ALLENTOWN, PA - She’s beauty and she’s grace, but most importantly, she’s got an unmatched enthusiasm for the Great Allentown fair.
“What they look for mostly is leadership, a person who can go out in public and speak with someone,” explains Fair Queen Coordinator Cheryl Urmy, “have a knowledge of agriculture so they can answer some questions if they have some and also if they’re a well-rounded young lady.”
The annual fair on Tuesday night crowned its 2019 Queen; someone who can communicate their love for the fair, local farming and the agricultural industry. And Fair Queen Coordinator, Cheryl Urmy, had her sights on a special young lady who will be able to promote the fair until this time next year and go on to compete at the Pennsylvania State Fair in Hershey.
“They do all things--we judge, they say hi, mostly greeting our fairgoers, participating in contests and all kinds of things that will go on during the fair week, says Urmy, “Then after that we’re in parades--the Allentown Parade, the St. Paddy’s Day Parade, Community Days, we visit schools, we bring our mechanical cow that we bring for little farm hands.”
And while this year’s queen will become just one in a long history of queens, many things have changed over the course of 167 years of the fair; and so have the young women and their reasons for competing...
17-year-old Carrie Spangler of Allentown says, “I just have a passion for seeing it continue to succeed and since I was a little child I’ve dreamt of being the Allentown Fair Queen.” While 20-year-old Ayla Blatt explains, “I do want to go on and further my education however there is a price tag associated with that so definitely the Allentown Fair Queen program has helped me be able to afford college financially as well.”
For Allentown natives like 17-year-old Emily Lamana, it’s about giving Allentown, and its residents, the praise and recognition they deserve.
“No matter what, you’re still a human being and you’re still the perfect you. And I honestly just want to get out of it that people look at people like me that have disabilities, that have a hard life and they look and are like maybe they’re not so bad after all, maybe they are just like me--just a little bit different. But different is okay,” Lamana explains, “That’s all I ever wanted anyone to understand. It’s not about looks, and it's not about your talents, it's about who you are and what you can accomplish with anything you want.”
This summer, six young women between 16 and 20 years old have tossed their crowns into the contest to become Allentown’s next Fair Queen. 20-year-old Kutztown resident and Penn State University Junior Ayla Blatt took home the tiara. And while for most, when they hear Fair Queen Contest, they think sashes, high heels and hairspray, for these contestants this “pageant,” is so much more than that.
16-year-old Melissa Fatzinger says, “It’s all about how we interact with each other and how we focus ourselves on our main goal which is winning the crown and deciding how we’re going to use it.”
“When I think of beauty contests I think of that perfect barbie face, thin waist, tall, basically supermodel level and being able to do a talent and almost being like this is me and this is what I can do not this is me,” says 17 year old Samantha Ciommo, “And this contest is way more centered around this is me.”
And for 16-year-old Madison Short of Orefield who competed in beauty pageants as a child, this contest is a game-changer…
“I wanted to do a pageant that wasn’t just based on beauty or what you looked like but is about how you think,” Short says, “and what you want to get done rather than what others think you look like.”
The Allentown Fair Queen was initially modeled after the Miss America Pageant. It featured an evening gown and talent portion and was heavily focused on looks, poise and the traditional image of a beauty queen. That all changed in the late 1980s when the beauty pageant got the boot. Since 2009 when the pageant was revived, the judges have awarded a contestant with the best speech and shifted its focus onto scholarship and service.
“It’s based off an agricultural base, public speaking, a love of our fair and our community,” explains Urmy, “It’s hard to get contestants believe it or not because we are scholarship based, we give a 1500 dollar scholarship every year, it’s hard to get young women who are actually interested in it. That’s why we brought it to the opening ceremonies this year because we want to encourage people to see what we actually do and we also want them to get be at the fair and have a great time.”
Each year, pulling girls to compete isn’t easy. When most hear ‘Fair Queen’ they think beauty pageant and to this generation that’s not as appealing as it once was. But the young women competing this year say they’re happy with the changes made in recent years.
“These girls have worked so hard throughout their lives to dedicate to the fair and to agriculture,” says Spangler, “And its more of a showcase of our knowledge and our love of the fair than of our looks or something like that.”
“I remember when I got my dress and I was asked, if I would need to do a talent or what I would need to do or how I would potentially need to appear,” explains Ciommo, “And now I’m here and people are saying do your best, be you, it’s liberating.”
2018’s Fair Queen, McKenzie Corinn Hagenbuch has spent the last year busy with community outreach, traveling across the state and competing for the State title of Pennsylvania Fair Queen. She wants the 2019 Great Allentown Fair Queen (and all those who follow her) to know….
“Even though I’m just one person I can still make a difference especially in something I am so passionate about which is agriculture and the environment,” explains Hagenbuch, “Just put yourself out there, it’s great to make connections, experiences that you can hold for yourself and maybe even put on a resume to help you out in the future or something like that in the future. So make the most of it. I know that’s what I’ve definitely tried to do all year long.”
