Festival queen's pageant highlights

Here's some of the highlights of the Feb. 5 Florida Strawberry Festival queen pageant:

The pageant, which is always well attended, was a sellout. "There are no empty seats. None," said Bob Fulks, head usher for the Plant City Lions Club, which sponsors the pageant. There were about 200 tickets available for sale right before the pageant but they were purchased by the 6 p.m. start. A long line wrapped around the festival's expo hall as people waited in rainy weather to get into the pageant.

Strawberry Festival Association President Mike Sparkman drew cheers when he announced that the pageant was moving to a new venue next year. The festival plans to move the pageant to the 30,000-square-foot Evelyn & Batista Madonia Sr. Agriculture Show Arena, which will be constructed in the northwest part of the festival grounds. Sparkman said two walls in the building will have collapsible bleachers, similar to the seating found in basketball arenas. In all, the building will seat about 3,500, about triple the seating of the expo hall.

The emcees for the pageant were Lions Club President Kelleigh Klein, who is executive director of the United Food Bank of Plant City, and Katie Sharer Butson, who was 2004 festival queen. Klein is the mother of five sons, is active in the Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce and an avid runner. Butson is married to Daniel Butson, a Baptist youth pastor who is earning his master's degree at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary near Raleigh, N.C. She works as a makeup artist, hairstylist, model and wardrobe stylist. She was recently featured in Cut and Dry trade magazine and did hairstyling for the cover of Four Points, the Miss America pageant magazine. She will appear in a catalog for Vera Bradley, which makes handbags, wallets and other accessories, and travels with Deb Knoske Photography, which does a lot of pageant and fashion photography.

The pageant's program included added features this year, including tidbits about the festival and profiles of former queens, including the first queen, Charlotte Rosenberg, who was crowned in 1930, and Barbara Alley Bowden, who in 1948 became the first queen crowned since the pageant was suspended in 1942 for World War II and its aftermath.

The 30 contestants were asked who they consider their role models, and as usual, family members dominated the answers: nine considered their mothers or grandmothers their role models, and six answered their fathers or grandfathers. Other answers included former Miami Dolphins quarterback and charity foundation founder Dan Marino; former Florida Gator and current Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow; former Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin and entertainment and theme park founder Walt Disney.

The pageant eliminated its swimsuit competition starting in 2009 and replaced it with casual wear. This year's competitors were about evenly divided between dresses or skirts and slacks or jeans for that portion of the competition. A few wore clothing in strawberry red or adorned with images of strawberries, but quite a few opted for other colors, including black and purple. The swimwear competition was abandoned after complaints that some contestants were showing too much skin, although Lions Club officials say they made the switch for other reasons.

Each contestant has to give a commercial for her business sponsor. Tori Shepherd sang a tune along the lines of "When You Wish Upon a Star," to go with her sponsor, Wish Farms, and Riley Andreu came up with a ditty about Ford cars and pickups for sponsor Jarrett-Scott Ford. Businesses that sponsored contestants included Timbers at Chama, a resort and hunting preserve in New Mexico's Rocky Mountains.

Durant and Plant City high school students and graduates typically dominate the field of contestants, and this year was no exception. For the first time, Strawberry Crest High, which opened in 2009, had its first contenders: Ashley McMath and Kayla Stepp. The pageant is open to women 16 to 20 who live in the Plant City area.

Five contestants made the top 10 but didn't place in the court: Amber Carapezza, Emily Funk, Regan Knotts, Erica Kelley and Calli Jo Parker.

Ashlie Scruggs, a Plant City High graduate who is pursing a dental assisting degree at Remington College, was named Miss Congeniality by her fellow contestants. She receives a $250 scholarship from the Lions Club Auxiliary.

Brunettes seem to be on a bit of a roll; they have won the crown three of the last four years.

This is only the second time in the history of the pageant that sisters have served as queen. Lauren and Erica Der, who served in 2009 and 2003, respectively, were the first sisters to wear the crown. A mother and daughter have served: Ruth Shuman Brown won in 1954 and her daughter Rebecca "Beckie" Brown Klein won in 1987.

The pageant always honors former queens in the audience, and this year 19 former queens took a turn on the stage. Ruby Jean Redman, who served in 1953, was the earliest queen there. 2008 Queen Kristen Smith held up an engagement ring and said she was soon to have a new last name - Epps.

The five judges included Walt Belcher, longtime TV critic for The Tampa Tribune. Belcher was selected as an amateur judge; the others, who included a Duval County teacher and a Clermont funeral director, had pageant judging experience.

Children played roles in the pageant: Sierra Urra and Leigh Ann Miller were heralds; Connor Butler and David Miller were train bearers; Ashley Dunn and Sanabelle Carter were flower girls; and Robert Davenport was crown bearer.

In her farewell address, 2010 Queen Natalie Burgin thanked her "Heavenly Father," her parents, siblings and the community for their support over the last year. "I feel I have been blessed with new sisters," she said of First Maid TyLynn Eben and court members Dayla Dementry, Rachel Hallman and Ashlyn Robinson. The evening included slides of Burgin and her court on the festival midway and with such entertainers as Lynyrd Skynyrd, Debbie Reynolds and Josh Turner. Then the queen and court took the stage one last time. A lot of tears were shed as they hugged as their reigns came to an end. Emcee Kelleigh Klein thanked the queen and court for being "beautiful inside and out" and representing the community so well.

The first maid, Victoria Garren, was mistakenly crowned queen briefly. Garren was given the crown, queen's sash and a hug by 2010 Queen Natalie Burgin before emcee Kelleigh Klein announced that a mistake had been made and that Victoria Watkins was the winner. Klein told the audience that there was a mix-up due to the fact that both Garren and Watkins had the same first name, and the wrong Victoria was crowned.

The queen and court received many gifts, including savings bonds, scholarships, jewelry and more from local businesses. Sister's & Company, Hopewell Funeral Home and Crawford Hill Interiors were providing a trip to New York City for the queen and court to pick out evening gowns in the Big Apple's fashion district.