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STARTISTE AND BLESSINGS IN A BACKPACK JOIN FORCES TO FIGHT CHILD HUNGER IN NEW YORK CITY

STARTISTE AND BLESSINGS IN A BACKPACK JOIN FORCES
TO FIGHT CHILD HUNGER IN NEW YORK CITY

Miss USA and Miss Teen USA Will Present
Backpacks with Weekend Meals at March 2^nd Event

New York, NY - February 27, 2009 – More than 12.4 million children are hungry or at risk of hunger in the United States, and many of them live right in New York City. In an effort to combat child hunger, revolutionary retail entertainment company Startiste has partnered with non-profit organization Blessings in a Backpack to provide weekend meals to more than 400 elementary school children at New York City Public School #15. The meals will be distributed in Startiste-designed backpacks at a special event at PS 15 on Monday, March 2nd, at 2:00 PM. Invited guests Crystle Stewart, Miss USA and Stevi Perry, Miss Teen USA will attend to help hand out backpacks to the children.

With proper nutrition children perform better in the classroom, resulting in better test scores, improved reading skills, positive behavior, improved health, and increased attendance. Blessings in a Backpack partners with local grocers to supply students with food staples that require little to no preparation. The Startiste backpacks containing the meals will be handed out to elementary school children whose families qualify for free and reduced meal programs.

"At Startiste, young people are our inspiration so it's important for us to foster their growth and development in any way we can," said Cathy Taylor, Startiste creator and CEO. "Our partnership with Blessings in a Backpack allows us to empower children and show them that they can make a difference in the world regardless of their economic situation."

Startiste is the first retailer to combine fashion, personalization and inspiration, helping to transform girls' passion for fashion into a highly interactive design experience. At the Startiste store and at www.startistegirl.com, girls can design and personalize their own fashion accessories and beauty products.

ABOUT STARTISTE
Startiste is a revolutionary retail entertainment company that is transforming girls' passion for fashion into highly interactive, empowering experiences. At the Startiste store at Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City, NY, and www.startistegirl.com, girls design and personalize their own fashion accessories and beauty items in a glamorous, high-tech environment that promotes achievement and making a difference. Startiste's "Do it Yourself" experience inspires its young teen customers to "Free Your Beautiful" and reach for the stars.

ABOUT BLESSINGS IN A BACKPACK
Blessings in a Backpack is a results oriented program. This unique program is designed to feed elementary school children whose families qualify for the federal free and reduced meal program and may not have any or enough food on the weekends. Better test scores, improved reading skills, positive behavior, improved health and increased attendance have all been attributed to the success of this program. $80 feeds a child in the program for an entire school year. Following a donation, a school is chosen and a local grocer partners with the program to provide food for meals in the backpacks. Every Friday, students receive their backpacks with food that requires little to no preparation. They return with their backpacks on Monday ready to learn. Blessings in a Backpack is currently feeding over 10,000 children in Kentucky, Indiana, Florida, Michigan, Missouri, California and New York. The program is a hybrid of private sector funding and public partnerships carried out in public schools.

ABOUT THE MISS UNIVERSE ORGANIZATIONThe MISS UNIVERSE®, MISS USA® and MISS TEEN USA® Pageants are a Donald J. Trump and NBC Universal joint venture. Utilizing its nationwide grass roots infrastructure, the Miss Universe Organization is committed to increasing HIV/AIDS awareness and increasing awareness of breast and ovarian cancers. By forging relationships with organizations committed to research and education such as the Latino Commission on AIDS, Susan G. Komen for the Cure and Gilda's Club, the women who champion these causes during their reign are armed to impact women today. The titleholders of the Miss Universe Organization personify the combination of beauty and intelligence that defines the 21st Century. Learn more at www.missuniverse.com.