Yachats Oregon Writer Rick Schultze

I’ve covered these kinds of events before and at times they can be rather tense. Sometimes the contestants are less than kind or friendly to one another and at times the representatives and families can become overbearing. However arriving at the designated gathering spot I saw immediately this wasn’t going to be one of those situations. The participants all were greeting each other with open arms, smiles, and friendly conversation.

The caterer had arrived, the flowers were there, the refreshment bar was open and sunshine filled the hall. After everyone had enjoyed the luncheon the woman in charge called the audience to attention and said since all the contestants were very well qualified and were all equal, there was no choice but to draw a winning name from a hat. With that done and with a flourish of her hand she pointed to the new queen; Kyra Lyn.

After congratulations from one and all the queen and court gathered together for the obligatory photo shoots and question and answer session. The stood for solo shots, in a choreographed line, for random shots, but through all smiled and were patient with the questions and photographers.

It was clear the ceremony was over when the queen and court excused them selves to enjoy a beautiful sunny day before the weekend celebration began and headed off to “play T-ball, hang out, to look for sea animals, read and paint, and bring live bugs and frogs to gross out my Mom,”

But hey, give ‘em a break after all Kyra and her court; Emily, Allie, Dakota, Satori, and Taylor range in age from five to nine!

Give a big hand and smile to all the queens and princesses you see in your summer celebrations!

To reach Rick Schultze email yarick@pioneer.net

As a writer I’ve covered a lot of events from keg tossing contests to folks winning a new Cadillac, from City Council meetings to the blessing of pets. Of course I can’t forget the Buffalo Chip throwing event during halftime at a demolition derby or the drama of half of the New Carrisa bobbing off the shore of Waldport. I’ve also covered more serious things like the battle over charging a food tax in Yachats and Marine Reserves and Wave Energy proposals. So when my editor called me with a new assignment I listened with attention as she told me I was to cover the choosing of a queen who would reign over a court of five princesses for a weekend summer celebration. They would be riding on a float in the Grand Parade on Saturday. Sounded like a good thing to me; the assignment was close to home, no travel time to speak of, there would be pretty girls, food, and it would be a relatively short process. Plus it was mid-day which would free up my afternoon and evening to polish up on my BBQing skills for the summer. I’ll admit I’m a bit rusty due to inclement weather! I’ve covered these kinds of events before and at times they can be rather tense. Sometimes the contestants are less than kind or friendly to one another and at times the representatives and families can become overbearing. However arriving at the designated gathering spot I saw immediately this wasn’t going to be one of those situations. The participants all were greeting each other with open arms, smiles, and friendly conversation. The caterer had arrived, the flowers were there, the refreshment bar was open and sunshine filled the hall. After everyone had enjoyed the luncheon the woman in charge called the audience to attention and said since all the contestants were very well qualified and were all equal, there was no choice but to draw a winning name from a hat. With that done and with a flourish of her hand she pointed to the new queen; Kyra Lyn. After congratulations from one and all the queen and court gathered together for the obligatory photo shoots and question and answer session. The stood for solo shots, in a choreographed line, for random shots, but through all smiled and were patient with the questions and photographers. It was clear the ceremony was over when the queen and court excused them selves to enjoy a beautiful sunny day before the weekend celebration began and headed off to “play T-ball, hang out, to look for sea animals, read and paint, and bring live bugs and frogs to gross out my Mom,” But hey, give ‘em a break after all Kyra and her court; Emily, Allie, Dakota, Satori, and Taylor range in age from five to nine! Give a big hand and smile to all the queens and princesses you see in your summer celebrations! To reach Rick Schultze email yarick@pioneer.net