ANDERSON, Ind. — The Madison County 4-H Fair queen contest will begin at 7:30 p.m. Sunday night at the 4-H Fairground at Beulah Park in Alexandria.

Each contestant filled out a questionnaire about their participation in 4-H and the community. Here are their responses:



Alyson Alcala

• Age: 19
• Hometown: Summitville
• School: Madison-Grant High School
• 4-H Club: Stitch-n-Stir and Summitville AG
• Parents: Dan and Lori Alcala
• 4-H projects and awards: Foods, sewing, fashion revue, vet science, home environment, scrapbooking, sheep, pigs and goats. Member of Junior Leaders, President of Stitch-n-Stir and Summitville AG 4-H Clubs. Also participated in Fashion Revue Workshops, attended Officer’s Training, participated in PCARET Day, Etiquette and Animal Science Workshops, and Share the Fun.
• Awards: 2009 Champion Supreme Livestock Showman, 2009 Champion Senior Sheep Showman, 2010 Champion Senior Goat Showman, 2010 Recipient of Madison County Chicago Achievement Trip, 2011 10-Year 4-H Member.
• Other activities: Member of First Christian Church in Summitville, serving as Deacon, member of the Youth Group and Sunday School secretary. As a member of the youth group, we  participated in World Vision’s 30-Hour Famine for seven years, raising over $3,900 each year to help feed and care for hungry children. Also, volunteered at St. Martin’s Soup Kitchen in Marion, Second Harvest Food Bank, Madison County Women’s Shelter and the Anderson Christian Center.
• Hobbies: Working with 4-H sheep, golfing, swimming and spending time with family and friends.
• Future plans: Attending Iowa State University and majoring in Animal Science and minoring in ag business. “My hope is to work in the animal research area, live on a farm and enjoy life to its fullest.”

Haleigh Dyan Allen

• Age: 18
• Hometown: Frankton
• School: Frankton Jr./Sr. High School
• 4-H Club: County Mounties
• Parents: Chuck and Jodi Allen
• 4-H projects and awards: County Mounties Horse and Pony Club President, reining, trail class, bareback class, costume class and contesting.
• Other activities: “I love my job at Montana Mikes, as hostess.”
• Hobbies: Riding horses and four-wheelers, camping, cake decorating and playing Xbox 360.
• Future plans: To become a baking and pastry chef and own her own bakery.

Rachel Anne Clark

Age: 18

• Hometown: Elwood
• School: Elwood Community High School
• 4-H Club: Blue Ribbon Aces
• Parents:  Jim and Jennifer Savage
• 4-H projects and awards: 2010 4-H Fair Queen Contest Non-Finalist Professional Wear Awardee, 2009 4-H Fair Queen Contest Non-Finalist Formal Wear Awardee, 2009 4-H Consumer Clothing Grand and Overall Champion, 2008 4-H Scrapbooking Grand Champion, scrapbooking, consumer clothing, miscellaneous crafts, baking, recycling, child development,
• collections and cake decorating.
• Other activities: National Technical Honors Society, BTI Social Committee, Hinds Career Center Student Advisory Board, Steering Committee, Student Council, Latin Club, Prom Committee, Color Guard, Cheerleading, Wrestling (manager), marching band, concert band, show choir, New Beginning Fellowship Church, and Church League Volleyball.
• Hobbies: Just like any teenage girl, I enjoy hanging out with my friends and family, as well as texting or talking on the phone. I do have a passion for drawing and I love to read.
• Future plans: Attend Ivy Tech Community College in Anderson, to obtain a degree in dental hygiene. Hopes to work in Carmel or Noblesville.

Haley Crane

• Age: 17
• Hometown: Anderson
• School: Home-schooled
• 4-H Club: Madison County Shooting Sports, Creation Corner
• Parents:  Tim and Amy Crane
• 4-H projects and awards: wearable sewing, non-wearable sewing (Reserve Champion), poultry (Best in Breed, three breeds of chickens), waterfowl (several mallard duck awards), rabbits, archery.
• Other activities: School: High HS Drama Club-Best Freshman Actress, National Thespian Society-honors for 100+ points, 2009 Academic Decathlon in Art Awards in Art Category, 2009 Academic Super Bowl Team Competition-First Place in Music, Theatre/Drama Club at Anderson HS,      Highland HS, LLC and Act-Alexandria Community Thespians. I played on the Strikers co-ed Soccer Team and the Anderson Angels Volleyball Team. Prom Committee member last year and was in charge of picking and preparing the home school prom theme. SSEP-Student Space flight Experiment Program-I, along with other students wrote a     report on seed germination in space, which was chosen as finalist to possibly fly on the last Atlantis space shuttle with experiments of other students.
• Community: Government page for Beverly Gard.
• Hobbies: Range from academic teams to performing arts, mainly the theatre; raising and learning to care for different species of animals. Learning to speak Mandarin Chinese and the Asian culture. Likes archery and other sports, sewing everything and anything, Also member of the North Park Youth Group.
• Future plans: To become an equine or exotic animal veterinarian. “I have a passion for helping and healing animals; be involved with 4-H youth and be a club leader of a rabbits and poultry judge. Some day, I plan to bred and sell pure bred rabbits.”

