Passing the crown to the 2025 Lebanon Area Fair Queen, Alternate, and Princess

On the opening day of the 69th annual Lebanon Area Fair, Olivia Morrissey was crowned the 2025 Lebanon Area Fair Queen, and Sarah Feagley the 2025 alternate queen, by outgoing 2024 fair queen and reigning 2025 Pennsylvania State Alternate Fair Queen Brooke Beamesderfer.

“When you come to the Lebanon Area Fair as a little girl, you see the fair queen walking around, and it’s kind of every little girl’s dream. I am just so excited to be a part of the Lebanon Area Fair’s story,” Morrissey told LebTown in her new crown and sash.

She is most excited to learn more about the livestock exhibits, as she is more familiar with the indoor exhibits from entering her sewing projects in them. This fall, the recent Annville-Cleona High School graduate will enter her freshman year at the Savannah College of Art and Design, with a major in fashion design and a minor in fibers, with the hope of becoming a fashion designer or fashion marketing professional.

Continuing a new tradition, Madalyn Troutman was crowned the 2025 Lebanon Area Fair Princess — the second princess in fair history – by outgoing 2024 fair princess Coriana Bomgardner.

“I’m most looking forward to meeting the new people and handing out ribbons at the fair, and it’s going to be really fun,” Troutman told LebTown.

To enter the Lebanon queen and princess program, the five fair queen contestants — Morrissey, Feagley, Anna Houser, Ada Martin, and Stella Klynoot — and three princess contestants — Troutman, Ellie Dodson, and Lena Voydik — submitted a signed permission slip, a short biography, and an essay in response to the queen prompt, “What my fair means to my community,” or princess prompt, “What agriculture means to me.”

At 1:30 p.m. Saturday, July 19, a panel of judges — Deb Bishop, Shana Hanna, and Emily Moyer, who are part of the agricultural community through their involvement with 4-H and FFA, studying agriculture, working in the field of agriscience, and farming — interviewed each contestant in the Ag Center in an event that was closed to the press and the public.

At 5 p.m. Saturday, community members gathered under the Carl Wenger Pavilion for the coronation ceremony, which was organized by program co-coordinators Andrea Harrell and Ashley Bishop and emceed by the 2022 Lebanon Area Fair Queen and 2023 Pennsylvania State Fair Queen Chloe Bomgardner.

The contestants made a grand entrance to the coronation ceremony with a tractor-pulled wagon float, sponsored by Wengers of Myerstown. Escorted to the stage by their fathers, contestants introduced themselves to the crowd. Outgoing 2024 fair queen Brooke Beamesderfer and 2024 fair princess Coriana Bomgardner were also escorted to the stage by their fathers.

The fair queen contestants gave a three- to five-minute speech in response to the prompt, “Why you should come to my fair,” and the fair princess contestants gave a one- to three-minute speech in response to the prompt, “Agriculture in my everyday life.”

Morrissey lives in Annville and serves as president of the Lebanon County 4-H Friends Club, following her involvement with the club for the past 11 years. Her speech described the experience of the Lebanon Area Fair through each of the five senses.

“Now, take a deep breath because the fair has its own scent,” Morrissey said in her speech. “Some of it will make your mouth water like the smell of fresh barbecue and fried bologna sandwiches. And some of it, well, let’s just say, be careful where you step when you visit the dairy barn or you might end up bringing home some of the smells with you.”

During her speech, Feagley showcased the new memories that can be made at the historic fair, which started as the Lebanon County 4-H Fair in 1957 and was held at the Ebenezer School, Fredericksburg Fireman’s Park, and H&H Tack Farm before moving in 1970 to the current fairgrounds.

Houser is a student at ELCO High School, serves on the junior fair board, and joined the Lebanon County 4-H Friends Club at age 8. Her speech described the various aspects of the Lebanon Area Fair, which draws more than 50,000 fairgoers each year and is supported by countless volunteers.

