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Highlights Of The Pageant

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By DAVE NICHOLSON and RAY REYES, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 9, 2008

Here are some highlights and notes from the Feb. 2 Florida Strawberry Festival queen's pageant:

•Emcees were Lions Club President Michael Cameron and Martha Lastinger Henderson. Cameron works at the Edward Jones investment firm; he and his wife have an 8-year-old son. He lives in Plant City. Henderson works for Proctor & Gamble and is married with two teenage sons. She lives in Tampa. Henderson was the strawberry festival queen in 1976.

•Kristen Elise Smith became the first brunette to wear the queen's crown since Katie Sharer in 2004. The 2005 queen, Ashley Watkins, is a blond, as is 2006 queen Hannah Hodge and 2007 queen Summer Pippin.

•A seat at the pageant was a hot ticket. All 1,100 seats in Tomlin Middle School auditorium were filled, said Bob Fulks, a longtime Lions Club member. Typically the pageant sells out the night before the pageant but this year a few tickets were available at the door. The club founded and sponsors the pageant. The event is the biggest fundraiser for the club, which provides eyeglasses for people who can't afford them, among other sight-related charitable work.

•This pageant was dedicated to the memory of the first queen, Charlotte Rosenberg, a violin-playing Plant City High School cheerleader who won as a 16-year-old in March 1930. Rosenberg died Oct. 17. Rosenberg last attended the pageant about seven years ago, pageant coordinator Stephanie Shuff said.

•The candidates were varied in their interests, according to bios they submitted for the pageant. Their hobbies ranged from playing flag football to riding rail buggies to surfing to raising livestock. They had a compassionate side; several volunteer to help wounded veterans or are active in their churches, particularly youth ministries. At least nine were Baptist, including members of First Baptist Church of Plant City, First Baptist of Brandon, Bethany Baptist and Welcome Baptist.

•At least three city officials were there, including Mayor Rick Lott. City commissioners Bill Dodson and Dan Raulerson had a personal interest in the pageant: Dodson's wife, Silvia Azorin Dodson, was the festival queen in 1968 and Raulerson's daughter, Jaclyn, was in the pageant and was named a member of the queen's court.

•The candidates were assigned numbers, which they wore on their arms for easy identification. One number was conspicuously absent: 13. The omission had nothing to do with superstition. The contestant who would have worn that number dropped out before the pageant, said Jodi Smith, Lions Club member and spokeswoman for the event.

•Five young women were semifinalists but didn't advance: Jordan Alyssa Andreu, Lauren Briann Der, Katie LeeAnn Maxwell, Megan Danielle Prevatt and KeeLee Danielle Tomlinson. There are 10 semifinalists, and the queen, first maid and three court members are selected from that field based on impromptu question, overall look and stage presentation. This year's impromptu question was where a contestant would take a visitor to Plant City and why. Their answers included the downtown historic district and Parkesdale Farm Market, famous for its strawberry goodies including shortcake. Prevatt said she would take a visitor to her home, explaining that her dad and mom Chris and Kim Prevatt are terrific cooks and gracious hosts who represent well the image of small town Plant City.

•Entertainment for the evening included recorded music from some of the headline acts that will appear in this year's festival, a performance by students at Jackie's Dance Theatre and Gym and solos by Bianca Swilley, a 13-year-old Turkey Creek Middle School student. Six children played roles in the pageant: heralds Drew Knotts and Carissa Retter; flower girls Rileigh Robert and Roby Runkles; and crown bearer Nicholas Retter.

•Michael and Heather Watkins watched as their middle daughter, Allie, made her final appearance as 2007 first maid. Their eldest daughter, Ashley, was festival queen in 2005. They hope to return for the 2010 pageant when youngest daughter Victoria, a 14-year-old Plant City High School freshman, is old enough to compete. The pageant is for unmarried Plant City area women ages 16-20.

•Former queens are recognized at each pageant. This year, there were 14 there, including three from the 1950s. There have been 73 queens crowned in the pageant's history.

•The queen, first maid and court members were chosen by five judges, all from out of town, including several with pageant experience. Two of the judges were from Clermont and the others were from Dade City, Naples and Odessa.

•In a farewell video, outgoing queen Summer Pippin said she appreciated her family's and friends' support and prayers during her reign, and she asked for the "Lord's blessing" on her successor. Shortly after Kristen Elise Smith was crowned, Pippin said she was going to miss her title but it was time to move on. Her advice for the new queen: Work hard. Pippin, 18, plans to enter Hillsborough Community College in the fall. She wants to be a dental hygienist and is mulling modeling offers. She also plans to try out for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers cheerleading squad. Kayla Drawdy, who was queen in 1999, was a Bucs cheerleader.

•The queen and her court made one of their first official public appearances Tuesday at the Lions Club meeting at the Red Rose Inn and Suites' dining room. That led to a chance encounter with the last surviving members of Turkey Creek High School's class of 1938, who were meeting there for lunch.

After the meal, something dazzling caught the eye of 88-year-old James Brownlee, one of the members of the class.

"Hey, queen," Brownlee said, waving at Smith. "Hey, queen."

Smith walked over, and when she was told it was the 70-year reunion of the class of '38, she introduced herself and chatted with everyone around the graduates' table.

Smith then posed for a photograph with another of the class of '38 graduates, Clark Butler of Gainesville.

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