The Lebanon County Dairy Promotion Program held its 51st annual Lebanon County Dairy Princess coronation at the Mount Zion Road Church on the evening of May 6.
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Before the event, judge Ashley Mohn, who is a former Berks County Dairy Princess and a former Pennsylvania State Dairy Princess, interviewed this year’s Lebanon County Dairy Princess candidate, Mackenzie Thomas.
Thomas described her connection to the area and pageant to LebTown. “I was born in Lebanon County,” she said. “My parents are from Lebanon County. And both of my grandparents are from Lebanon County.
“And to the Lebanon County dairy court, I started working on a dairy farm about two years ago, and I heard about it through FFA [at Cedar Crest High School], and I decided that it was something that I’d be interested in and I was eligible in.”
Following a welcome speech and introductions of the Lebanon County Dairy Princess and Lebanon County Dairy Princess candidate at the event, Mohn asked Thomas an impromptu question.
“I had to answer an impromptu question, and the question was ‘What is the most important essential nutrient in milk?'” Thomas said. “And I said calcium because it builds strong bones, but they’re all very important.”
The 2022-23 dairy royalty, who accomplished 1,168 promotions as of May 1, 2023, then gave remarks.
And Thomas acted as a game show host for a three- to five-minute skit.
“For the skit I did, I called it ‘Dairy Feud.’ It was much like ‘Family Feud,’ but I put a fun little dairy twist and it was about milk’s 13 essential nutrients,” Thomas said.
The 2023-24 junior representatives were also introduced: Dairy Maid – Haylee Mullen, Dairy Miss – Evelyn Maulfair, Dairy Miss – Mikaylia Maulfair, Li’l Dairy Miss – Rea Light, and Li’l Dairy Miss – Rosalie Maulfair.
Thomas gave a three- to five-minute speech about sustainability in the dairy industry, which, for her, was the most intimidating part of the evening.
Event sponsors and special guests were recognized.
Following the committee’s remarks and the outgoing court’s presentation, the “Digging into Dairy” contest winners were announced.
The desserts were judged by a panel of local judges including Jenn Patteson of Cookies, Cupcakes and More, which is a recently opened bakery on Main Street in Jonestown, and Amanda Shuey, who is a Lebanon County dairy farmer, a former Lebanon County Dairy Promotion Program committee member, and a former Lebanon County Alternate Dairy Princess.
The first place recipe in the youth category was Abby Eberly’s “Creamy Brownie Delight.”
From left to right: third place – Peter and Emma Eberly, first place – Abigail Eberly, and second place – Georgia Sellers.
The first place recipe in the adult category was Meranda Sellers’ “Berry Cheesecake Pie.” The top three winners in each category were awarded cash prizes.
From left to right: second place – Dolly Getz, first place – Meranda Sellers, and third place – Kylee Hlavaty.
Evelyn Troutman and her court then delivered emotional farewell remarks.
At the end of the event, Troutman, the 2022-23 Lebanon County Dairy Princess, passed her crown onto Thomas, who had served as alternate during her reign.
Thomas gave a brief acceptance speech, in which she expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to serve as Lebanon County Dairy Princess for the year to come.
Event attendees were invited to taste test the 13 dairy desserts from the contest and make their own sundaes after the coronation.
For Thomas, the most memorable parts of the evening were “definitely being crowned by Evelyn Troutman” and “our farm family coming together,” as her boss from the dairy farm and his wife and their children were in attendance.
“It was just a wonderful night all the way around,” Thomas said.
The 18-year-old daughter of Mark and Christine Thomas of Lebanon will reign from June 1, 2023, to June 1, 2024.
“As the Lebanon County Dairy Princess, I will travel around Lebanon County and talk to not only consumers but farmers and try and kind of bridge the gap between the consumers and the farmers and all the stuff that gets lost in translation in the middle,” Thomas said. “So, like everything that goes into producing milk or caring for the animals or the day-to-day things even the intermediate jobs like the milk truck drivers and the store processors, I’m kind of in charge of putting a positive face to that and getting the message out there.”
When asked what plans she has as Lebanon County Dairy Princess in the near future, Thomas said, “I’ll be putting out a lot of fun not like competitions but like challenges. Like if you can spot this dairy farm somewhere in Lebanon County, you win like a free fair milkshake. So, I’ll be doing a bunch of little giveaways and stuff like that to try to get the community more involved.”
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Those interested in booking the Lebanon County Dairy Princess and her court for an educational visit can contact the Lebanon County Dairy Promotion Program at lcdairypromotion@gmail.com or its booking chair Christine Thomas at 717-821-0543.
Thomas closed with several key messages for Lebanon County residents.
“Three a day. You want to get three servings of dairy every single day. Another great key message would be farmers love their animals and they love the earth. Everything they do is to produce … wholesome and great products for tomorrow to feed the coming generations while also taking care of their animals and the earth.”
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