Eva Sheppard was named Fair Queen for the 92nd annual Unionville Fair, but the news came as a bit of a shock for the 17-year-old from Chadds Ford Township.
“I had no idea that a girl with pink hair could pull this off,” she said after the pageant Thursday night. “I did this just because I thought it would be a fun experience, but I got a lot out of it.”
What she got, the daughter of Ina and Jesse Sheppard said, was the experience of going through the pageant process, which included an interview, writing an essay and delivering a speech.
“Those are all things I want to get better at. I can’t wait to do this at the state level. That’s going to be pretty amazing,” Eva said.
In January, about 50 other fair queens will compete in Hershey.
Eva’s mother, who escorted her to the stage, was understandably proud of her daughter.
“Eva has always been incredibly personable. She loves public speaking. I’m not surprised that she’s good at this because she enjoys people so much. I’m excited to see her representing our community. So I am proud of her, very much so,” Ina Sheppard said.
For being named Fair Queen, she was given a diamond necklace courtesy of Bove Jewelers.
The other contestant for queen was Caroline Kinsley, also 17. She is the alternate. In a rare vote, however, the two girls tied for Fair Queen Miss Congeniality.
Master of Ceremonies Matthew Grieco said the Miss Congeniality award goes to the girl who, by secret vote of other contestants, is considered to be the most friendly, helpful and charismatic.
Chosen as the Fair Princess was 12-year-old Madison Cialini, who was also voted Fair Princess Miss Congeniality.
The Alternate Fair Princess is Olivia Mitchell, 13.
Other contestants for Fair Princess were Lauren Chamberlain, Larne Petragnoni, Logan Poole and Erica Roland.
The 2016 Unionville Fair runs from Sept. 30 through Oct. 2.
According to Bonnie Musser, a long-time member of the Fair Executive Board, there was almost no fair at all this year because there was no president or treasurer. However, Deborah Deckman and Jeff Lewis offered their time. Deckman is this year’s president; Lewis is treasurer.
Deskman said she is confident the fair will be viable to reach 100 years. She said sponsorship is up 20 percent over last year.
About Rich Schwartzman
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
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