Hykes represents Franklin County in state dairy princess contest

STEPHANIE HYKES

CAMP HILL - Stephanie Hykes, 18, Greencastle, the 2007- 2008 Franklin County Dairy Princess, competed in the Pennsylvania Dairy Princess pageant last weekend.

Hykes was crowned in June to represent Franklin County's large dairy industry and was among princesses from 32 Pennsylvania counties at the state event Sept. 28 and 29.

Stephanie is the daughter of Donnie and Rhonda Hykes of Greencastle and the granddaughter of Ron and Lou Beatty of Welsh Run. Stephanie graduated from G-AHS with the Class of 2007 and has been very busy since being crowned in June promoting the dairy industry.

Lyndsey Royek, 16, of Erie County won the honor. Contestants were judged on their public speaking skills, knowledge of the dairy industry, poise and personality. Each contestant prepared a speech and skit promoting milk and dairy products, and participated in a personal interview with a panel of four judges.

Winners were chosen in three categories - speech, skit and scrapbook - and Royek was recognized as a skit winner for her portrayal of "Alberta Einstein," who formulated the recipe for milk. She also received an honorable mention for her speech.

A junior at Corry Area High School, Royek is the daughter of Walter and Lisa Royek of Corry. The Royeks milk 55 Holsteins and Guernseys, of which Lyndsey owns six, on their 250-acre farm. Lyndsey is a member of her school's swimming and soccer teams, and is active in 4-H and the Pennsylvania Junior Holstein and Guernsey associations. Her other hobbies include dancing, reading and showing cows.

An avid dairy promoter, she hopes to attend Penn State University to earn a degree in marketing and pursue a career in the field.

Two alternates were chosen to support the Pennsylvania Dairy Princess. The First Alternate 21-year-old Stephanie Beeman from Cumberland County. An honorable mention skit winner, Stephanie is a former state FFAofficer and current sophomore Harrisburg Area Community College. She plans to transfer to Penn State University next year to study agribusiness. Beeman is the daughter of Steven and Diane Beeman of Carlisle. Her grandfather and uncle operate dairy farms and she has raised dairy heifers.

Clarion-Venango County Dairy Princess Sarah Weimer was chosen as Second Alternate after being named one of two speech winners. Sarah's parents are Mike and Cindy Weimer of Emlenton and they operate Solid Gold Holsteins and farm 162 acres. Sarah owns 14 Holsteins and Guernseys and is active in both breeds' state junior associations, along with her county 4-H program. A senior at Keystone High School, Weimer is also enrolled in Clarion University's early admission program after spending part of the summer traveling in Europe with another school program.

In addition to Royek, Beeman and Weimer, four other finalists were selected: Jessica Long, Blair County Dairy Princess, daughter of Gary and Jennifer Long, Tyrone; Elizabeth Cloninger, Centre County Dairy Princess, daughter of Bob and Ellen Cloninger, Centre Hall; Amanda Mackereth, Chester County Dairy Princess, daughter of James and Charlene Mackereth, Avondale; Rachel Irwin, Crawford County Dairy Princess, daughter of Matthew and Dorothy Irwin of Linesville.

The two scrapbook award winners were Abbey Puzo from Susquehanna County and Carrie Dinger from Tioga County. Honorable mentions went to Elizabeth Cloninger of Centre County and Chantal Guidice of Beaver County.

Dairy princesses from 2006- 2007 were honored for their promotion efforts, including Franklin County's Sarah Signore, who reached the second level incentive, the highest available, during her reign. Sarah, 18, who is currently a freshman at St. Bonaventure University, completed 183 local promotions during the year reaching thousands of consumers with presentations and handouts. The majority of the promotions were school programs. Sarah is the daughter of Dan and Darlene Signore of Antrim Township.

Katie Waddell, the 2006-2007 Crawford County and Pennsylvania Alternate Dairy Princess was named the Tina M. Shultz Memorial Award winner. In addition to her state royalty duties, Katie completed 340 local promotions within Crawford County, reaching more than 25,000 consumers and traveling nearly 3,800 miles within the county. Katie is the 19-yearold daughter of Rob and Chris Waddell of Townville, and she is a student at Edinboro University.

The four overall judges were Becky King of Schuylerville, N.Y.; Shelly Mayer of Slinger, Wis.; Doug Kilgore of Airville; and Robert Huston of Albion.

Speech and skit judges were Melissa Osgood of Syracuse, N.Y.; Betsy Huber of Lemoyne, Pa.; and Mike Brammer of Harrisburg.

Scrapbook judges were Julia Meyers of St. Thomas.; and Penny Brammer of Harrisburg.

For the next year, the new state royalty team will represent Pennsylvania's dairy industry and its 8,500 dairy farm families. The dairy industry is the commonwealth's top agricultural industry, contributing $4.2 billion and 40,000 jobs to the state's economy.