About a year ago, I was honored by the International Pain Foundation for my work to bring awareness to patients and caregivers of those who suffer from chronic pain and chronic illness.
I was presented with a Hero of Hope Award in November 2019 in Los Angeles, CA. The award meant a lot to me since it was the first time I'd ever been honored for my journalism work. However, winning the award did not come easy.
After being nominated by a member of the International Pain Foundation board in June, the board of directors narrowed me down as a top five finalist. After that, the public got a chance to cast votes on who they felt should be the winner. In the media category, I was up against some pretty tough competition. From television news anchors to a documentary film company, I had my work cut out for me.
As I've mentioned in previous blogs, I am a big fan of Paula Abdul and I'd just like to point out that the award I won was much in ways thanks to her support of my career. In 2018, I was given the opportunity to interview Paula before she embarked on her first solo tour in 30 years. Paula has suffered from chronic pain for years and was sidelined for a very long time due to the pain. The editorial staff at iPain Living Magazine afforded me the opportunity to write the cover story for their January 2019 issue on Paula's battle with chronic pain and her return to the stage.
For those of you who don't know me, I am a fierce competitor. Wanting to win the award badly, I reached out to Paula for help. She made me two videos that I could share on my social media channels to encourage people to vote for me. I strongly believe that her help is a big part in why I won the award.
After the votes were tallied in late August, I had won. Looking back at my competition, I am proud of the fact that this small town newspaper editor could pull out a victory over regionally and nationally known news personalities.
In November 2019, myself and a group of friends flew to Los Angeles for the 2019 International Pain Summit. The summit is an annual event where doctors, patients, and caregivers gather to learn about various topics of dealing with chronic pain and illness. The summit also serves as a fundraiser for the International Pain Foundation with a silent auction, Comic Pain Relief, and the Hero of Hope Awards.
As much as I love the spotlight and being out there interviewing the talent, the tables were turned on me when I had the opportunity to be interviewed. I was so nervous when the President of iPain told me that I would have to talk with reporters and the media. How could I be nervous? I do this for a living. I'm sure I stumbled my way through interviews, but it was probably the coolest experience. For once, I got to be the one who everyone wanted to talk to.
My nerves were still on high alert though. Ironically enough, public speaking is not a strong suit of mine. As the awards ceremony started, I tried to calm myself down and read my speech over and over again. When it came time to accept my award, there was this weird sense of calmness that washed over me. I had been on edge all day long and suddenly, it was like nothing else mattered.
I shared my story in my speech of how growing up admiring Paula, I never knew the amount of pain she was in. I touched on how I got started in the world of communications and journalism. Most importantly though, I wanted the chronic pain community to know that it's only because of their bravery and strength of sharing their stories that I am able to showcase them to the world. If they weren't willing to share, I could never put out the stories and bring awareness to the masses.
I've always dreamed of the day when I'd get the opportunity to walk the red carpet (in this case, the orange carpet!). When I was a little girl, I dreamed of being the one that everyone loved. I craved the spotlight. I starred in my own little shows for my family where I would sell tickets. I participated in theater classes and sang my little heart out. To this day, I perform in the car as the lead vocalist, drummer, guitar player, and backup dancer.
After the ceremony and the comedy show, my friends and I took many pictures together on the orange carpet. It really meant the world to me that they had all made the trek to support me and stand by my side on the biggest night of my career yet. We had an absolute blast and I wouldn't trade the memories for anything.
Being on that stage and accepting that award gave me an adrenaline rush I didn't know existed. Everyone wanted to talk to me after the awards that night. I had people thanking me for being willing to share their stories. It was this incredible feeling and it made me connect with my career even more.
I've always thought that my little hometown stories were just appreciated by the source of the story and the subject. I never thought there would come a day where my byline would be in bookstores across the world. I love this job and this field more than anything in the world and to know that my stories have an impact on people is amazing.
My friends were kind enough to take me out for a congratulatory dinner after the awards ceremony. Thank God for all of them because they made a huge deal out of this award for me. They gave me beautiful flowers, incredible cards, and made this honor one of the most special nights of my life.
I never got into this career to win awards or to be recognized. This job is my passion and I've had a lot of late nights and early mornings to get to the point where I am now. To my fellow journalists out there, you make a difference everyday with your words and trust me, you are appreciated more than you know.
Signing off,
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