Smith crowned Mower dairy princess
Published 10:24 am Tuesday, April 14, 2015
Pictured are Mower County Milkmaids (front) Amelia Smith, Lydia Reinartz and Emma Haugen. Back row left to right: Ambassador Lea Semones, Princess McKinzie Smith, Ambassador Abby Rossow, and Ambassador Stephanie Sukalski. Photos provided.
Mower County has a new dairy princess.
McKinzie Smith of Adams was crowned the 2015 Mower County Dairy Princess at the 62nd Annual Dairy Princess Banquet on Friday at the Sacred Heart Auditorium in Adams.
Smith is the daughter of Rick and Tracy Smith and was sponsored by Land O’Lakes Inc. About 180 guests attended the annual dairy celebration.
Three young women will serve as Mower County Dairy Ambassadors: Abby Rossow, daughter of Mike and Vicki Rossow of Dexter, sponsored by Rock Dell Cooperative Creamery; Lea Semones, daughter of Cheri Bentzin and Ed Smith of Rose Creek, sponsored by Foremost Farms; and Stephanie Sukalski, daughter of Troy and Chris Sukalski of LeRoy, sponsored by Kruegel Gas Service. Darrell Ingvaldson, Austin Area Chamber of Commerce, presented the candidates with chamber bucks.
Lauren Mullenbach, 2014 Mower County Dairy Princess, presents the Milk Pitcher award to Eugene Anderson
Three girls were named 2015 Mower County Milkmaids. This is a county program open to third- and fourth-grade girls with an interest in the dairy industry. The milkmaids are: Emma Haugen, daughter of Corey and Jen Haugen of Austin, sponsored by Kemps; Amelia Smith, daughter of Ed Smith and Heather Schmitz of Rose Creek, sponsored by Mayer Milk Hauling; and Lydia Reinartz, daughter of Steve and Darcey Reinartz of Adams, sponsored by Dr. Lamonte Gray & Stateline Veterinary Supply.
The banquet began with a dairy social hour allowing guests to meet the current dairy royalty as well as the 2015 candidates. During the social hour the royalty and candidates served samples of dairy products. Guests could also view live and silent scholarship auction items before the start of the banquet.
Lauren Mullenbach, the 2014 Mower County Dairy Princess, presented the Milk Pitcher award to Eugene Anderson of Waltham. This award is presented to an individual who does an outstanding job of promoting dairy products. Anderson has served 29 years on the Mower County American Dairy Association Board and been instrumental in many of the dairy promotions in the county.
The Golden Butter Knife was presented to Sampson Dairy Foods Inc. Sampson Dairy was a well-known dairy delivery company in southeast Minnesota and also the supplier of shake mix to Mower County ADA’s malt wagon at the county fair for many years. Sampson Dairy, begun by Joe Sampson in 1970, closed its doors in September 2014.
