Earlier this month, Miss Pennsylvania, Miranda Moore, visited with and spoke to residents at Masonic Village in Elizabethtown. In her presentation, she highlighted her background and passion for promoting STEM careers for women, as well as her community service initiative, Take Action in Fashion.

Moore's visit was part of a meeting of the Penn State Grey Lions, an alumni interest group made up of Masonic Village residents, staff members and community members. In her talk, she discussed her path to the crown.

Two years ago, Moore was named Miss Lancaster County before becoming Miss Central PA. She's currently in the final months of her term as Miss Pennsylvania, and she competed for a national title at the Miss America event in January. Her term as Miss Pennsylvania will end on Saturday, June 15.

A Harrisburg native, Moore is an environmental engineer and graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania, with plans to earn a master's degree in nonprofit leadership. She is the first engineer and sustainability professional to be named Miss Pennsylvania.

In her talk at Masonic Village, Moore shared her passion for promoting STEM for women. She noted that only 11% of certified engineers are women, and she said she's working to empower kids, especially girls, to pursue engineering as a career. She shared with the audience that she's been known to wear a pink hard hat and high heels on sites, although she will wear steel-toed boots when necessary.

Through her community service initiative, Take Action in Fashion, Moore focuses on raising awareness of the negative impact the fashion industry has on people and the planet. She emphasized that the fashion industry is the highest producer of pollution, higher than both construction and vehicle pollution, noting that there are 92 million tons of textile waste produced each year. Additionally, she said, the industry promotes unfair working conditions and has a harmful social impact. Through her initiative, Moore has created a website and educational toolkit to raise awareness and increase knowledge of poor practices in the fashion industry.

At her Elizabethtown visit, Moore also entertained the crowd with a performance on the clarinet, and she posed for photos with residents.

Since earning the title of Miss Pennsylvania last year, Moore has traveled more than 30,000 miles across the state and has attended more than 200 events and appearances.

"I meet lots of people and attend lots of events," she said. "It requires lots of hours, but it's rewarding to bring communities together and inspire advocacy. It's a unique experience."

For more information on Moore's initiative, visit http://www.takeactioninfashion.com.