Stephanie Hedgecraft

• Age:17
• Hometown: Alexandria
• School: Alexandria-Monroe High School
• 4-H Club: K-9
• Parents: Amy and David Hedgecraft
• Projects: Scrapbooking, photography, recycling, dog agility, dog obedience, Junior Leaders and dog poster.
• Activities: Attends Hinds Career Center and volunteered.
• Hobbies: Scrapbooking, taking pictures, reading, watching movies, working with her Sheltie and hanging out with friends.
• Future plans: Plans to attend college, which is not yet decided, and become a psychologist.

Erica Martin

• Age: 18
• Hometown: Markleville
• School: Martin Academy
• 4-H Club: Ruff Riders
• Parents: Brenda and the late Ron Martin
• Projects: Sewing (Reserve Champion), fashion revue (Grand Champion), fine art (Reserve Champion), photography (Blue Honors), poultry (Champion Bantam), pigeon (Best in Show), rabbit (Best 4 class), llama (Reserve Grand Champion), horse (4th place in contesting). Belongs to the following 4-H clubs: Junior Leaders, Ruff Riders, Fur & Feathers, Moonlight Llamas and Creation Corner.
• Activities: Choreograph and teach dance to other youth, dance performances at nursing homes, community projects with Jr. Leaders, Llama Walk-a-thon (to raise money and educate youth about llamas and alpacas), work with and show abused and neglected horses (to help with their rehabilitation), and take rabbits to a breakfast (for youth to experience them close up).
• Hobbies: Dancing, singing, performing in plays, riding horses, drawing and photography.
• Future plans: “My goals are to own my own dance studio, and to become a 4-H leader or assistant leader. I want to be involved with kids and animals, and this way I can do both.”

Katerina “Katie” Lynette McDermit

• Age: 18
• Hometown: Elwood
• School: Madison-Grant High School
• 4-H Club: Happy Helpers
• Parents: Mark & Natasha McDermit
• 4-H projects and awards: Swine, sheep, fashion revue (Overall Champ 4 years), sewing, consumer clothing, flowers, gardening, foods & food preservation, electric, forestry, wildlife, Junior Leader, 4-H Tour of Dignitaries, Club Secretary and Vice Pres., Demonstrator at Red Gold Cooking School, Jr. Leader Food Stand & Hog Show.    
• Other activities: School Concert Band, Jazz Band, Extreme Dance Team, Track & Field Team, National Honor Society, Academic Honor Awards, Spanish National Honor Society.
• Community: Bonnie & Sheri’s Dance & Gymnastics student and student teacher, Farm Bureau Youth Talent Show 2005-10 (State Fair Champion 2009), volunteer at St. Vincent Mercy Hospital and entertainment at nursing homes.
• Hobbies: Dancing and tumbling, scrapbooking, travelling around the country and overseas (favorite places are Hawaii and Moscow, Russia), D.J. at proms, wedding and other events, bike riding with friends.    
• Future plans: Attend Purdue University and enroll in the Krannert School of Business.
• Glena Murray
• Age: 18
• Hometown: Frankton
• School: Frankton High School
• 4-H Club: Alexandria Ag

• Parents: Vic and Mary Murray
• 4-H projects and awards: Goats, beef, swine, sheep and consumer livestock
• Activities: Key Club, Academic Team, Environmental Club and the Glen Scaggs Foundation.
• Hobbies: Reading, Writing stories, drawing, listening to music, and being with family and friends.
• Future plans: Attending Vincennes University and majoring in graphic design.

