2023 king and queen crowned

On Monday evening, Lauren Gabel and William Fruth were crowned as the 2023 Seneca County Fair Queen and King during the Junior Fair Night ceremony. Gabel is the daughter of John and Joann Gabel, and is a member of the Blue Ribbon Buckeyes 4-H club. She recently graduated from New Riegel High School and plans to attend Owens Community College in the fall. Fruth is the son of Glen and Rachel Fruth. He is a member of Hopewell Hog and Dairy 4-H club and will be a senior attending Hopewell-Loudon High School in the fall. All queen and king candidates participated in a two-part interview process. On July 22, candidates had in-person interviews during the royalty luncheon then participated in on-stage interviews with both unprepared and prepared questions in front of a panel of judges. From that point, their scores were tallied and announced at the Junior Fair Night in the Education Building on Monday. "I'm really excited because my mom was fair queen and so this is kind of really special to me," Gabel said after the crowning ceremony, noting she is looking forward to "going to different fairs and bringing back different ideas to Seneca County." Fruth said he is happy to have won fair king, and mentioned his competitors would have both been great options for the title as well. "I love to show the kids what fair can be, it's just so much fun leading them," he said in regard to what he is looking forward to as fair king. The fair king second runner-up was Zachary Wertz, the son of Nick and Jennifer Wertz. He is a member of New Riegel Rawhide and Woolies 4-H club and recently graduated from New Riegel High School. In the fall, he plans to attend The University of Toledo. The first-runner up was Carson Staib, the son of Nathan Staib and Tami Staib. He is a member of Hopewell Hog and Dairy 4-H club and will be a senior attending New Riegel High School in the fall. Haylee Steinmetz, the daughter of Jim and Elaine Steinmetz, placed first runner-up for fair queen. She is a member of Clinton Farmers 4-H group, and she recently graduated from Seneca East High School and plans to attend BGSU in the fall. Several scholarships were also given out to local students involved with 4-H during the ceremony. The Seneca County Advisory Council Scholarship was presented to Elyse Pope and Zachary Wertz. Pope is a Buckeye Central graduate, and both she and Wertz have been active in 4-H for 10 years. Next, the Seneca County 4-H Program Memorial Scholarship was presented. This particular scholarship is presented in memory of members of the Seneca County 4-H family who have passed away, and an essay must accompany the application explaining the importance of giving back. Gabel, the 2023 Fair Queen, was presented with the 4-H Program Memorial Scholarship for her experience with 4-H projects and groups. Gabel is actively involved in Junior Fair Board, Junior Leadership, Food and Fashion Board, State Fashion Board and CARTEENS. Gabel was also presented with the CARTEENS scholarship, for her volunteering, upcoming educational goals and her GPA. The Seneca County Junior Fair Night program extends a special thanks to the following: First National Bank of Sycamore; Junior Fair Foundation; Rainey Crop Insurance; Emily Gilliland; Junior Fair Board; Senior Fair Board; Pat Miller; Bear Brothers; Old Fort Bank; Friends of Junior Fair; Rock Run Bulk Foods; Advisory Council; Ag Credit; Tiffin Aire; Sentinel Career and Technology Center; and Wagner Flower and Greenhouse.