Miss Arkansas Claudia Raffo Day at Arkansas State, Aug. 2
JONESBORO – Miss Arkansas Claudia Raffo will be guest of honor Thursday, Aug. 2, at Arkansas State University, starting with a 9:30 a.m. recognition event and news media opportunity in the Administration Building, 2105 Aggie Road.
Raffo, an A-State alumna, was crowned Miss Arkansas 2018 at the conclusion of the 81st Miss Arkansas Scholarship Pageant, June 16 in Little Rock.
She will visit with friends and supporters and take questions from news media representatives regarding her platform and her experiences thus far as Miss Arkansas, one of several stops during a day of activities in Jonesboro, where she grew up.
Her platform, "New Life Saves Lives: Umbilical Cord Donation," promotes awareness of umbilical cord donation, a practice that saved her own grandmother's life when stem cells from umbilical cord blood were used to cure leukemia. She and her family have advocated for umbilical cord and cord blood preservation to help others.
Raffo, 22, is the daughter of Tommy and Paula Raffo. She competed in the Miss Arkansas Pageant as Miss Historic Batesville.
For her talent, she performed a jazz dance to "That's Life." She received a $30,000 scholarship provided by Ted and Shannon Boy Skokos, Citgo and the Miss Arkansas Scholarship Foundation and more than $75,000 in awards, wardrobe, transportation, and gifts.
Raffo will compete in the 2019 Miss America Pageant in Atlantic City. She has been making appearances across Arkansas, promoting the Children’s Miracle Network, the Arkansas Children’s Hospital, her personal platform, and the goals of the Miss Arkansas and Miss America system.
After completing her degree in chemistry at Arkansas State, she entered the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences where she is a student in the College of Pharmacy.
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