Source: missillinois.homestead.com/howie.html BACKSTREET BOY HOWIE DOROUGH TO APPEAR AT MISS ILLINOIS PROGRAM ON JUNE 26, 8:00 P.M. DRURY LANE, OAKBROOK TERRACE, ILLINOIS TO
ANNOUNCE THE FIRST OF ITS KIND "TEEN LEADERSHIP PROGRAM" SPONSORED BY THE DOROUGH LUPUS FOUNDATION
AND THE MISS ILLINOIS SCHOLARSHIP PAGEANT
Oakbrook Terrace, IL Backstreet Boy Howie Dorough will announce the new Teen Leadership Program of the Miss Illinois Scholarship Pageant, Inc., (the state affiliate of
the Miss America organization) at the preliminary Miss Illinois competition to be held at the Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace, on June 26, 2002 at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are
available by calling 217.653.1257 or (630-833-4607 after June 24, 2002) or by downloading the ticket form on the Miss Illinois web site at www.missil.org
The teen program will focus on developing leadership skills for young women, ages 13-17 by requiring each participant to create a community service project benefiting the
Dorough Lupus Foundation, a non-profit organization started by Dorough shortly after his sister succumbed to the disease in 1998. The projects will aim to raise
awareness and funds for lupus research, education and financial assistance for individuals living with lupus who cannot afford treatment, and teach the skills required to
develop grass roots support necessary to make a difference. Other areas of competition will include personal
interview, fitness, and on-stage presentation.
"The disease took my sister from my family. It means the world to me to have the support of family, friends, and the public to help find a cure for lupus. Hopefully, in the
near future, a cure will be found and no other family will have to endure such a tragic loss as our family has endured", said Dorough.
Lupus is a chronic, auto-immune disease which causes inflammation of various parts of the body, especially the skin, joints, blood and kidneys. The immune system
normally protects the body against viruses, bacteria and other foreign materials. In an auto-immune disease like lupus, the immune system loses its ability to tell the
difference between foreign substances and its own cells and tissues. The immune system then makes anti bodies directed against itself.
The new Miss Illinois Teen Leadership Program will combine the popularity of Howie D and the Miss Illinois Program to empower young teen girls to develop their
leadership voices while competing for scholarships. The visibility of these two partners will raise awareness of lupus and the tremendous work being done by the Dorough
Lupus Foundation. By tapping into "Teen Power" the lupus story can be told and the disease placed on the path toward a cure.
Chloe Lewis, a 13 year-old eighth grade student at the Latin School of Chicago and teen spokesperson for the new program states, "by teaching girls at a young age how
to be leaders we can call our generation to action and tackle any number of problems facing the world." Miss Lewis calls every teen across the state to enter the program
and join with Howie D. and the Miss Illinois Scholarship Pageant to communicate the hope for a cure through community service.
For information about entering the new teen program, please send a stamped, self-addressed envelope to The Miss Illinois Scholarship Program, Inc., P.O.Box 301045,
Chicago, IL 60630-9998, or click on the "Teen Program" icon at www.missil.org for more information.
