Winner Profiles

Name: Francesca Simone
Date of Birth: 6/12/1985
Title: Miss Rhode Island 2008
Hometown: North Smithfield, Rhode Island

Education: Boston Conservatory 2009 – Masters of Music in Vocal Performance
Providence College 2007 – Bachelor of Arts in Vocal Performance
St. Mary Academy, Bay View 2003
Platform Issue: Alzheimer's Disease Awareness
Scholastic/Career Ambition: To complete my Masters of Music Degree in Vocal Performance at the Boston Conservatory in May of 2009, and continue my education by obtaining my DMA in Vocal Performance.  I hope to one day become a leading soprano at the Metropolitan Opera.
Talent: Classical Vocal – "Nessun Dorma" from Turandot
Scholastic Honors: Dean's List; Sigma Alpha Iota International Honor Society; Who's Who Among Young American Professionals; National Honor Society; Rhode Island Honor Society; Who's Who Among American High School Students.
Leadership Roles: Founder of "Families of Alzheimer's Carrying the Torch" (F.A.C.T.); Active Minds, Boston Conservatory; RI Music Educator's Association Adjudicator; Tour Guide and Student Ambassador, Providence College Music Department; Sectional Leader and Conductor, Junior Providence Singers and Treble Choir; Tutor of Music Theory, Providence College; Vocal Coach; Adopt a Choir Mentor, Ponaganset Middle School; Opera Providence sponsorship and fundraising; Double Reed Ensemble Founder, Providence College; Learn to Skate Instructor, Franklin Blades; Amnesty International, Secretary.
Accomplishments: President's Volunteer Service Award; Congressional Award for Volunteer Public Service; Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) 2007; Recipes to Remember, Author; 2nd Runner-Up Miss RI 2007, 1st Runner-Up, Miss RI 2006; Kelly Jo Roarke Talent Award, Miss RI 2006 and 2007; Soloist, Moscow and St. Petersburg Conservatories 2007; Commencement Soloist, Providence College 2007 Ceremony; The Telephone, Comic Opera: Lucy, Lead Soprano; A Game of Chance, Comic Opera: First Knitter, Lead Soprano; Handel's Messiah, Soprano Soloist; 10 mile Breast Cancer Walk for a Cure.
Interesting Facts: I recently donated 10" of my hair to Locks of Love.  I sing at Morville House in Boston, a residence for low income elders.  I am performing in my first professional collaboration with the Rhode Island State Festival Ballet.  I sang at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris and in Rome for Pope John Paul II.  I volunteered at RI Hospital in the Animal Research Unit, witnessing laparoscopic surgery and assisting in the preoperative preparations of the animals.  I was a member of the United States Figure Skating Association and the International Skating Institute of America, earning three consecutive gold medals at the World Championships in 1997.  I am a member of the Mt. Washington Observatory, Beethoven Society of America, American Handel Society, Mozart Society of America, and Schubert Society USA.  I studied violin, oboe, English horn and piano.
Employment: Assistant, Business Office, Boston Conservatory.
Marketing Plan: As Miss Rhode Island I will work to raise awareness of Alzheimer's disease primarily through the Rhode Island Chapter of the National Alzheimer's Organization and its fundraisers, symposiums, and committees.  I will further the local chapter's efforts to educate the public.  As Miss Rhode Island, I will have the opportunity to continue my participation in events as a state spokesperson.  I will contact Rhode Island legislators and health care organizations to advocate for additional funding for research as well as create a specific email for family members of Alzheimer's patients who wish to contact me to discuss their concerns.  The title of Miss Rhode Island will allow me to help initiate public policy and to encourage all Rhode Islanders to join in the fight to find a cure for a disease that has already claimed 24,000 Rhode Island residents and 4.5 million nationwide.
Legacy: I will be remembered as a Miss Rhode Island who fought passionately for and advocated awareness and action against a tragic and deadly disease.  I will be remembered as a Miss Rhode Island who had a lifelong dedication to her state and platform, working relentlessly for both.  My wish is that through the title of Miss Rhode Island and my association with the Miss America Organization, I will be someone, who, in some small way, made a difference in the lives of the suffering patients of Alzheimer's and their families.
Why I should be Miss Rhode Island this year: One of my primary reasons for pursuing the Miss Rhode Island title is the scholarship award so that I can complete my Masters in Music and then a DMA in Vocal Performance.  I have a deep respect for the title as a native Rhode Islander and have idolized Miss Rhode Island and Miss America since I was a toddler.  The respect and exposure that the title carries will allow me to promote my platform as well as my classical art form.  I am ready to accept the challenge of being Miss Rhode Island and have through my actions represented the core values of the Miss America Program.