GIFT FROM THE HEART ~ CREATED WITH LOVE

When I decided to compete for Mrs. Oregon International 2010 the one award I wanted most, (beside the title, LOL!) was to win "People's Choice". The winner of People's Choice would be awarded a portion of the proceeds collected to give to the charity of her choice.

Now, I have moved MANY times during my lifetime along with the opportunity to travel throughout our great country, and because of this, God has blessed me with incredible, lifelong friendships. So I decided to take advantage of the wide world of cyberspace to reach out and ask for help. I wanted the opportunity to present the American Cancer Society via Relay for Life with a gift that was created through friendship and love. The responses I received from my Facebook posts were unbelievable and touching ~ I even made NEW friends through my requests!

On the night of the pageant when the winner of the People's Choice Award was announced my name was called. I was SO excited and overwhelmed with pride ~ my wish came true and I was going to be able to present OUR gift just as I had hoped!!

On the last committee meeting before our event I had the opportunity to show up in my crown and banner and tell my story of how much I wanted to win this special award. As I stood before my peers to tell them of my journey it was an emotional moment ~ I shared with them that not only did I win the crown but also People's Choice and that the gift I was about to present was made possible because of friendship and love from across the country. As I turned to present the check to our committee chairperson, who is also a survivor, I saw the tears in her eyes and how overwhelmed she was with emotion. It was a feeling like walking on air ~ together we truly can make a difference!

CELEBRATE ~ REMEMBER ~ FIGHT BACK!!

This is a heartfelt motto and one that I try to live up to each and every day.

THANK YOU to everyone who contributed to help make this possible. We WILL find a cure one day!!

OH MY ~ Part II ~ WHAT A WONDERFUL LIFE!

To really explain how monumental my next WONDERFUL MOMENT truly is I must start from the beginning...

Shortly after I started competing in pageantry I learned of the Mrs. Oregon Int'l pageant and how the system celebrated the accomplishments of married women and their commitment to marriage and family...SIGN ME UP!!!! I competed in the 2000 pageant, made the Top 10 and I was on my way to becoming a forever member of the Oregon International family. I competed again in 2001, did not place, but was determined that I would not let my dream of one day becoming Mrs. Oregon Int'l die.

Fast forward to 2005 ~ I feel that I am ready to achieve my goal so I entered the 2005 Mrs. Oregon Int'l pageant. Again, I did not place...again disappointed and I began to think that maybe I was not the right fit for the International system. But I knew, deep in my heart, that I WOULD be Mrs. Oregon International one day and that I couldn't give up (or age out trying, LOL!!).

Fast forwarding again to 2009 ~ I KNOW that I am ready now and entered the 2009 competition. At this point, although I want the crown (really bad!!), I want to crack the Top 5. I was named 1st Runner Up and tied for Mrs. Congeniality along with Mrs. Oregon Int'l 2009, Sandra Herder ~ I was thrilled because I finally placed!!

2010 is now upon us and I had decided not to compete this year for several reasons, or so I thought. It was 10 years and 4 tries later...yet there was something missing and with that I entered the 2010 competition at the last minute. On a beautiful April evening in Portland, Oregon I heard our MC, Laine Berry, say the words that I had dreamed of hearing for so long..."our new Mrs. Oregon 2010, is contestant number 10, Deanna Bebeau!!" OMG - I literally sank to my knees and was in a total state of shock - I have pictures to prove it!! It was like a Susan Lucci and the Daytime Emmy moment relived!!

Long winded, I know, but I also make no apologies. This is proof positive that if there is something that you want and are willing to work hard and never give up, one day you will see your dream come true!! I am STILL walking on Cloud Nine :)

With Love,

Deanna Bebeau

Mrs. Oregon International 2010

OH MY, TIME DOES FLY WHEN YOU ARE HAVING FUN ~ Part I

Since my post last fall SO much has happened in my life. A few changes were challenging, but the WONDERFUL things have made those challenges well worth the fight...

Last summer our youngest daughter April, suprised us with the announcement that she was joining the Army...now this is our "wild child", Daddy's little girl, and she learned to stand up for herself from her momma and big sister, Tai! How was she going to survive the Army, or better yet, how was the Army going to survive April?!? With a blink of an eye on a hot August day, our little girl was on her way to Ft. Jackson, South Carolina for basic training, but before we knew it we were on our way to Columbia to attend her graduation. The minute that I walked on to the base my eyes welled up with pride - I watched our young men and women become soldiers and I don't think that I officially stopped crying until I boarded the plane for home. As of this date our soldier is doing great and stationed back in the beautiful Northwest at Ft. Lewis in Tacoma, WA. We are an Army family and SO PROUD!!

In November, just days short of Thanksgiving, a day that you know will come arrived. Our beloved 15 year old black Pug, Pugsley passed away. Bud and I brought Pugsley home to live with us shortly after we were married and I just couldn't imagine a world without a Pugsley. He passed while I was still at work and I was able to keep my composure, but once I got into my car to drive home the dam burst and I didn't stop crying for 3 days...poor Bud didn't know what to do so he did what loving husbands do best ~ while I was at work on the Friday after Thanksgiving, he drove 3 1/2 hours north and 3 1/2 hours south to bring me the cutest little face ever and that face belongs to Kix, our new black Pug puppy. Kix is named after my favorite entertainer, Kix Brooks from Brooks & Dunn. He is a happy boy, not so little anymore, but has snuggled his way into our hearts and bed (under the covers and all!).