Back on April 21st, I attended the second annual Walk For Children With Apraxia. The Staten Island walk was initiated and has been coordinated both years by Alyssa DePaolis, who is the current Miss Richmond County 2013.
According to the American Speech-Languauge-Hearing Association, Childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) is a motor speech disorder. Children with CAS have problems saying sounds, syllables, and words. The child knows what he or she wants to say, but his/her brain has difficulty coordinating the muscle movements necessary to say those words.
CASANA is the Childhood Apraxia of Speech Association of North America (CASANA). It is the only national 501(c)3 nonprofit public charity exclusively dedicated to children with apraxia of speech and their families. The Walk for Children with Apraxia benefits this organization.
There were many other titleholders in attendance, as well. I always have a great time hanging out with these girls. It just goes to show what a tight-knit family the women in the Miss America Organization become. We all come out to support one another whenever we can.
We enjoyed a day of raffles, food, zumba, and (of course) walking. I'm so glad that I was able to participate in this walk for the second time. Seeing the beautiful children walking who are affected by apraxia on a daily basis really opened my eyes to why Alyssa chose this as her platform. She is doing wonderful things to help these kids have a brighter future. Congratulations on another successful year, Alyssa!