There are no guarantees in life, but I believe faith provides all of us with a foundation to live the best lives possible - knowing that there is a higher being who loves us and will never leave us.

In the Miss America system talent is worth 50 percent of a contestant's points so my mom encouraged me to give it a try. And once I decided to do it, like anything else, I gave it 110 percent.

Everyone is busy, but I believe it depends on what you prioritize. My husband and I teach Sunday School together at our church and are very involved.

I felt like it was a sense of duty for me to give these women a voice.

I'm a person who likes to give 100 percent to everything I do. I want to be the best at my job and as a mother.

To me, faith is being thankful when things in life are going well and also being thankful when they are not. Its often through our most difficult times when faith lifts us up and gives us the courage and the strength to work even harder to accomplish a new goal or do something we never thought we could.

I believe giving back is one of the greatest life lessons we can teach our children; that the world isn't all about them, and that through our actions people will really discover what kind of a person we truly are.