What are your Hobbies?
Any activity that takes place outside in the sun’s beam is something I love to do. I enjoy swimming, playing tennis, and exercising. I also like using my creativity to make crafts, design scrapbooks and take pictures. Above all music is my ultimate passion, and I devote countless hours practicing and performing my love through rhythm and melody.
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What makes you special and unique?
My name makes me one of a kind. “Telia” is not only a memorable word but also an acronym for Touching Every Life In America. My mother hoped that through my life I would aspire to do just that, and each day I diligently try my best to impress the lives of those around me with my words and actions.
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What is the best advice you have ever received?
“Shoot for the moon; even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.” When I read this message, as a fifth grader, it impressed my life. Still to this day, I believe that when I try my best I can count looses as wins and each stumbling block and a stepping stone.
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Name one thing you cannot live without.
Love and the support of my family are of utmost importance to me. Without their constant compassion and encouragement, I could not be the young woman that I am meant to be. Their soft hugs, tender words, and loving smiles help me to press on each and every day.
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What's the most valuable lesson you've ever learned?
Someone is always watching. I was taught this lesson after running into a young girl at a grocery store who remembered words that I had spoken to her, ways that I had been kind to her, and even clothing that I had worn in high school. Although this girl and I had never actually met, she not only knew my name but also treasured her memories of me.
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Who is your most valued role model and why?
My role model is someone who fought the good fight, he finished the race and he kept the faith. My friend Eric Smith died of brain cancer four years ago; and although the eight year battle was long and strenuous, Eric Smith never gave up. Through each surgery and each treatment, he persevered with a smile on his face and a song in his heart.
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What was your most unexpected moment?
I was eating at an Italian restaurant in New York City when cast members from Adam Sandler’s movie “Big Daddy” asked me to sing. I was shocked that they would ask to showcase my talent, but I gladly agreed to make my NYC debut.
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What is your workout routine?
I keep my body hydrated with water and walk at least a mile a day. Crunches every night keep my core toned, and tennis on the weekends maintains my arm strength. This along with a few laps in the pool gives me a healthy physique.
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What has been your biggest accomplishment to date?
Being chosen as Southern Miss’s 2006 Outstanding Freshman of the Year was a tremendous honor. This title rewards students not only for their superior grades but also for their hard work ethic and memorable character. Knowing that USM faculty noticed me among all other freshmen students was truly a great accomplishment.
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What is the best compliment you have ever recieved?
Someone once said that I am as beautiful on the inside as I am on the outside. This is truly the greatest compliment I could ever receive. For I believe that beauty starts with in and includes characteristics such as intelligence, humor and compassion. Regardless of one’s physical appearance, these attributes will shine.
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What is your secret wish?
My prayer is that one day I will have prominent school of music where children can come after school and engage in the arts through voice, piano, and drama lessons. I will foster their creativity and help them develop their talents.
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What was your most embarrassing moment?
As I was leaving my High School’s auditorium after taking my yearbook Beta Club picture, I stepped off the stage and my ankle twisted. I slid down the small stair case all the way to the ground. If that was not bad enough, when I finally stood up my friend realized I had split the back of my pants too.
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What is your biggest guilty pleasure?
I love to sneeze. I think it feels absolutely wonderful. In fact, when I sense a tickle in my nose, I try to sneeze as loud and as hard as I can just because I enjoy it so much.
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What is your favorite movie and why?
“How to Loose a Guy in Ten Days” is a hilarious movie. I love to laugh and Kate Hudson had me giggling the entire hour and twenty minutes. What girl does not love a romantic comedy about getting RID of a guy?
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What do you like to do for fun... relaxation... recreation?
I enjoy doing arts and crafts of any kind. I especially love to scrapbook. There is something special about using my creativity to make a treasure from scraps of paper, glitter, and pictures.
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What would be your dream vacation or destination?
A fourteen day stay at Islas Secas in Panama would be an absolute dream. I would spend my days fishing, snorkeling, boating, and soaking up every inch of the sun.
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What do you like best about the state of Mississippi?
Mississippi is a state centered on the community. Anywhere I go in this great southern state, I am greeted by a smile and a wave that makes me feel right at home.
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Where do you see yourself in ten years?
Ten years from now, I see myself with a beautiful, healthy family and prospering music studio teaching students how to develop their gifts and hot to use their talents for the betterment of other individuals.
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Who am I?
I love extending my faith, compassion, joy, hope, and happiness to all those I meet. Life is so precious and each passing day that has been granted to me must be lived to its fullest. Whether it is the smiles on the faces of all those I meet or creating memories that may last a life time, it is my desire to leave lasting impressions. I want to leave a legacy, and in years to come I dream that my grandchildren’s lives will be extraordinary because I cared enough to make a difference.

Exercise of the body and mind has always been a passion for me. As a child, I spent countless hours participating in gymnastics, soccer, and softball or pretending to be a teacher, a banker, a truck driver, a McDonald’s worker, a journalist among a few. And with each mold I tried to fill, I felt I was creating new horizons, stretching the boundaries of my existence. Whether my role as a young teen meant entertaining as a cheerleader, doing dance routines, or holding the lead role in high school musicals I always knew that the “The Show must go on.” Now as I am an adult, I am committed each day to challenging my body, mind and soul to preserver with the race set before me remembering still that ”the show must go on.”
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Tell us about your platform.
Music therapy is a growing healthcare profession that uses melody and rhythm to address physical, emotional, cognitive, and social needs of individuals of all ages. Music therapy improves the quality of life for people who are well and meets the needs of children and adults with disabilities and illnesses. Through music therapy persons are able to empower themselves by managing stress, expressing feelings, enhancing memory, improving communication and promoting wellness.

At an early age of six, I had the desire to share the same joy that music brings to my life with others. Since then I have had the opportunity to perform at multiple retirement and nursing facilities, junior high and high schools, as well as for churches and their youth groups. I have personally witnessed the ravishment music brings to all those it reaches. I want to increase the awareness of the benefits music therapy brings while using my own talents and education to provide entertainment and enjoyment for the elderly and the young.
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