Courtney Purkey

• Age: 17
• Hometown: Summitville
• School: Madison-Grant High School
• 4-H Club: Alex AG
• Parents:  Todd and Karen Purkey
• 4-H projects and awards: Has been in 4-H for eight years with awards in bicycle rodeo (Champion and Grand Champion), photography (Reserve Champion with honors). Served as Treasurer and Vice President, in my 4-H Club, Alexandria. AG; in Junior Leaders for four years, and won a Certificate of Achievement for Outstanding 4-H Junior Leader. Won Award of Merit Outstanding Achievement, Div. III, 4-H Electric Program.
• Other activities: Sing and dance in Madison-Grant’s Star Fire Show Choir; played unified basketball with resource kids at Madison-Grant for three years; had the privilege to be a Student Ambassador with People to People and travel to Australia.
• Community: Volunteered at Camp Mack Alexander as a Youth Counselor this summer; volunteered at Second Harvest Food Bank; helped Operation Christmas Child with Shoe Boxes; and participated in a Ronald McDonald Run-Walk. Attends Union Chapel Community Church.
• Hobbies: Travel, camp, ride four-wheelers and spend time with family and friends, karate, canoeing and photography.
• Future plans: Graduate from Madison-Grant High School in 2013 and pursue a career working with handicapped children. “I hope to have the privilege of traveling as a Student Ambassador with People to People again. Traveling to Australia with them was an awesome experience. I also plan to travel to Honduras on a mission trip with my parents.”

Shelby Rasnake

• Age: 17
• Hometown: Anderson
• School: Pendleton Heights High School
• 4-H Club: County Mounties
• Parents:  Greg and Cindi Rasnake
• 4-H projects and awards: Consumer livestock, drug abuse, health, veterinary science, photography, wildlife, Junior Leaders, forestry, foods, cake decorating, scrapbooking, rabbits, misc. crafts, ceramics, flowers, weather, collections, gift wrapping, horse and pony, Top Junior Leader Award — 2nd Highest, Outstanding 4-H Junior Leader Award, Completion Pins, Miss Congeniality  2010.
• Other activities: FFA Club (Reporter, Secretary), Horse Judging, Livestock Judging, French Club, Spanish Club, Greenhand FFA Degree, Chapter FFA Degree, Trinity United Methodist Church.
• Hobbies: Riding horses and being outside, being with friends and going to bonfires with friends. “I like to sing in the car, also to the radio when no one is around.”
• Future plans: Graduate from high school, go to Purdue, become an equine vet and perform acupuncture on horses. “I’m working toward making it to the American Quarter Horse World one day and that is a big dream of mine.”

Abigail Nicole Schwinn

• Age: 18
• Hometown: Summitville
• School: Madison-Grant High School
• 4-H Club: Blue Ribbon Aces
• Parents:  Rodney and Lisa Schwinn
• 4-H projects and awards: Sheep, swine, sewing, scrapbooking, consumer clothing, fashion revue, fine arts, foods. Awards include several Champions and Grand Champions in sewing, fine arts and foods.
• Other Activities: School French Club, Science Club, SADD, Pep Club, Yearbook, National Honor Society, Girls Basketball Manager, Volleyball-three years.
• Community: Delegate to Girls Hoosier State, Volunteer at St. Vincent Mercy Hospital in Elwood, member of Harmony Christian Church, employed as a cashier at Kmart.
• Hobbies: Shopping and spending time with family and friends.
• Future plans: Attend Indiana Univerity in Bloomington in the fall, earn a bachelor’s degree in exercise science and then a doctorate degree in physical therapy from IUPUI. Hopes to become a physical therapist at a sports rehabilitation
• facility.

Samantha Thurston

• Age: 17
• Hometown: Alexandria
• School: Alexandria-Monroe High School
• 4-H Club: Highland AG
• Parents: Dean and Julie Thurston
• 4-H projects and awards: Swine, cattle, sheep, goats, foods, child development, consumer clothing and fashion revue, photography, crafts, recycling, gift wrap, ceramics, secretary Junior Leaders, President Highland AG, 2010 Indiana Duroc Queen at Indiana State Fair, 2010 Grand Champion Barrow-Madison County 4-H Fair, Reserve Intermediate Swine & Beef Showmanship, Reserve Sr. Consumer Clothing, Several Champion and Reserve Championships with different breeds in Sheep, cattle and swine.
• Other activities: School varsity cheerleader, Athletes of Character, Spanish Club, FCA, SADD. Community: Alexandria First Baptist Church, Cheer Camp instructor for Alex Community Center, Cheer Camp instructor for Alexandria Middle School, Bids for Kids, volunteer in church nursery, prom committee.
• Hobbies: Showing in the Indiana Jr. Swine Circuit, Showing Swine at Summer Type Conference, Louisville, Ky., Showing cattle at Hoosier Beef Congress, attending Purdue workshops, swimming, boating, being outdoors, working with kids of all ages, working on other 4-H projects.
• Future plans: Finish high school, attend Purdue University, majoring in animal science.