Slippery Rock Gazette

Liz McGeachy

Special Correspondent

Photo courtesy April Lufriu

When we told the story of April Lufriu in the July 2011 issue of the Slippery Rock Gazette, we thought it was remarkable that in addition to being vice-president of Lufriu Marble, Inc. in Tampa, Florida, an advocate for the Foundation Fighting Blindness and a very devoted mother, Lufriu was crowned Mrs. America in April 2011.

Now she’s topped that by winning the title of Mrs. World.

In December 2011 in Orlando, Florida, Lufriu competed with 57 other married women from around the world for the title. She was shocked to win, but she also felt confident that her success was due to her passion about her cause: fighting blindness.

“With all the interviews I have had to do during the past year, I was so ready to compete for Mrs. World,” Lufriu said. “Many of the women in the pageant had not had a lot of media exposure like I had. Instead of being a beauty queen, I was an advocate and a spokesperson. I knew what my mission was.”

Since interviews with the judges account for a large portion of the competition, Lufriu’s had an advantage. She spoke from the heart about her family’s struggle with retinitis pigmentosa, a disease that affects her sister, herself and her two youngest children, and which can gradually lead to blindness. She also felt her age gave her an advantage because of the experience and ease that comes with it. At 42, she was the second oldest woman to be crowned Mrs. America and she is the oldest to be given the title of Mrs. World.

“Being a mature 42-year-old is impressive and I think it was a factor,” she said. “It is easier to be relaxed and take things in stride. It’s good to know you don’t have to be a young chickadee to win.”

The win means that Lufriu is traveling and speaking even more than she was as Mrs. America. She recently returned from a trip to Hong Kong and China and has other national and international trips planned for the months ahead. Nevertheless, she continues to manage the family business, a granite and marble fabrication business where her husband, George, is the president. The business specializes in custom, natural-stone fabrication projects like pools, bathrooms, fireplaces and countertops.

She assumes the publicity surrounding her win as Mrs. World has drawn some attention to the business, but she doesn’t use her title as an influence in that arena.

“I’d rather let our product speak for itself,” she said, adding that only one of her customers has challenged her on her ability to handle the projects at Lufriu Marble, as well as her responsibilities as Mrs. World. “He said he wasn’t sure I would have enough time to focus on his job, with all of my other responsibilities as Mrs. World. I told him not to underestimate me and showed him he was wrong.”

Of course, increased publicity is exactly what she was hoping the title would bring when it comes to her role as the national spokesperson for the Foundation Fighting Blindness. And she has not been disappointed. There have been public service announcements in Woman’s Day, Reader’s Digest and other national magazines, interviews on television shows and opportunities to speak at many national events. Her goals are to raise awareness and funds for retinal degenerative eye diseases and to eventually find a cure for retinitis pigmentosa.

“I used to be afraid of public speaking, so it’s interesting that I’ve ended up doing this,” she said. “But it comes more easily to me now. I just come across as a mom and tell my story. It’s actually therapy for me and helps heal my heart. It’s a battle against time but a lot of strides in the research keep me very hopeful for a cure.”

For more information on Mrs. Lufriu’s title win or her cause, see www.mrsworld.com and www.blindness.org.