2020 Fair Queen Halle Klapprich By Lorie Palmer Idaho County Free Press “So far, this royalty experience has been very impactful in my life. I have learned so many things from this experience, such as communication and problem-solving skills,” stated Halle Klapprich. “Throughout this experience, things have happened that were beyond our control that limited when we could work together and the number of functions we could go to. I've learned to make the best out of situations that you are given in life. You cannot always prevent what happens, but you can control how you react to situations you are given.” Klapprich is the Idaho County Fair Queen 2020. She is the daughter of Heath and Tara Klapprich, and granddaughter of Eugene and JoAnn McHugh, Lloyd Uhlenkott and Judy Klapprich-Uhlenkott. Klapprich will be a senior at Prairie Junior Senior High School this fall and is the oldest of five siblings: Olivia (16), Miranda (14), Dylan (12), Ava (8), and Ruby (5). During high school, Klapprich has participated in a variety of activities, including volleyball, basketball, BPA, HOSA, knowledge bowl and tutoring. She is also involved in St. Mary's Parish Catholic youth group. Following graduation, she plans to go to college and major in nursing with a pre-medical emphasis. “I hope to become a pediatrician,” she stated. “I also hope to get married and have a family in the future.” Klapprich dreamed of being a part of Idaho County Fair royalty for years. “In 2014, my cousin, Emily, was crowned the first princess, and in 2017, my cousin, Selena, was crowned queen of the Idaho County Fair,” Klapprich recalled. “Watching their royalty experience showed me that royalty was much more than just a pageant. They forged lasting friendships and enjoyed many fun adventures together. When I was eligible to apply, they both encouraged me to take the opportunity to have some of the same experiences. Because the fair is such a big part of my life, I too wanted to try out for royalty and represent the county.” Both of Klapprich’s parents participated in 4-H during their youth, and she herself has been involved for 11 years, now as a part of the Cottonwood Saddliers and Livestock 4-H Club. She has participated in multiple projects, open class entries, fashion board, demonstration contests, table setting contests, and has won two Friends of 4-H awards. “My favorite parts of the Idaho County Fair are seeing all of the people working together and competing. I love to compete with my friends and learn new things in the ring. Although we are competing, we are also rooting for each other,” she explained. “We always get excited for each other when someone wins an award. When we show our animals, it is more than just trying to win a prize, it is about having fun and helping younger competitors to learn how to show their animals.” She said she also loves the fashion show. “I love to help decorate the stage and show off all of our hard work in my sewing projects during the show,” she said. Because of the COVID-19 quarantine, royalty missed out on many events. “We have missed out on some parades, postponed our Princess Tea Party, and worked on our float separately. Luckily, I have been able to follow my cousins’ lead and make friendships and have wonderful experiences during the year so far,” Klapprich said. “Among my best memories of royalty during this quarantine would be putting the pieces of our float together and taking pictures. I loved seeing all of our visions and ideas being put together to form a great float. When taking pictures, we had so much fun at each location and we all struggled trying to figure out where to put our arms! Taking pictures with Paige and Madison was so much fun and there were so many funny moments that will be remembered.” Klapprich thanked the Idaho County Fair Board, advisor Joyce Sonnen and the royalty parents for all of their help and support. “Also, thanks to Dave Shears for letting us use the bus barn to decorate and work on our float; we appreciate it,” she said. “Royalty has been a great experience,” Klapprich continued. “I think that young ladies should get involved with royalty because of the opportunity to work as a team and meet new people. Royalty has helped me build my confidence; I have learned to voice my opinion and speak up when needed. I am thankful that I got the opportunity to participate in this wonderful program.” First Princess Paige Layman  By Lorie Palmer Idaho County Free Press “I think that young ladies should get involved in royalty because it is a great experience,” said 18-year-old Paige Layman. “You get to meet a lot of new people, such as at the parades and the luncheons. It is an awesome way to try new things. Royalty gives you a lot of opportunities too, like being more involved in the fair and helping out others.” Layman is the Idaho County Fair First Princess. She graduated in May from Grangeville High School and plans to