Saluting the Coast Guard!! :)

Three-quarters of a MILLION people were expected to visit Grand Haven, MI for the conclusion of the week long Coast Guard Grand Parade and Festival on Saturday, August 2nd! I don't know what the final count was, but it sure was crowded and absolutely wonderful!!! Grand Haven is known as Coast Guard City USA and every year it honors the Coast Guard with a week long festival and activities.

I lived in Grand Haven for 10 years and attended school there from K-8th grades before moving to the Clarkston area! It was so wonderful to be back home again! The pier was even more beautiful than I remembered! And the Lord blessed us with perfect weather for a parade and the firework display later in the evening! Celebrating the Coast Guard has always been fun as I had returned every year while we lived there, but to attend this year as Miss Michigan Teen USA 2008 was truly an honor for me! I have made the most of every opportunity during this reign and this Festival parade was no exception!

The parade was televised on both TV 4 and Wood TV-8 News and I hope to get a copy othe Grand parade soon!! To see several of my former teachers and classmates, in the crowd yelling out my name and waving to me was an incredible feeling!! I felt like a real celebrity and I loved every minute of it!!

The pararde lasted for a few hours, but it went by so fast and I want to do it all over again! :)