The summer is flying by
How is it already July?
I feel like just yesterday I was typing out a blog and now it is more than an entire month later! I have a lot of ground to cover in this blog, so I will try to cover everything as succinctly as I can.
May 11: Graduation
On May 11, 2013, I graduated from the University of Illinois, College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences. It was a bittersweet day for me, as I said goodbye to three years of hard work and wonderful memories. I turned a chapter in my life, and am now an “adult,” I guess. I’m 21 years old, have a college degree, and will be starting a full-time job this fall, so I suppose that qualifies me as an adult, even though I still feel like a kid. My family and closest friends from home came down to help me celebrate, and I also enjoyed the day with many of my friends from school. After graduation, I had a few weeks at home, in which I spent my time helping around the house and farm, and landscaping. I spearheaded the landscaping project at my house, and am still working on it whenever I am home.
June 1: Lovington Pageant
On June 1, I had the opportunity to judge the Jr. Miss and Miss Lovington Pageants. I had a great time judging with my co-judges Susan Mellendorf and George Castles. I learned a lot from them, too. All of the contestants did a great job, and it was fun being on the opposite side of the pageant process. We had a wonderful supper at Pauly’s BBQ, but I wore my white suit, so I had to be wrapped in paper towels, to avoid any close calls. The paper towel dress was well worth it, because you can’t beat pulled pork!
June 10: Getting the Car
On June 10, I picked up my state car for the summer—a 2010 Chevy Malibu. I met Cathy and Amy Bliefnick at the State Fair Office with my parents and picked up the car. It was another one of those moments where I just couldn’t believe that I was the state queen.
After picking up my car, my parents and I met with Cathy to discuss my summer schedule. So many dates, so many pageants and appearances, and so much excitement! I am just so, so excited about this summer!
Cathy and I did a little shopping at the mall in Springfield before heading to Rushville to my “homeaway-from-home” for the summer.
June 11: My First Pageant Appearance—Macon
On June 11, Cathy and I set out for my first pageant appearance—Macon. I had a great time meeting all of the contestants and supper with the judges was very good, too! It felt good to be back on stage, as I addressed the audience and encouraged them to attend the state fairs. It was wonderful to see so many of my fellow county fair queens, too!
June 14: River Bandits’ Pitch
June 14, was Agriculture Night at Modern Woodman Park in Davenport, Iowa, which is the home of the Quad Cities’ minor league baseball team, the River Bandits. My friends from the Rock Island County Farm Bureau requested that I throw the first pitch of the evening, as a representation of Illinois Farm Bureau. I actually threw about the fifth or sixth “first pitch” of the evening, but I would like to think that I did the best job. I made it to the plate and the catcher caught it!! I was thrilled because let’s just say that coordination and athleticism are not strengths of mine by any means. It was a lovely evening and awesome to see so many people there in support of agriculture.
June 18: Henry County Fair Queen Pageant
On June 18, I attended the Henry County Fair Queen Pageant. All of the contestants did a wonderful job and it was great to attend a pageant that was in my “neck of the woods” in Northwestern Illinois. I had fun spending time with my chaperone Michelle, too. 
June 19: Sangamon County Fair Queen Pageant
It was a quick turnaround for me, as I left the following morning for Cathy’s, so we could attend the Sangamon Pageant together. Sangamon put on a wonderful pageant, and I was honored to be there.
June 20: Milan Rotary and Henry County Fair Livestock Auction
I left Cathy’s Thursday morning and headed straight to Milan, where I spoke to the Milan Rotary, which is in Rock Island County. My uncle is a member, so it was fun to meet many of his fellow Rotarians.
They had lots of questions about pageants and my responsibilities, and I really enjoyed filling them in on the ins and outs of the County Fair Pageant System. I’m also hoping that I inspired some of them to encourage the young women they know to enroll in pageants.
That evening, I was recognized at the Henry County Fair Livestock Auction for being Miss Illinois County Fair. After showing livestock and general projects at that fair for 10 years, it was a true honor to be recognized by the county. It was also fun to be back in the show ring again.