And that’s no matter who takes home the crown at the end of the night.
“What they look for mostly is leadership, a person who can go out in public and speak with someone,” explains Fair Queen Coordinator Cheryl Urmy, “have a knowledge of agriculture so they can answer some questions if they have some and also if they’re a well-rounded young lady.”
The annual fair on Tuesday night crowned its 2019 Queen; someone who can communicate their love for the fair, local farming and the agricultural industry. And Fair Queen Coordinator, Cheryl Urmy, had her sights on a special young lady who will be able to promote the fair until this time next year and go on to compete at the Pennsylvania State Fair in Hershey.
“They do all things--we judge, they say hi, mostly greeting our fairgoers, participating in contests and all kinds of things that will go on during the fair week, says Urmy, “Then after that we’re in parades--the Allentown Parade, the St. Paddy’s Day Parade, Community Days, we visit schools, we bring our mechanical cow that we bring for little farm hands.”
And while this year’s queen will become just one in a long history of queens, many things have changed over the course of 167 years of the fair; and so have the young women and their reasons for competing...
17-year-old Carrie Spangler of Allentown says, “I just have a passion for seeing it continue to succeed and since I was a little child I’ve dreamt of being the Allentown Fair Queen.” While 20-year-old Ayla Blatt explains, “I do want to go on and further my education however there is a price tag associated with that so definitely the Allentown Fair Queen program has helped me be able to afford college financially as well.”
For Allentown natives like 17-year-old Emily Lamana, it’s about giving Allentown, and its residents, the praise and recognition they deserve.
“No matter what, you’re still a human being and you’re still the perfect you. And I honestly just want to get out of it that people look at people like me that have disabilities, that have a hard life and they look and are like maybe they’re not so bad after all, maybe they are just like me--just a little bit different. But different is okay,” Lamana explains, “That’s all I ever wanted anyone to understand. It’s not about looks, and it's not about your talents, it's about who you are and what you can accomplish with anything you want.”
This summer, six young women between 16 and 20 years old have tossed their crowns into the contest to become Allentown’s next Fair Queen. 20-year-old Kutztown resident and Penn State University Junior Ayla Blatt took home the tiara. And while for most, when they hear Fair Queen Contest, they think sashes, high heels and hairspray, for these contestants this “pageant,” is so much more than that.
16-year-old Melissa Fatzinger says, “It’s all about how we interact with each other and how we focus ourselves on our main goal which is winning the crown and deciding how we’re going to use it.”
“When I think of beauty contests I think of that perfect barbie face, thin waist, tall, basically supermodel level and being able to do a talent and almost being like this is me and this is what I can do not this is me,” says 17 year old Samantha Ciommo, “And this contest is way more centered around this is me.”
And for 16-year-old Madison Short of Orefield who competed in beauty pageants as a child, this contest is a game-changer…
“I wanted to do a pageant that wasn’t just based on beauty or what you looked like but is about how you think,” Short says, “and what you want to get done rather than what others think you look like.”
The Allentown Fair Queen was initially modeled after the Miss America Pageant. It featured an evening gown and talent portion and was heavily focused on looks, poise and the traditional image of a beauty queen. That all changed in the late 1980s when the beauty pageant got the boot. Since 2009 when the pageant was revived, the judges have awarded a contestant with the best speech and shifted its focus onto scholarship and service.
“It’s based off an agricultural base, public speaking, a love of our fair and our community,” explains Urmy, “It’s hard to get contestants believe it or not because we are scholarship based, we give a 1500 dollar scholarship every year, it’s hard to get young women who are actually interested in it. That’s why we brought it to the opening ceremonies this year because we want to encourage people to see what we actually do and we also want them to get be at the fair and have a great time.”
Each year, pulling girls to compete isn’t easy. When most hear ‘Fair Queen’ they think beauty pageant and to this generation that’s not as appealing as it once was. But the young women competing this year say they’re happy with the changes made in recent years.
“These girls have worked so hard throughout their lives to dedicate to the fair and to agriculture,” says Spangler, “And its more of a showcase of our knowledge and our love of the fair than of our looks or something like that.”
“I remember when I got my dress and I was asked, if I would need to do a talent or what I would need to do or how I would potentially need to appear,” explains Ciommo, “And now I’m here and people are saying do your best, be you, it’s liberating.”
2018’s Fair Queen, McKenzie Corinn Hagenbuch has spent the last year busy with community outreach, traveling across the state and competing for the State title of Pennsylvania Fair Queen. She wants the 2019 Great Allentown Fair Queen (and all those who follow her) to know….
“Even though I’m just one person I can still make a difference especially in something I am so passionate about which is agriculture and the environment,” explains Hagenbuch, “Just put yourself out there, it’s great to make connections, experiences that you can hold for yourself and maybe even put on a resume to help you out in the future or something like that in the future. So make the most of it. I know that’s what I’ve definitely tried to do all year long.”
And that’s no matter who takes home the crown at the end of the night.