Christine Couron on Managing Blood Shortages
Christine Couron, Classic Universe United States Ambassador 2025–2026, does not describe pageantry pressure in terms of placement or competition. The pressure she refers to is operational. It is whether blood is available when a child needs it.
“My daily mission and work makes a difference towards if someone lives or dies tomorrow.”
That understanding came from living inside hospital systems with her children, who suffer from a rare blood disorder, Hereditary Spherocytosis, not from theory.
When Wanting to Win Wasn’t Enough
Couron is direct about the years she competed while focused on winning. She admits it affected her performance. The years that changed everything were the years she stopped chasing a result and started using pageantry as a place to make connections and speak.
“The platform and the mission has to be bigger to you than winning the crown.”
That shift coincided with her discovery of blood donation advocacy and the birth of her platform, #BeAHeroDonateBlood. Once the work became about her children and others like them, her approach changed. The stakes were no longer personal validation. They were the opportunity to give a voice to the voiceless and the chance to educate the general population on the constant need for blood donations.
Building Work That Extends Past Visibility
Through Carter BloodCare, Couron works directly with communities, hospitals, and donors. She manages blood drives, educates student and adult groups about regional hospital needs, and explains what shortages actually mean in practice. The work of a successful blood drive does not depend on a title. It depends on turnout.
In Fall 2024, she also launched a Texas chapter of the National Organization for Rare Disorders. The chapter provides education and programming for student members, connecting families to information and each other. This work is part of a longer plan, not a campaign.
Choosing Sustainability Over Applause
Couron and her husband are developing a nonprofit focused on raising funds for research into rare blood disorders. Research is slower than awareness. It requires patience, structure, and long-term commitment. That choice reflects how Couron now approaches leadership.
She uses pageantry as a tool, not an endpoint. The work continues whether she is onstage or not.
“The years that my mission was solely to make connections and be a voice were the times I brought home the crown.”