Tuesday morning officials of the Rice County Fair were talking about the possibility of moving the Fair Queen Coronation due to inclement weather. But Tuesday evening was gorgeous and it was sure fun to see 33 former royalty come back for the 40th Fair Queen Reunion; 111 past royalty were invited.

The crowd gathered in front of the Sellner Midway Stage was very large and many of the girls and their families told me of relatives tuning in via Facebook video across the country.

One of the past royalty told me she watched the pageant last year in Germany via our live feed on YouTube.

The first Rice County Fair Queen, Cyndy Griebel, was crowned in 1976 and assisted in crowning this year's royalty.

Griebel told Power 96 that during the 1976 coronation the power went out.

The first Rice County Fair Queen was presented with a new sash because her old one had disintegrated over the years.

In 1976, a gallon of gas cost 59 cents and the average monthly income a year was $16,000. The average cost of a new house was $43,400. A brand new Plymouth Arrrow vehicle was $3,175.

KDHL Farm Director Dean Curtis came up with the idea for a Fair Queen to represent the annual event and promote it during surrounding community celebrations.

There were six contestants this year.

Crowned the 2016 Rice County Fair Queen was 17-year-old Courtney Albers of Faribault.  She is the daughter of Lee and Jillene Albers of Faribault. Courtney will be a senior at Faribault High School this fall and works as a cashier at Faribault Ace Hardware. Her sponsor was Flom Disposal and her escort was Kyle Flom.

The First Attendant is 19-year-old Tara Van Thomme of Faribault. She is the daughter of Wayne and Rosie Van Thomme of Faribault and graduated from Faribault High School in 2015. Tara is studying international business at the University of Minnesota. She works at Hy-Vee Pharmacy in Faribault. Van Thomme's sponsor was KDHL Radio and Jerry Groskreutz was her escort.

The Second Attendant is 19-year-old Michelle Hohrman of Northfield. Michelle is the daughter of Christina and the late Brad Hohrman of Northfield and is a 2015 graduate of Northfield High School. She works at Ace Hardware in Northfield. Michelle is attending the University of Minnesota-Morris and studying biology and pre-veterinary medicine. Her sponsor is the Faribault Veterinary Clinic and her escort was Jesse Sanbulte.

Miss Congeniality is chosen by her peers, and 18-year-old Emily Reuvers received the honor this year. Emily is the daughter of Gary and Gloria Reuvers and is a 2016 graduate of Bethlehem Academy in Faribault. Reuvers works at Bluebird Cakery in downtown Faribault and does summer work at McNeilus Trucking and Manufacturing in Dodge Center. Emily is sponsored by Reliance Bank of Faribault and her escort was Jesse Marshall.

It's always a lot of fun to assist in presenting a new Fair Queen to those watching at the fair and listening on the radio.

The ladies told me they are looking forward to a fun-filled week at the Rice County Fair and hope to see everyone there.

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