Eastern grad crowned festival queen

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By Caitlin VanOverberghe | Daily Reporter

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GREENFIELD — Growing up, attending the annual Riley Festival was one of Gracie Johnson’s favorite things to do, she said.

Each year as she worked her way through the booths and displays set up in the heart of the city, she basked in the sense of community that always hung in the air during the four-day celebration, as if the feeling were embedded on the early October breeze.

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Now, she’s excited to be at the forefront of that togetherness, she said.

Johnson, 18, was named the 2018 Riley Festival queen at the annual pageant, beating out seven other contestants to get the crown.

She and her court will now serve as ambassadors of the four-day event conducted in downtown Greenfield, which this year will take place Oct. 4 to 7.

The pageant serves as a kickoff to the annual festivities.

The queen and her court hand out ribbons and make appearances at various events throughout the festival. One of the most notable events is the Parade of Flowers, during which the queen and court will accept bouquets from hundreds of schoolchildren. After the festival, the queen goes on to represent Hancock County at a state competition later in the year.

Johnson, a Hancock County native and the daughter of Scott and Traci Johnson, is a freshman at Purdue University, having graduated from Eastern Hancock High School last spring.

She will share her royal responsibilities with the 2018 princess and first runner-up Cassondra Jones. Her court includes Sarah Raven, Delanie Melton and Lydia McIntire, who was also crowned Miss Congeniality.

Jones was given special recognition Sunday for having the best personal-choice outfit. In this pageant tradition, each contestant is given the chance to strut across the stage in an outfit they believe best represents their passions or hopes for the future.

Jones’ sparkling white tutu and ballet slippers, coupled with an explanation about her love of dance and her desire to open a dance studio one day, earned her a cash prize from pageant sponsor Keihin IPT Manufacturing.

The festival’s Little Miss and Little Mister Riley were also crowned during Sunday’s event. Youngsters Braylynn Doerflein and Grayson Plunkett will join the queen and her court at various events throughout the festival, including on the royal float in the annual parade.

As the pageant’s winner was announced and Johnson’s name echoed through the auditorium at Greenfield-Central High School, a wide grin spread across her face.

She is no stranger to sparkling crowns. She was a member of the 2017 and 2018 Hancock County 4-H Fair queen’s court, having been named the princess and runner-up in the latter.

But having the Riley Festival queen’s crown is special, she said. She’s most excited for the memories she’ll make in her year as the queen, especially the interactions she’ll have with the festival’s youngest visitors.

Those stolen moments, the smiles and quick conversations with an excited child, aren’t ones people might not see. But she knows the kids will certainly remember them, making them all the more special, she said.

The 2017 Riley Festival Queen Chadsey Matlock, who is also a graduate of Eastern Hancock High School and now a student at Purdue University, handed over her crown to Johnson after embracing her in a tight hug.

Matlock told the crowd that it was her dream to be the Riley Festival Queen; and while she’s sad to see this chapter of her life close, she’s so excited for the opportunity this year’s court has ahead of it, she said while welcoming the contestants into the pageant’s “sisterhood of strong and successful women.”

“You are in for an amazing year,” Matlock said.