Sorgan, Carey 2017 Junior Fair royalty

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

Crestview senior Alex Sorgan and Lincolnview senior Frankie Carey were crowned the 2017 Junior Fair king and queen during a pre-Van Wert County Fair coronation ceremony held Sunday in the Farm Focus arena.

Sorgan, the son of Phil and Jill Sorgan, is currently president of the Farmtastics 4-H club and has shown steers, hogs, and lambs at the fair. He is also a member of the Crestview FFA and is a barn superintendent and committee chair for the Junior Fair Board.

Austin is a member of St. Mary of the Assumption Catholic Church in Van Wert, where he is a member of the youth group and is an altar server.

“I’m honored,” Sorgan said of being chosen Junior Fair king, adding that it’s kind of a family tradition to run for Junior Fair king and queen. “It’s a big dream of mine to become king.”

Sorgan said that, being business with livestock keeps him from enjoying much of the rest of the fair, but noted he enjoys showing animals — especially steers.

“I like the steers best because it’s a two-year project,” he noted. “You’ve got them for a longer time; it’s pretty hard for me to get rid of them (though), but it’s a fact of life.”

Sorgan said his grandmother talked him in to running for Junior Fair king.

“The only thing that was holding me back was that I’m awfully busy with all of the animals,” Sorgan said of his livestock activities. “She’s like, ‘Well, you at least have to try out one time’, so I figured I’d try it once, and this is where we got.”

Carey, the daughter of Randy and Leigh Carey, also has the county fair in her blood. In fact, she was named for her grandfather, Frank Snyder, a longtime director on the Senior Fair Board.

She is a nine-year member of the Hoaglin Farmers 4-H club, where she served in several leadership positions, and is a 4-H camp counselor, Buckeye Ambassador, and a member of the Van Wert County Fashion Board.

She has taken a number of sewing projects to the Ohio State Fair, and has earned champion showmanship honors during the Junior Fair Rabbit Show at the local fair. She is also a member of the Junior Fair Board and is currently serving her third year on the board.

She keeps busy at Lincolnview as a member of the cross country and basketball teams, and the choir, and is president of Beta Club, a member of the National Honor Society, and an officer of the Lincolnview Drama Club.

Carey was also a 2017 representative to Buckeye Girls’ State and attends Zion Christian Union Church, where she is a member of the youth group that recently completed a missions trip to Kingsport, Tennessee, where she and other members worked in a food bank and homeless shelter.

Both Sorgan and Carey said they’re looking forward to meeting a lot of new people, while Carey said she’s hoping to be a role model for younger kids.

“The fair has always been a huge part of my life,” Carey noted. “I’ve always gone to the fair for as long as I can remember. I’m very passionate about it.”

Carey also said she plans to eat her share of fair food, noting that Farm Bureau milkshakes and french fries are her favorites.

Korey Oechsle was Junior Fair king runner-up, while Madison Pugh was queen runner-up.

Species princesses crowned include Betty Vorst (swine), Emily Greulach (sheep), Lillian Hempfling (dairy), and Allison Bowsher (beef).

Also held Sunday afternoon was the Cloverbud graduation, while 4-H special awards were also distributed.