The Washington County fair started last Sunday, with the main event being the Washington County Queen Contest. Katie Leichty of Wayland was named Washington County Fair Queen, taking home the top honors in her first ever pageant competition.

However, as Leichty explains, this night may have never come to fruition if it wasn’t for a bit of encouragement from the future Miss Congeniality Ally Rees. “Originally, I didn’t want to do this because I didn’t know how I would feel about going on stage in front of a bunch of people. But she really convinced me that it would be fun, exciting and a good experience. So, after that, I had a feeling that if I didn’t do it, I would regret it, and that’s what inspired me to compete.”

So after receiving the encouragement to participate, it was time for Leichty to prepare for the contest, which included assembling outfits with her mom and drilling her speaking skills in front of her family. All of the practice and preparation led to the moment where Leichty stepped out on stage for the first time, to what she called a large amount of support from friends and family.

“There was a very big crowd that came out to support me, which I am so grateful for. I felt so loved and just grateful that they were there to support me, and I was just so shocked about how loud it was when I stepped out there.”

After the interview questions were over and the judges tabulated their votes, it was time for the contestants to step back on stage for the final time to hear the results. Leichty, while confident she had performed her best, didn’t assume that she was going to walk away with the crown. So when the results were announced and after the initial rush of emotions dissipated, Leichty described taking a moment by herself to let everything sink in.

“After it was all over, I was sitting alone in my truck, and I just kind of sat there for a while thinking about what just happened and that I was the next Queen. It wasn’t something that sunk in until the next day, which was the first time in my life that I couldn’t process something that had shocked me so much that I couldn’t process it.”

The Washington County Fair wraps up today, and KCII will be broadcasting live from the Washington County Fair; you can hear more from Leichty during today’s Halcyon House Washington Page on air and online at kciiradio.com.