The winner will spend 14 hour days handing out ribbons to 4-H’ers and battling the hot sun as they greet fairgoers.
The young woman named the 2018 Johnson County 4-H and Agricultural Fair Queen will taste sweet dishes at the baking contest, watch cars smash into each other at the demolition derby and will be expected to get out into the community that she serves throughout the year.
The new fair queen will be named Sunday and judges and community members will be looking to one of the 20 contestants to show that they know about the Johnson County as a community and can represent the fair to both 4-H’ers and residents who attend the fair or want to know more about the fair. The queen or a member of her court are typically at every event at the fair.
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“The queen and the court are ambassadors of the fair,” Becky Dixon, fair queen superintendent, said.
While the young woman crowned the queen is seen at parades and other events throughout the year, organizers of the fair queen event want to add more events that will allow the queen and her court to get out into the community more during the entire year, Dixon said.
“It is important to have the young people out in the community,” Dixon said.
Judges are looking for the candidate who knows about Johnson County, has the ability to speak well and has a personality that can greet fairgoers and the public, Dixon said.
An interview with the judges before Sunday’s pageant comprises half of her score.
Professional wear and formal wear will each make up 20 percent of her score. Her answer to an interview question during the pageant will make up the rest of her score.
Mostly, she will need to have stamina.
Her reign will start the second she is crowned. She will take a victory walk around the pageant stage and immediately begin representing the county.
The next morning, her work can get intense.
Fourteen-hour days in the hot sun and in the livestock barns are normal, Caitlin Booe, the 2017 Johnson County Fair Queen.
“It is going to be an unforgettable week,” she said.
Most days are spent inside the livestock barns handing out ribbons to 4-Hers. The fair queen and her court will see plenty of other sides of the fair, too.
Their days are tightly scheduled and they will be at nearly every organized event the fair offers. Most days, the challenge is maintaining appearances and energy on hot days that can climb into the 90s, Booe said.
“The hardest part would be these 15-hour days and you are all dressed up,” she said.
Being the fair queen is a huge responsibility, Booe said.
She remembers being a little girl at the fair and looking up to the fair queen.
The winner of Sunday’s pageant will have to be the role model for the little girls.
“It was really important to me as a kid to see her,” she said.
And it is the queen’s job to help educate the community about the event, Booe said.
“It is important to remember that fair queen is not the queen for a week,” she said. “It is a community thing, you are trying to get the community involved.”
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Here are the 20 women vying to be the 2018 Johnson County Fair Queen:
Chloe Barnes, Franklin Community High School, daughter of Charley and Carma Barnes.
Abby Booe, Ball State University, daughter of Scott and Becky Booe.
Hartlee Chadwell, IUPUC, daughter of Terry and Roxane Chadwell.
McKayla Cox-Umbarger, Franklin Community High School, daughter of Tonya and Brad Umbarger.
Megan Hines, Purdue University, daughter of David and Sheila Hines.
Morgan Hogue, Purdue University, daughter of Tim and Stacey Hogue.
Erin Jones, Ball State University, daughter of Ronald and Laura Jones.
Nikita Klotzsche, Art Institute of Indianapolis, daughter of Brad and Kari Klotzsche.
Kailee Lawson, Indiana University, daughter of Jamie Suchotzky and Joe Lawson.
Madeline Lett, IUPUI, daughter of Heather Lett and Chad Wright.
McKenzie McCoy, Purdue University, daughter of Duane and Nola McCoy.
Jessica McKinley, University of Southern Indiana, daughter of Brenda and Douglas McKinley.
Payton Perry, Indiana State University, daughter of Billie Gaskins and Deborah Christian.
Grace Reynolds, Purdue University, daughter of Mike Reynolds and Suzanna Purvis.
Kierstin Snyder, Franklin Community High School, daughter of Jeremy and Annette Snyder.
Brooke Stone, Ivy Tech Franklin, daughter of Jim and Angie Stone.
Kacey Strouse, Center Grove High School, daughter of Mike and Penny Strouse.
Bailey Wood, IUPUI, daughter of Jessica Lawson and Mike Wood.
Anna-Kate Woods, Aveda Fredericks Institute, daughter of Andrew and Dee Boice Woods.
Kendal Zanzalari, IUPUI, daughter of Ken and Susan Zanzalari.
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What: 2018 Fair Queen Contest
When: 7 p.m. Sunday
Where: Indoor arena at the Johnson County fairgrounds
Cost: Free
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