PAGEANT CHANGES: 4-H queen contest will go on, but with adjustments

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Jenna Smith, the 2019 Hancock County 4-H fair queen, says the 13 contestants in this year's altered pageant still will have a fulfilling experience. File photo

HANCOCK COUNTY — For organizers and participants in the Hancock County 4-H Fair Queen Pageant, the show must go on.

The show will occur in a very different form this year, however. Like all aspects of the Hancock County 4-H Fair, now scheduled for July 10-17, the pageant has been impacted by COVID-19 and requirements from Purdue University Extension intended to make in-person events safer. Competitors will participate in a socially distanced pageant with a limited number of guests on July 7.

They won’t get the chance to make all their traditional appearances at the fair: With the exception of 4-H competitions, all events have been canceled, and the fair will be closed to the public.

“This fair week, as far as the girls’ involvement goes, is not going to be the same,” said Ashley Schenck, a member of the fair’s pageant committee.

The Indiana State Fair Commission announced Thursday, June 4, that all fair queens crowned at county pageants in either 2020 or 2021 will be eligible to compete for Indiana State Fair Queen in the next competition, slated for early 2022.

Michelle Hasty, the chair of the county queen pageant, said organizers offered the girls who signed up the chance to withdraw after changes were made, in case they were no longer interested in the revised format.

“We know this isn’t exactly what they thought they were signing up for,” she said.

However, the majority of the young women chose to stick with it. The pageant is slated to have 13 participants — a little smaller group than in recent years, Hasty said, but still a good group. All of this year’s winners (a queen, a princess, three court members and Miss Congeniality) will be eligible to compete again next year.

At this year’s pageant, contestants will participate in interviews with judges on the same day as the pageant itself. Schenck said girls will wear a T-shirt provided by the pageant and jeans during their interviews rather than, as they usually do, professional attire — an attempt to cut down on the cost of clothing when some families may be experiencing financial hardship.

Then, they’ll appear onstage in formal wear while a video introduction of each contestant plays. During the event, the contestants and judges will be expected to maintain social distancing by staying at least 6 feet apart.

Many of the events leading up to the pageant that are traditionally held in person will instead take place digitally, over videoconferencing software. Those will include mock interviews, makeup consultations and a chance to get advice from previous Hancock County queens.

Organizers will also hold a “Cookies and Canvas” night, delivering art supplies and treats to each contestant’s home they can enjoy while video-chatting as a group bonding experience.

While each contestant can only bring two family members as guests, pageant organizers are working with NineStar Connect — the pageant’s sole sponsor — to livestream the event for viewers at home.

“We’re still allowing everyone the opportunity to watch,” Schenck said. “We know it’s not quite the same, but we’re trying to comply with Purdue Extension’s requirements.”

In addition to those changes, the winner of the fair queen title will not immediately go on to compete at the state level. The Indiana State Fair has been canceled this year, along with the next pageant, originally scheduled for January 2021. Current Indiana State Fair Queen Claudia Duncan, crowned in January 2020, will continue her reign for another year.

Hasty said she has talked with organizers from other counties who are structuring their 2020 pageants in similar ways. She said the 2020 pageant will still have all the elements that make it an important learning experience for girls.

“It’s not a beauty pageant. They’re learning life skills, too,” she said.

Some things will not be feasible, however. The pageant organizers won’t be able to take group photos or hand ribbons directly to winners. Hasty said they hope to hold another event once more distancing recommendations have been lifted that would allow for group photos and inviting more family members to celebrate the contestants.

When the winner is crowned, her year as fair queen will not look like the one enjoyed by Jenna Smith, last year’s winner.

This year, Smith will be fulfilling many of the functions a previous queen serves at the pageant, including giving advice to this year’s competitors and helping them get ready the night of the event — just from a safe distance.

She said she thinks the different format will still allow the competitors to benefit from a chance to practice interviewing and public speaking, skills that will be useful in college and the workplace, while having some fun along the way.

“It’ll still be the same pageant and the same process, and the girls are really excited,” Smith said.

Her advice to the contestants, Smith said, is the same as what it would be in a typical pageant year.

“Just be yourself. That’s really all that matters,” she said.

Ashley Swango is competing in the queen pageant for the second time this year. Many of the things she was looking forward to this summer have been called off because of COVID-19. She also won’t have the in-person pageant experience she enjoyed last year, when she became good friends with many of her fellow contestants.

“We’ll still have the pageant, but it’s kind of sad,” Swango said.

Swango said she thinks participating in the pageant will be a positive experience and a good chance to spend time with friends, even in the less-than-ideal circumstances.

Participant Rachel Bates will also be competing for the second time and said she thinks most of the benefits of the queen pageant will still apply, even in a socially distanced competition.

“Getting to speak in front of people is one of the biggest things that 4-H has done for me,” Bates said.