Just moment after Stephanie Hunt's son Donnie was born, her life changed. Doctors first broke the news. "To have them tell you 'well, we think he has something called Rubenstein Taybi Syndrome, and it's a very rare disease", she said. Hunt and her husband didn't know a thing about Rubenstein Taybi, a disease that affects just one in 300,000 births. But she began extensive research online, and along the way, Hunt got reconnected with a teenaged passion.

Hunt had considered re-entering the pageant world before Donnie was born, and found herself browsing pageant websites while she looked for information on Rubenstein Taybi. Hunt even left her contact information on one page, and that led to another life-changing event.

"This woman kept emailing me, sending me cards in the mail, and she says... 'well, why won't you do this?'. I said "because I don't have time".

But Hunt became convinced pageants would give her a platform to get the word out about Rubenstein Taybi, and other rare diseases.

But first, Hunt faced another big challenge -- losing weight. With the help of a healthy diet program, she dropped 100 pounds, and found herself winning pageants in the process. Hunt became Mrs. Washtenaw County, then Mrs. Michigan, and in a ceremony in Las Vegas, she was crowned Mrs. United States 2007. Now, Hunt is using her title to talk about her beloved Donnie, and raise awareness of rare diseases. Hunt is proud to ride in the 2007 America's Thanksgiving Parade.

It's part of the culmination of an unexpected journey, and an excellent opportunity to spread the word about the joy and challenges of raising Donnie.

To learn more about Rubenstein Taybi and other rare diseases, go to www.rarediseases.org.