One of our beloved Miss Americas, Patricia Donnelly Harris passed away on Sunday, October 25th, at the age of 89, just shy of her 90th birthday.  We will always remember Pat for her genuine kindness, her grace and her commitment to the legacy and tradition of Miss America. 

On a dare, Pat entered a pageant at Jefferson Beach and was crowned "Miss Michigan."  She came to Atlantic City in 1939 and graced the stage in the Marine Ballroom of Atlantic City's famed Steel Pier.  Her prize was The Miss America trophy.  After winning the title, and without having a travel companion, Pat toured the country making personal appearances prior to World War II, and speaking to audiences around the nation about patriotism and boosting the country’s morale.  She was lovingly nicknamed "The Long-Stemmed American Beauty".

The Miss America Organization (MAO) announced today that Rush Limbaugh has been named as one of the national judges for the 2010 Miss America Pageant, which will be held at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas on Saturday, January 30 and broadcast live on TLC.

Limbaugh will be one of a panel of seven distinguished judges that will help decide which of the 53 contestants will capture the Miss America 2010 title and serve as the Goodwill Ambassador for the Children's Miracle Network, as well as introduce the first Go Green platform for MAO.

Angela Spencer is a survivor, so is her mother Sheila Maiorane.  So were many of the other women gathered Thursday evening at Westland City Hall who were ready, willing and able to decorate the trees with pink ribbons to kick off the city's first ever Painting the Town Pink breast cancer find-raiser.

“I'm a four-month survivor; my mom is a nine-year survivor,” Spencer said.

They strung pink ribbons, decorated with flowers and stars and words of encouragement created by children in the Detroit area, on wire and secured them to the trees with the help of their husbands, children, friends and city officials.

“I would like to thank you all for not only joining us tonight, but supporting our cause — ending breast cancer forever,” Ashlee Baracy said.  “We are many steps closer to our vision of a world without breast cancer, but people are still dying from the disease and that is truly unacceptable.”

A former Miss Michigan who made breast cancer awareness her platform, Baracy co-founded the month-long event with Jim and Jocelyn Kollar of Alleycat Designs and the breast cancer fund-raising Web site imaboobist.com.  Throughout October, which is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, businesses and organizations in the community will be conducting events aimed at raising money for the Susan G. Komen Detroit Race for the Cure.