Last year while at the "Abilities Expo" in Anaheim, California, I met the new Ms. Wheelchair California. I immediately thought, "Wow, this is something I can do!" I waited and waited but no information arrived. First I called Georgia and then wrote to them, still no information. When I got the flyer for this year's Expo, I saw several e-mail addresses, so I e-mailed someone to get information for the Pageant. I was very determined to participate and wanted to make sure I tried every way I knew how. When I got the phone number for the state representative, I did not hesitate to call her, even though it was long distance.

When Patty, the Pageant Coordinator, answered the phone I tried to be polite when all I wanted to do was shout: "SEND ME THE APPLICATION!" Even though it was not in my budget, I sent in the application fee along with my photo and application. Not once did I ask what the role of Ms. Wheelchair California was, or what platform I should adopt. I just knew I wanted to be there. One friend e-mailed me to ask what the prizes were. Prizes - I never asked about them, I just wanted to participate.

In the back of my mind was the fact that if I won, I would have the chance to get the word out about TM. Of course, everyone I spoke with had never heard of it, big surprise.

But the biggest surprise was yet to come.

Debbie Capen also lives in Southern California and had gotten the same flyer I had. She sent out a mass e-mail to let everyone in the area know about the Expo and encouraged them to attend. I answered her and told her that not only was I attending, but that I was entered in the Ms. Wheelchair California Pageant. With my permission, Debbie notified the TMIC of my participation. What a surprise I was in for! Several people sent me good luck wishes and one person offered to be a sponsor for me. Although I am not a member of the TMIC, I was very touched by the outpouring of enthusiasm for me.

On Sunday, May 16th, I was up early. After all, it takes a gal a while to get ready. When I entered the Convention Center and told them my name, I was given a name badge and free entrance - a benefit right there. An escort took me to the Ms. Wheelchair booth, which was all the way at the back of the auditorium. No wonder I had such trouble learning about the pageant; they were relegated to Siberia.

There were seven other women beside myself who were in the Pageant. Prior to our individual sessions with the judges, we had a chance to get to know each other. This time was important because there was to be a Ms. Congeniality Award given during the Pageant. We were from all walks of life, with varied disabilities, and from all over the state of California. At this time, the reigning Ms. Wheelchair California told us about some of the things she had done in the past year. The others could relate to post polio, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis or being in an accident, but no one had heard of TM or why I had become disabled.

After an informal discussion, it was decided we would meet the judges in alphabetical order. Guess who was number seven out of eight? I went to get a sandwich and fix my make up. It might not have been a beauty pageant, but I was determined to look my best. The judges were in a curtained-off area, so we gathered around waiting our turn. One contestant returned in tears and announced she had gotten the judges to cry! Now, that is a tough act to follow.

Finally, it was my turn to talk to the judges. This was no "puff" event and the questions were not easy. I quickly learned that my mistake had been in thinking this was a "fun" thing to do! To my advantage, I grew up with a father who was slightly disabled and for 19 ½ years, I was a volunteer at the Los Angeles Unit of the Shriner's Hospital for Crippled Children. I hope I gave intelligent answers, I have few recollections of the ten minutes I spent in there. I believe it is anxiety amnesia! I do know that I educated five more people about TM. Naturally, none of them had heard of it.

When the last contestant was finished, we then had the interminable wait for the second part of the Pageant to begin. In the brochure I had received we were told there would be a private session with the judges followed by an event open to the public. The schedule said it would be a "judged speaking event". I have a B.A. in Speech/Communication and have judged speech contests so I thought I knew what to expect; I was wrong.

The contest coordinator, Patty, introduced each of us to the audience. This time we were in a random order. By chance, I was second. The "judged speaking event" entailed answering two questions. Patty selected the first question and the second was the same for all of us. The first question was so varied for each of us that it seemed a bit unfair to judge us based on the answers. I wish I had had the question, "what haven't you done that you want to do." That would have been easy for me, ride in the Goodyear Blimp! The second question was, "If you could have five minutes on a national TV show, what would you want to tell people". My answer was the same one I told my kids at Shriner's, "I am no different than anyone else, and please treat me the same."

When the judges went back to decide our fate, we heard from the current Ms. Wheelchair America and the current Ms. Wheelchair California. The judges returned and the awards were announced. Although it was not a beauty pageant, I have to be honest and say that the most attractive and, possibly, youngest women won. We all received a bag of "goodies," a stuffed bear, a pen, some body lotion and other odds and ends.

Debbie Capen's husband, Michael, made a video tape of the public ceremony. To my knowledge it is the only one in existence. Debbie and Michael were part of my "rooting section" that included three very dear friends of mine. As I write this, I'm waiting to pick up my pictures from the photo shop. I participated in a promotion between AOL and Kodak so my pictures will also be sent to an Internet address. By the time you get this, they should be on the TMIC list for all to see.

This was a very rewarding activity for me. I hate the trite saying about it not being who wins or loses, but that is very true in this case. I had a wonderful time and I've been encouraged to enter again next year. I want to take this opportunity to encourage all of you to attend your state pageant. I would like to see more TMers involved in the Pageant also. This is an organization that needs a lot more support and publicity. I have long been an advocate for the disabled and this is a good platform from which to get the message across about Transverse Myelitis.

Thank you Debbie and Michael for coming out and supporting me. Thank you to all the TMIC members who sent me good wishes.