After years of hard work, the queen is crowned

The Bristolville teen has worked with 4-H for 12 years.
By JAYME RAMSON
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BAZETTA -- Elizabeth Boorn has planned her life around the fair, even sleeping on bales of hay in the fairground barns during the weeklong event.
Now she holds an exclusive title: fair queen.
The announcement was made Monday evening as the 157th Trumbull County Fair prepared to swing into full action today.
Boorn, 18, of Bristolville, won the crown after years of fair involvement. Candidates must fill out a 4-H achievement record and go through an interview.
The junior fair board member is also a member of the 4-H advisory committee and has participated in 4-H for 12 years.
In addition to a number of other 4-H memberships, she's the president of the Trumbull Dairy Feeders.
"She doesn't stress [about all her activities]," said Jan Solomon, a fair board member in charge of the junior fair. "If she does, I've never seen it."
She enters her animals in the dairy feeder and hog contests and has won grand champion and super showmanship honors.
She didn't win the dairy feeder contest last year but she did win three previous years before that. She is entered in this year's competition.
"I like competing with all my animals and I've made a lot of really great friendships through being at the fair," Boorn said.
So, does she like competing because she wins a lot, or does she just like competing?
"A little bit of both, probably. It makes me feel good to know that my hard work has paid off."
Winning writer
She has also won Trumbull County's 4-H essay contest the past two years. This year, the topic was supposed to be about how 4-H has affected the writer's future.
"I wrote about how it has helped shape me into an adult and given me a lot of responsibilities that an adult would have," Boorn said.
So far, she has been successful in her endeavors and has taken on more responsibility every year.
"It takes a lot of work, but I enjoy it," she said.
In the fall she will take on a new challenge as she enrolls at Bowling Green State University, studying to be a foreign-language teacher.
Boorn started working with animals when she was 3 years old. Fifteen years later, she's still at it.
"My parents have been very supportive and every year they help me a lot with things we have to buy," Boorn said.
"They always make sure that I get to where I have to be. They really encourage 4-H."