August 18th was a busy day for me and for my fellow Mrs. Oregon America contestants. My day started the night before as I returned from a business trip in Virginia late Friday night, weary and jet-lagged I got up at 0600 Saturday morning to make the 2 hour drive to Portland for the Mrs. Oregon America workshop. The workshop is conducted each year for a number of reasons; to allow the ladies to get to know one another (there are 9 of us this year), to turn in all of the necessary paperwork to be in the pageant and to talk about things like, wardrobe, make-up, walking correctly on stage, judges interviews and in general what pageant day will be like. The workshop was held at the Best Western Motel in Sunnyside (Portland), afterwards some of the ladies had dinner at one of the Pageant's sponsors Hoda's Middle Eastern Cuisine restaurant 3401 S.E. Belmont http://www.hodas.com/. Then it was off to Mrs. Oregon America's official send-off party. The pageant contestants, family and friends of Mrs. Kimberly Takla descended on her home in S.W. Portland for the opportunity to see her beautiful pageant wardrobe, eat good food and to wish her well as she heads to Tucson, Arizona this week for the Mrs. America Pageant http://www.mrsamerica.com/. You can keep up with Kim and her time in Tucson by viewing her blog at http://www.mrsoregon2007.blogspot.com/. GOOD LUCK KIM - We know you will do Oregon proud!!!



Mrs. Southern Oregon, Mrs. Eugene, Mrs. Clackamas County
are joined by Hoda owner and head chef of Hoda's Middle Eastern Cuisine
in Portland. They are a sponsor for the Mrs. Oregon
America Pageant. The food is wonderful!!


The murals on the walls at Hoda's are beautiful, I guess
you can't quite tell since we are standing in front of it, but
trust me they really are pretty.


Domestic Diva's - Kim Takla - Mrs. Oregon America and her best friend
Tamara Wissbaum - Mrs. Oregon International make coffee for guests
at Kim's Mrs. America send off party on 18 August.


Mrs. Eugene, Mrs. Rose City and Mrs. Multnomah Co.
at the Mrs. Oregon America send-off party


Mrs. Oregon Kim Takla is joined by the 2008 Mrs. Oregon contestants at the Mrs. Oregon Send off party 18 August 07.

Scott Christian Rankins is my brother and I miss him terribly. Scottie died at 40 years of age. I miss him for totally selfish reasons. I miss him because he has not been here to give me his opinion on anything! Scott was always good for giving his opinion on my clothes, my boyfriends, my jobs, he missed my wedding!! He has missede my life in general and though I think I have managed well over the past few years without Scott, I think it would be very comforting to have him with me. Scottie died from AIDS in 2001, it does not bother me to tell people my families story of dealing with AIDS in our life. It does not bother me, because I want everyone to know, young, middle aged, and old that AIDS is still a threat in our world. I want everyone to know about it, to understand it and to protect themselves. No one is immune from this disease. We all need to educate ourselves, our children, our parents, our friends. Education, Compassion, and research to find a cure. Scott was/is my best friend he is not here physically for me to talk to, but I do talk to him. Please join me and my family in this fight against AIDS. Act, ask questions, get tested, know your status, be aware. Don't be like Scottie, don't leave this world before your time.

San Diego Padres Mascot "Friar", Mrs. Eugene and THE best mascot The University of Oregon 's Donald Duck at the Eugene Emerald's baseball game August 2007

Singing our Nations Anthem -

The National Anthem Project just happens to be a major partner with the Mrs. America Pageant, the National Anthem and the Mrs. America Program also just happen to be two organizations that are near and dear to my heart. I was singing the National Anthem at numerous venues before I became Mrs. Eugene, but now my title has given me more confidence and more opportunity to sing the song, the Anthem that is known so well around the world. The Anthem that lets the world know where I am from and who we are and what we stand for. This was never more apparent to me than last year as I stood in Portland's Pioneer Courthouse Square during the National Anthem Project's visit to our fair state as a group of "anarchists", protesters burned our Nation's symbol, the "Stars and Stripes", while citizens sang the National Anthem. The sight truly pissed me off, so much so that it brought tears to my eyes. To think that I have spent 20 years in the United States Army doing what I think is right to defend our Nations freedom, the sight truly irritated me. But then I reminded myself that if it were not for the freedom that we enjoy in this country, those 18 and 19 year old people burning the flag of the United States on the ground would not just be standing there and laughing, but they would probably be carted off to jail (in any other country). So as the tears streamed down my face and as I stood before an audience of complete unknowns I sang the Star Spangled Banner as I had never sung it before. Each time I am able to sing it again, it has more and more meaning to me, as it did in the photos here on August 12th during a Eugene Emeralds baseball game. I enjoy singing as many of my friends know, but I do't know any song, I don't enjoy singing any song more than I do the United States National Anthem.