attend Lewis-Clark State College in the fall where she will major in biology. Following this, she hopes to attend Idaho’s Peace Officer Academy for a year, then later become a Fish and Game Officer. The daughter of Jerod and Jackie Layman is the younger sister of Lelah and Jakob and is the granddaughter of Mark and Pam Smith. During high school, Layman participated in volleyball, basketball and softball. For her senior project, she volunteered to help Tiffany Forsmann at the Cottonwood Senior Center. Layman has been involved in 4-H for 11 years, taking projects in rabbit, dog, poultry and sheep. She has been a member of Barnyard Beastiles, led by Ty and Shannon Reuter. She also served as a 4-H Ambassador for two years. “My favorite part about the fair is showing your animals,” Layman said. “It is an awesome experience, and every year you come back to show, you always learn something new. It is very satisfying learning about an animal for 70 days or more, then getting the opportunity to show them off.” With the COVID-19 shutdown, Layman said the royalty missed several events that were canceled. “Because of the shutdown, we had a lot more time to decide how we want the float and what to get for it. The poles that we use to hold onto on the float are wrapped around with rope,” she explained. “My favorite memory is watching Madison's dad, Halle’s dad, and my mom struggle to get that rope to stay on those poles.” Layman said she would like to especially thank Kim Peterson from Aqua Jet who made the royalty names out of tin for the float. “Royalty has really helped me grow as a person,” Layman said. “I have learned to be comfortable when I speak out in front of people. I also learned to stand up for myself. After being in parades and waving to all of the people watching, it has really made me more comfortable in front of people.” Second Princess Madison Shears
‘Royalty helps you find out who you truly are’
By Lorie Palmer Idaho County Free Press “Royalty has made me more of a role model and has encouraged me to be more involved in my community and helping out,” 17-year-old Madison Shears said. “It’s also helped with public speaking skills.” Shears is the Idaho County Fair Second Princess. She is the daughter of David and Erin Shears and older sister to brothers Keenan and Carter. Her grandparents include Joe and Kathy Kuther, and Dave and Theresa Shears. Shears is a senior at Prairie High School in Cottonwood where she has been involved in volleyball, basketball, softball, HOSA and Prairie League. She is also active in her church youth group and other church events, and volunteers for the Center of Discovery and Tiny Tots Learning Center. She has not yet decided what to do following graduation, but would like to play basketball at a small school, such as Lewis-Clark State College, and obtain her degree in elementary education to become a teacher. “I love seeing all my friends and family at the fair each year, as well as showing my lamb, watching the sale, and the parade,” she said. Shears has been a member of the Greencreek Active Workers 4-H Club for 10 years. She has shown a market lamb 10 years and had a grand champion quality lamb. She has also taken Making the Most of Me project for five years, has entered open class exhibits for as long as she remembers and entered the pigtail contest for many years. “My two favorite memories of royalty were definitely Lewiston Round-Up and the parade, and finally finishing our float,” she recalled. “Challenges were missing out on parades and Lewis County Fair because it started snowing and it was cold.” Shears said she thanks the Idaho County Fair Board for supporting royalty throughout the years, Aqua Jet for making their names for the float, her parents for helping, supporting and encouraging her, the rest of her family for all their love and support, Joyce [Sonnen, advisor] for helping them and being supportive, “and Halle and Paige for making this year so much fun,” she said. “Royalty is far more than a pageant -- it lets you be a role model for younger girls and to find out who you truly are through being yourself,” Shears added. Royalty Luncheon Photos  The current royalty and the 2021 candidates. From left are Leann Lightfield, Madison Shears, Dani Sonnen, Halle Klapprich, Olivia Klapprich, Paige Layman and Kaylee Doughty.  The current royalty with royalty advisor Joyce Gehring-Sonnen  Kaylee Doughty giving her speech  Olivia Klapprich during her speech.  Leann Lightfield giving her speech.  Dani Sonnen during her speech.  Kaylee Doughty, left considers her questions before giving her answer during the impromptu question session. Also from left are Olivia Klapprich, Leann Lightfield and Dani Sonnen.  Queen Halle Klapprich talks during the Royalty Luncheon.  First Princess Paige Layman at the Royalty Luncheon.  2nd Princess Madison Shears at the Royalty Luncheon |
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