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Capt. Rosanna Vasquez-Brown of Harker Heights (left, with daughter Elisa) was nominated for “America’s Favorite Mom,” a contest by NBC and Teleflora. She’s in the military category. Courtesy photo

Capt. Rosanna Vasquez-Brown is a mom just like any other.

She’s hardworking, loving and giving and never thinks twice about the sacrifices she’s had to make. And tomorrow she will get what every mom deserves - a little bit of limelight.

Mrs. Vasquez-Brown, 38, of Harker Heights is one of the 15 semi-finalists selected from more than 15,000 online nominations from Florida to Wyoming in the “America’s Favorite Mom” contest sponsored by NBC and Teleflora.

She is on deployment to Iraq as a physician’s assistant for a battalion of 560 soldiers while her husband Mark and daughter Elisa await her return.

“When I got my first Iraq deployment date, I immediately brought out the calendar and showed Elisa the 91 days I had left at home, because we were going to make that time count!” Mrs. Vasquez-Brown said on the competition’s official Web site.

“When I came home from work, we’d turn on the radio, dance around and have a good laugh. Whenever Elisa wanted to play with me, I stopped what I was doing; the dishes could wait,” she added.

While on deployment Mrs. Vasquez-Brown keeps a piece of her family with her at all times.

“I took family photos to keep with me in Iraq,” she said. “And Elisa gave me her teddy bear, Foo Foo, who sat on my bed the whole year I was away.”

Mrs. Vasquez-Brown will be featured along with other military moms on Monday on the “Today” show on NBC. The other mom categories: working moms, single moms, “non-mom” moms and “chairman of everything” moms will be featured the rest of the week.

The five mothers with the greatest percentage of votes will take part in “Teleflora presents America’s Favorite Mom” on NBC hosted by Donny and Marie Osmond on May 11 at 8 p.m.

“Moms all over can relate to the hard work and sacrifices that go into raising a family, and we want to tell their stories through this television tribute to moms,” said Doug Vaughan, senior vice president, special programs and alternative development for NBC Entertainment in a press release. “Through uplifting stories and great performances, this special is bound to tug at your heart strings.”

--rrenfrow@temple-telegram.com