Lee takes over reign as Antique Festival Queen

  • By Dave Mast of The Holmes County Journal
  • October 14, 2009
  • 763
                        
If there has ever been a more apropos name to represent the Holmes County Antique Festival than this year’s queen, it hasn’t shown up in any of the annals. Autumn Lee bested an extremely talented and worthy class of four 2009 Antique Festival queen hopefuls during the contest held on Saturday, Oct. 10, at the Millersburg Christian Church, and replaced outgoing queen Olivia Finney, who represented Holmes County extremely well during her reign. The contest to become queen was tough enough between Lee, first attendant Cierra Hall, second attendant Lauren Evans and third attendant Kaitlyn Currence, that it took more than a half-hour of deliberation between the judges to come up with a winning formula. That was evident by the talent of each of the four teens, and by the comments of Rachel Day, the princess contest chair, who was heavily involved with the queens as well, when she said, “For the first time, we got rid of the Miss Congeniality award and went with a third attendant, because we felt that all four of the girls were deserving of being honored, and they all four will represent our festival well. They’ve been so good to work with, and it was obviously a very difficult decision for the judges to make. This is the first time we have ever gone to three attendants, (there have been four competitors many times before) and it may be the last. They were all just that deserving of representing the festival and the county.” For Lee, a senior at West Holmes High School, the opportunity to serve her community in this capacity is something she relishes, and is looking forward to a year of traveling and becoming even better friends with her attendants and the princesses. “It’s a lot of hard work, and there is so much to do to get ready for this, and to sit here as long as we did anticipating the outcome was terrible,” said Lee. “I was so nervous during the competition. I knew I messed up a little on my speech, but I did my best, and I know the other girls did too. I’m overwhelmed that I was chosen.” In addition to the historic gown competition, answering a random question and preparing a speech on a local Holmes County village, Day said that what people don’t realize is that the girls also must go through a more in-depth interview with the judges Saturday morning before the event, which can be just as nerve-racking as standing up in front of a sanctuary full of people, but every bit as vital in terms of where the final standings come into play. Lee said that regardless of who finished where, all of the contestants are great friends, having grown even closer through the five week process of preparing for the big day. “We’ve all got very similar personalities, and we get along great,” said Lee. “It will be an honor for me to travel with them all over the state and represent Holmes County. I think what I will enjoy most is getting to know a group of people from all over Ohio whom I would otherwise never know.” Lee said that during the five-week practice period, she conversed with Finney quite often, picking her brain as to what to do, how to act and what to say, and getting a feel for the excitement of the big day. She admires Finney’s ability to relate to people, and said the former queen has had a big influence on her. “She was a fantastic queen,” said Lee, of Finney. “She has set the bar very high for queens, and I’ve learned a lot from her. The best advice she gave me was to go out and enjoy the day. We talked a little afterwards, and she said the same thing: Now go out and enjoy your time. It’s a great opportunity.” Finney expressed gratitude to family and friends that have supported her over the past year, becoming very emotional as she delivered her final public speech in front of a church packed with friends and neighbors. “Honestly, this was one speech I wasn’t looking forward to, because I knew I’d cry, but I didn’t realize how hard it would be,” said Finney. “I started speaking and all of these memories came flooding in all at once. Those are great memories that I am glad to have had the opportunity to make. This reign has not been what I expected it to be when I began, and in a good way. It was much more fulfilling than I ever dreamed it would be. I just never dreamed that letting go would be this difficult. I guess after a pretty intense year of traveling, it becomes a part of who you are. I am very fortunate to be blessed with parents who love me and enjoy traveling together with me.” Finney, a senior at West Holmes, now plans to focus her attention on graduation, and plans to pursue a career in nursing. Just as Finney has built her own set of memories, so, too, will Lee, as she travels the same path. Lee, who was also the Antique Festival Princess at age 9, hopes to attend college and pursue degrees in either pharmacy or as a radiology technician. The daughter of Duard and Sue Lee, of Glenmont, Lee works at Digital Dish, Inc. as a dispatch agent, has volunteered at Save & Serve, plays the flute in the West Holmes symphonic band and is a member of the science club.


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