June 21: Farm Credit Scholarship Luncheon
Friday took me to Normal, Illinois, where I was the keynote speaker for the Farm Credit Scholarship
Luncheon. Three years ago, I received Farm Credit’s first Presidential Scholarship, so I gave my presentation on everything I have done during the past three years including my academic history, study abroad trips, experiential learning, student organizations, jobs, and internships. My Power Point presentation ended up lasting about 30 minutes, but the time just flew for me. I was back in my element of school, and had an absolute blast!
June 22: Henry County Fair Farm Bureau Young Leaders Pedal Tractor Pull
For three years, I have emceed the Pedal Tractor Pull at the Henry County Fair, and this year I went as Miss Illinois County Fair. I was a fierce pedal pull competitor back in my day, and always enjoy coming back to watch the kids battle it out. New this year was an adult pull, but unfortunately I was not dressed for the occasion. Next year I will certainly compete. I’m already gearing up for it now.
June 24: Jasper County Fair Queen Pageant
On June 24, Mom and I headed down to Jasper County for their pageant. It was a gorgeous day for a nearly five-hour drive. Due to the weather, the pageant was moved indoors, but it turned out to be a nice venue, and I could even wear my hair down, since it was inside. Mom and I spent the night at Darrell and Linda Fisher’s home. I was shocked to see that the corn down there is tasseling!! And I loved seeing wheat fields. There isn’t much wheat growing up here, so traveling the state and seeing the differences in agriculture has been really cool.
June 25: Rock Island County Fair Queen Pageant
Mom and I had to wake up around 4 on Tuesday morning to make it to Rock Island County in time for my pageant obligations. Darrell still insisted on making us a big breakfast, so we ate omelets, ham, bacon, hash browns, fruit, strawberry milk, and certainly did not go hungry. A big thank you to the Fishers for getting up that early with us and making sure we were well-fed before we hit the road.
I made it back in time for lunch with the judges, and then was off to the fair grounds to assist with Celebrity Showmanship in the barns. Watching local celebrities try to show hogs was entertaining to say the least. And then it was off to the pageants. I made it to the Little Miss pageant just in time for coronation. Then it was time for the Jr. Miss and Miss Pageants. The hours flew by and before I knew it, I was crowning our first Jr. Miss and the new Miss Rock Island County Fair 2013!
I am so excited for our 2013 queens: Little Miss Alyssa Williams, Jr. Miss Abbey Gustaf, and Miss Rock Island County Fair Taylor Smith! I know they will all be excellent representatives of the county and am excited for all of the opportunities they will have around the county this year.June 25 was definitely a whirlwind for me, but it was a great day. I am looking forward to many more whirlwind days this summer.
June 26 and June 27: Rock Island County Fair Talent Show
On June 26 and 27, I was asked to judge the Jr. and Sr. Talent Shows at the fair. Our county has some outstanding talent, and I was happy to be part of the judging process. Later on both of those evenings I also had the chance to be introduced and address the grandstand crowd. It sure was nice to be back at the county with so many familiar faces.
June 29: Champaign County Fair Queen Pageant
On Saturday, I met Ashley at my school apartment in Urbana and we headed to Rantoul High School for the Champaign County Fair Queen Pageant. It was a lovely venue and a great day to have a pageant indoors. When we were at lunch it poured and poured, so we were all thankful that the pageant was indoors and we wouldn’t have to worry about our hair-dos being messed up.
When the pageant’s emcee asked me what my favorite fair food was, I admitted that I don’t like any fair food. The crowd got a kick out of that. It’s true. Fair food isn’t my favorite, so when I visit fairs, my food choice is usually a pork burger or a pork chop sandwich. I’m all about supporting the pork industry!
It’s July!
And now it’s July! I can hardly believe how quickly the time has passed. Attending the pageants has been so much fun and I love meeting all of the girls and getting to spend time with so many wonderful state crew members. I still find myself saying, “Oh wow. I still can’t believe this is real. I am the state queen!”
It truly is an honor to serve as Miss Illinois County Fair this year, and I am looking forward to what the remainder of the summer and the year holds.
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