Martin is a student at Northern Lebanon High School, where she is involved with the Northern Lebanon FFA chapter and the Northern Lebanon High School softball team. During her speech, the 17-year-old explained how her excitement for the Lebanon Area Fair, powered by volunteers, evolved with her FFA involvement over the years.

Klynoot is preparing to enter her senior year at Our Lady of the Cross, where she serves as student council president and plays soccer. She also dances at the Movement Laboratory. The 17-year-old is involved with the Lebanon County 4-H Friends Club, with her most recent sewing project — her prom dress — on exhibit at the fair. Her speech admired how the fair reminds community members where their products come from.

Troutman lives on a seventh-generation dairy farm with her parents and four siblings in Myerstown. She is showing two market hogs and is entered in the indoor exhibits at the fair. During her speech, the 14-year-old celebrated her role as the 1% of the population who produce the food for the other 99%.

Dodson is preparing to enter the fifth grade at South Lebanon Elementary School and serves as a member of the Lebanon County 4-H Friends Club. Her speech shared her experience as a non-farming kid who moved to Lebanon County almost four years ago and has since learned about the importance of agriculture.

During her speech, 11-year-old Voydik described various ways that agriculture impacts her everyday life, from her breakfast to her animals’ feed.

Following the speeches, the queen and princess contestants selected a unique impromptu question, which they read silently before being read aloud twice and answering in front of the crowd of community members. This concluded the judged portion of the coronation ceremony.

While the judges deliberated on who should be crowned fair queen, alternate, and fair princess, emcee Bomgardner presented the four 2025 Lebanon Area Fair scholarship recipients with their $2,000 scholarships — two of the scholarships were from the scholarship fund and two from the barbecue committee.

These scholarships are awarded to community members who have graduated and have been accepted into an accredited two- or four-year educational or vocational institution.

During her farewell speech — which was followed by a slideshow set to the song, “Country Gold,” by Anne Wilson and Jordan Davis — the outgoing 2024 fair queen thanked her parents, “the queen team,” the fair board, and the sponsors: Lebanon Area Fair board, Grumbine’s Flowers, Hair Affair, Julia Evans, LE’s Cupcakes, Leitzel’s Jewelry, Stockyard Style, Tim McGowan Studios, Wengers of Myerstown, and Wildflowers on Fox.

“From the bottom of my heart, thank you, Lebanon County, for accepting and supporting me as an individual to represent our beloved fair and community,” Beamesderfer said.

During her time as queen, Beamesderfer helped organize a brunch and informational session for prospective contestants, which was held on Saturday, June 14, at the Lebanon Expo Center. The goal of that event was to generate interest in the program and to have five fair queen contestants, which was accomplished in this year’s pageant.

Read More: Lebanon Area Fair Queen and Princess program now accepting applications

As she ended her reign as the 2024 queen, Beamesderfer was presented with a $1,000 scholarship and a bouquet of flowers by program co-coordinators Harrell and Bishop. She will continue her reign as the 2025 Pennsylvania State Alternate Fair Queen through the end of this year.

During her farewell speech, outgoing 2024 princess thanked community members for supporting the program through their attendance at the coronation ceremony. She also thanked the program co-coordinators, Beamesderfer and outgoing 2024 Alternate Lebanon Area Fair Queen Kylee Williams, and her family for their support.

“As the first Lebanon Area Fair princess, my main asked question was ‘What was my favorite thing about this year?’ And although this was a very tough question to answer, I always had the same answer. And that was the fact that I got to promote an industry that helped me grow into who I am today, and that will continue to help me grow into who I will become tomorrow,” Bomgardner said.

The coronation ceremony concluded with the crowning of the fair queen, alternate, and fair princess, and photo opportunities with outgoing royalty, the new royalty, and other royalty in attendance.

“Come out to the Lebanon Area Fair. We have a great time here,” Morrissey told LebTown readers. “It’s a very welcoming community where we do so many fun things, and you have to try the milkshakes!”