

I am SOOO thankful for the chance to represent Brooklyn and cannot wait to dive in head first and do all I can do to make this year a great one. I usually manage to get myself involved in a million things at once, some may say I'm crazy, but I couldn't imagine living my life any other way. Life is to short to sit back and let things happen, you have to take charge and MAKE things happen. That's all for now (I am quite proud of myself for figuring out this blog business, just saying lol) I have a few fun pageant stories from the day of, but I shall get to that tomorrow :-) 

xoxo,  

Christina :-)