Tiffany's platform is a program she calls "Building Bridges."  She and her husband, developer Benji Nelson, are creating a foundation that will help parents with the expenses involved in adopting children from overseas, particularly those who are over 5 years of age.  The foundation should begin its work early next year.

"From the beginning of when we started looking at adopting a child ourselves internationally, we wanted to find an older one," she said.  It's almost impossible for kids who are 5 years old or older to get adopted, and there are so many of those children in orphanages overseas waiting for a family."

Tiffany has four children of her own and adopted a 7 year old Russian boy nine months ago.  When she first brought her new son Bridger home, "he didn't speak any English, and we kind of had to communicate with charades until he could learn the language.  Now he carries on full conversations.  She said adoption whether internationally or domestically is expensive, typically costing at least $25,000 to $30,000.  Tiffany and her husband have a successful business - Tiffany is the architectural designer and Benji the builder of high-end homes and they wanted to give something back to the community.

"My passion has gone to this program, to help parents adopt".  As Mrs. US Continental, I hope to do a lot of outside speaking engagements and bring an awareness of the need for adopting older children versus just newborn babies.  There's a fear out there that the older the child, the harder it is to change habits or help them learn new cultures.  But we've had such a wonderful experience with Bridger.  He has a perspective on the world that's just unbelievable, and he appreciates the blessings he enjoys."

Tiffany said the US Continental pageant was "an amazing experience."  "All of us who were contestants got to spend three days together before the pageant and really got to know each other.  They are all fantastic ladies, each wanting to do some good things for their communities and their neighbors.  I felt very fortunate to be a part of it, let alone being chosen for the title."

During her reign, Tiffany is hoping outside groups, clubs and organizations will invite her to address them about "Building Bridges," adoption and the work of her foundation. 

"I never dreamed until this past year of ever being in a pageant.  But I felt that if I was chosen, it would give me the forum to talk about adoption and the work we want to do with the foundation.  We'll be launching a website in January and hope we can help many more families enjoy the blessings that come with adoption, like the ones we've personally enjoyed."

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