Singing the Anthem June 2006 at Pioneer Courthouse Square Portland, Oregon

The Oregon Country Fair - 38 years of world class entertainment, hand-made crafts, delectable foods, educational displays and magical surprises at every turn of the path. Located in a wooded setting, 13 miles west of Eugene near Veneta, Oregon, an unforgettable adventure.

It really was very interesting I had heard stories of people walking through the forest partially clad, or just plain nude, know we didn't see anyone that was competely nude but there were ladies walking around in full body paint. The music was great, and the food was..... well, like WOW!!! http://www.ringoffirerestaurant.com/ We had a great fruit plate from the Ring of Fire restaurant, but I guess you go there for the people and the costumes and we were far from disappointed by what we saw.

An Officer and a Beauty Queen
Portland native Joelle Rankins Goodwin will vie for the title of Mrs. Oregon, a statewide pageant for married women, held this October in Clackamas.

By Sarah Blount The Portland Observer
Portland native supplements army career with pageantry. Joelle Rankins Goodwin has spent most of her career as a military intelligence officer in the United States Army, but none of that prepared her for her first experience parading in front of 200 people while wearing a swimsuit.From soldier to assistant professor at the University of Oregon to beauty queen, this Major focused her sights on winning the title Mrs. Oregon 2008 - a statewide competition for married women taking place this October in Clackamas. Goodwin, 43, a former Rose Festival princess from Lincoln High School, currently holds the title of Mrs. Eugene America 2007. She says it took guts to join the pageant life."Entering into a pageant is kind of like being an athlete and training yourself," she said. "I think it takes a lot of courage just to get up on the stage. It takes confidence, and that's not something I'm lacking."While it may seem unusual for a Major to compete as a beauty queen, Goodwin says military affiliations are not uncommon in the pageantry world. "I'm surprised with how many people are associated with the military," she said. "You find a lot of respect for military members."Goodwin has been married three years to her husband Bob. Between the pair they have three children: Ian, 12, Daniela, 10 and Sam, 17.Last year, Goodwin came very close to winning the title of Mrs. Oregon 2007, until she reached the obligatory onstage interview portion. That's the part of the pageant where contestants must think quickly on their feet to answer an open-ended question. "If you could be president for a day," the interviewer asked, "what would you do?" Goodwin said that being president didn't mean waving a magic wand to make war and sickness go away."I'd take my day to enjoy the White House and take it all in," she answered.But in the end, her response was no match for the following contestant, who Goodwin said gave an answer that was spot-on. Contestant Kimberly Takla said she'd wave the so-called wand anyway, magically making sickness and war go away. Sickness did not go away that evening, but Takla did become Mrs. Oregon 2007. Goodwin finished as first runner-up. Having been bested by magic, Goodwin is trying for the crown and banner again for the 2008 title. This time she is preparing by sculpting her body with the help of a personal trainer and honing her interview skills through a membership with Toastmasters International. Toastmasters, a club where you make speeches to be critiqued by fellow members. Goodwin and her husband joined the UO branch in January, where she's been working on limiting the "uh" factor in her speeches. "I feel even more confident this year," she said. If she succeeds in winning the Mrs. Oregon title, Goodwin will then take an expenses-paid trip to Nationals. After that, she may get to represent married women throughout the world. Goodwin has another reason to aspire for the domestic and international titles. "I'm not sure there has ever been a woman of color to win Mrs. Oregon, and I don't think there's ever been an African American Mrs. America," she said. "I'd love to be the first."This year's Mrs. Oregon pageant takes place Saturday, Oct. 6 at Clackamas High School.

Copyright 2004, Portland Observer http://www.portlandobserver.com/