COMMENTARIES ON FAMILY VALUES : Sanctity of Marriage as an Institution Is Foundation for Happy Home : A couple’s commitment to their relationship helps build a strong family, which is the basis for a strong nation.

I did not enter the U.S.A. pageant system to do a beauty pageant. My desire was to stand for truth and righteousness in all things and in all places.

Becoming Mrs. U.S.A. now gives me the opportunity to represent what is of eternal value and importance in all of our lives.

I have observed that wherever I go--when I have stated what I am about--many people come forth to applaud what is good and the truly important principles of this life.

I was asked by a pageant judge: “What would be the first thing you would do for the married men and women and for the families of this great nation if crowned?” I replied: “I would congratulate them! I would honor them in their good works. I give them my highest respect for their desires to build strong marriages and strong families. I have found that most men and women believe in the sanctity of marriage and the importance of family. Daily they quietly seek and struggle to build and strengthen their families.”

When making personal appearances, there is another observation that I make. I have noticed that the strong quiet majority of those who believe in this most noble of all institutions, the family, do not make noise! They are anxiously engaged in doing good and are too busy making a difference in the lives of those they love to cause “unseemly noise.”

What does this Mrs. U.S.A. stand for? I stand for the sanctity of marriage. I know that in order to build a strong foundation for marriage, a commitment to marriage from both partners must be in place.

In my marriage we have found that we are happiest when we spend our time looking for the good in each other and seeking change only in ourself. With the experience of 22 years we have become convinced that the greatest gift a father and a mother can give to their children is to love each other.

With that as our foundation, security and self-esteem is naturally fostered in the hearts of our children.

With this as our base we are then in an enlightened position to love, nurture, teach, guide and praise our children in the principles and values of integrity we all hold dear.

I am convinced that the strength of this nation lies within the strength of its families. This Mrs. U.S.A. believes that all of today’s ills can be answered in the home.

The principles of morality and the values of integrity have not changed. People have. All of the qualities of character that make a person great--and a nation great--are still in place. No matter who or what may cause “unseemly noise,” real joy and inner peace can only come from the adherence to principle.

As we each set our goals, live our dreams, struggle to achieve, and seek to make a difference for good in our own individual worlds, may we come to the wonderful realization and obvious conclusion that the greatest work any of us will ever do will be within the walls of our own homes.

For truly it is in the acquisition of a knowledge such as this, that our legacy begins.