1. Clearly define the platform issue to which you are sincerely committed and for which you will be an activist during your year of service.

•At any time there are about a half million children in the United States who cannot live with their birth families for a period of time. Some need a place to stay for only a few days; others may need permanent placement. Many of these children have been abused and neglected by their birth families and the Court removes them from the home. Foster and adoptive families are people who take these children into their homes-- and their lives-- to nurture them and provide loving care. Recruiting and maintaining quality foster care families is a complex process and one that needs attention. My initial exposure to the foster care system and adoption was the result of personal experience. I was in foster care for 6 months as an infant and was adopted before my first birthday. My experience and research have inspired me to work raising public awareness about the many benefits of finding loving, supportive families for children in need, with the goal of increasing the qualified number of families that choose to pursue these options.

2. What, if any, are your most significant accomplishments to date in regard to your platform issue?

• My most significant accomplishments to date have resulted from public speaking about the positive aspects of foster care and adoption. I have helped identify a number of people who, after hearing me speak, are willing to take the next steps to find out more about these alternatives. In addition to identifying prospective families, I have provided a personal, positive image of the successes than can be achieved through foster care and adoption. When I was younger, my photograph was used as part of a statewide public-education campaign about foster care and adoption. As a young woman, I continue that effort through my personal actions, hoping to help offset negative perceptions of the foster care and adoption systems often portrayed in the news media. I acknowledge the system has failed on more than one occasion, but the successes far outnumber the failures. On a personal level, I aim to raise public respect for the foster care/adoption "system" and the children who are at the heart of it.

3. What do you wish to accomplish during your year of service as an activist for your platform?

• If chosen Miss New York State, I will spend my year of service meeting with community leaders, agencies, lawmakers, and prospective parents to increase statewide awareness and support for, and participation in, foster care and adoption. Through my advocacy, I will continue to work to increase the number of individuals and families that chose to become foster parents and/or parents of an adopted child. I will work toward permanently placing every child in the system. Some may say this is an unrealistic goal, but one has to aim high. As the National Adoption Center notes, "There are no unwanted children, just unfound families."