Haley Hackman has
had about five months to get ready for
the 2015 Indiana State Fair Queen competition.
That’s because the pageant is this weekend instead of last summer during the final weekend of the fair.
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This will be the first time the event, conducted at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis, will be in January. The Indiana State Fair Board last year decided to move the date so contestants could have more time to prepare.
Hackman, 21, was crowned Jackson County Fair queen in July. She is competing against 84 other women, and judges will make a decision based on interviews, professional wear and evening gowns. The competition began Friday, and the state fair queen will be crowned Sunday.
Hackman said that despite the extra time the event has crept up on her.
“I always felt like it was so far away,” she said. “But with the end of the semester and Christmas, these final weeks have flown by.”
Hackman, daughter of Gina and Parke Hackman, is a student at University of Indianapolis studying psychology. She will attend the university’s School of Occupational Therapy in the fall.
The former Brownstown resident said she has been using the past few months to obtain competition attire and anything else she may need this weekend. Otherwise, she has felt ready for a long time.
“I can honestly say that my whole life has prepared me for a competition such as this one, so I have only been doing some brushing up before the big weekend,” she said.
Though she said she’s a bit nervous, she said she tends to perform better under pressure.
“I think some nerves are good,” she said.
Hackman said her overall goal during the interviews and on stage is to first and foremost to represent Jackson County to the best of her ability. If that leads her to be crowned the 2015 Indiana State Fair queen, she said she would be ecstatic.
“All prayers and words of advice or encouragement are welcome,” she said.
Hackman was the 58th queen in Jackson County Fair history. Her court included Alyson Nash, who was named the first runner-up of the pageant, and Gracie Wessel, who was named second runner-up. Desiree Steinkamp was named Miss Congeniality.
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What: Finals and crowning of Miss Indiana State Fair 2015
When: 1 p.m. Sunday, doors open at noon
Where: Indiana Farmers Coliseum on the Indiana State Fairgrounds, 1202 E. 38th St., Indianapolis
Tickets: $10, ages 5 and under free
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