Elkhart 4-H Fair Begins with Pageantry
Published: Friday, July 25, 2025
The cows were mooing and the smoke from barbecued chicken was wafting through the air. The Elkhart County 4-H Fair has arrived in Goshen.
The nine-day fair kicked off last Friday with the crowning of the senior queen and fair queen.
Paige Lantz, 19, of Goshen, was honored as fair queen. A graduate of Fairfield High School, she is currently attending Western Michigan University and will be a sophomore this fall studying elementary education.
The first runnerup was Sage Risser, 19, of Goshen. Other finalists were: Olivia Shank, 17, Elkhart, second runnerup; Brianna Stark, 20, Goshen, third runnerup; and Riley Kitson, 20 of Milford. Kitson was also named Miss Congeniality.
In the senior queen contest, Sherry Weaver of Goshen was selected as the winner. She and her late husband, Lee, have two children and three grandchildren. She enjoys her grandchildren and participating in Purdue Extension Homemaker events.
Runnerups in the pageant include: Roseanne Markam, first runnerup; and LuAnn Gressman-Dunn, second runnerup.
Both queens, along with parade marshals Jeryl and Pat Hochstedler, rode in Sunday's parade through downtown Goshen. The parade featured 135 entries, which is higher than in recent years, according to Boyd Smith, parade organizer.
Despite a light rain, there were no problems with the parade.
Grace Community Church in Goshen won the William Bigler Memorial Trophy for the best overall parade entry.
Other award winners were:
• 4-H club floats—The Electric Clovers, first; Saddle Club, second; Rabbit Club, third; Remote Control Club, fourth; Media Club, fifth; and Dog Club, sixth.
• Youth and Agricultural Clubs—Goshen Little League, first; Child Evangelism Ministries, second; and Boys and Girls Club of Elkhart County, third.
• Open Class—Grace Community Church, first; Harvest Community Church, second; and The Crossing, third.
• Antique Automobiles and Tractors—Northern Indiana Johnny Poppers, first; International Harvester collectors, second; and Wakarusa Historical Museum, third.
• Commercial—La Raza Indiana, first; Miss Agriculture USA, second; and Clinton Frame Church, third.
Fair President Randi Yoder also rode in the parade. Upon arriving at the grandstands, he provided an official welcome to the Elkhart County 4-H Fair.
Last Thursday, he judged the entries in the open class contest at the Home and Family Arts Department. This year's feature for the traditional President's Baked Item was cheesecake. Yoder chose a Dutch apple pie creation submitted by Lisa Giddens of Goshen. For the recipe, see page 6.
The opening weekend of the fair featured the presentation of several 4-H awards.
Several Elkhart County 4-H youths were recognized for their outstanding achievements, leadership and service through a variety of scholarships and awards.
Indiana 4-H Foundation Scholarships were awarded to the following youths: Gabrielle Kantz, Oliver Nisen, Dylan Springer and Kylin Wuthrich.
Elkhart County 4-H Achievement Scholarships were awarded to the following youths: Addison Beasley, Logan Cook, Chloe Cripe, Isabella Furfaro, Gabrielle Kantz, Dakota Krieg, Myla Miller, Joshua Narayan, Ian Newton, Cassia Nice, Oliver Nisen, Selah Potsander, Kendall Scott, Dylan Springer and Raquel Toth-Perez.
The WFRN Leadership Award was presented to John Mark Renner and Isabella Furfaro.
The Janice Gawthrop Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Oliver Nisen.
Finally, the Millie Christofeno Perseverance Award was presented to Moriah Kelly. Finalists included Moriah Kelly, Allison Norris and Olivia Shank.
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