Philadelphia Daily News from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania • Page 3

By REGINA MEDINA medinarphillynews.com 215-854-5985 IT'S A LITTLE surprising to hear former Fox 29 anchor Dawn Stensland describe herself as feeling "empowered" these days. In the last 18 months, she lost her TV anchor job, suffered a miscarriage and watched as a sexually charged public scandal humiliated her TV anchor husband Larry Mendte and led to his firing, conviction and house arrest. "We all have our cross to bear. No matter what a person is going through," she says, as her voice breaks and she wipes tears away. "For women, put on your best game face, put on your best girdle and you just gotta go." What has provided the Chicago native with that strength to go on? Face-book.

And Twitter. She says she's received more than 3,000 messages through e-mail, Face-book, texts and Twitter from family, friends and viewers. Many of those who contacted her and people she sees on the street ask what they can do to get her back on the air. "It's so empowering to feel that kind of love and support from people," the 45-year-old Stensland said recently, as she enjoyed a coconut-shrimp appetizer plate at the Chestnut Grill on Ger-mantown Avenue. (It's her favorite indulgence).

"A lot of the messages going back over the past year until now with me losing my job are probably from people who are in their own struggle." They don't even know the half of what Stensland has endured. In addition to her publicized woes, Stensland's 67-year-old mother Rosemary is suffering from a progressive mmm iiiI i' Continued on Next Page Dawn Stensland stands firm in eye of the storm HI mm MONDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2009 PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS PAGE 3.