Beer Crowned Queen At Mermaid FestNORTH WEBSTER – Meghan Beer was crowned the 2019 Queen of Lakes at the 74th annual Mermaid Festival in North Webster Saturday.
Beer, 19, took home not only a shiny new crown but also $5,000 in scholarship money from the Shoop Youth and Sports Foundation.
She will use that money to help pay her tuition at Purdue University, where she is in her second year studying to become a physician’s assistant.
“This was my first year competing and I didn’t really know what to expect,” Beer said. “My mom and my grandma kind of pushed me to do it and I just remember when I was little seeing the girls’ pictures in the paper and I never thought I was good enough for a pageant.”
But she was good enough, besting nine other contestants vying for the title.
“My mom was like, ‘Oh my goodness aren’t you glad we talked you into it?’”
The theme for the festival this year was “Life at the Lake,” and Beer’s float for the parade (a requirement as part of the pageant) was a sailboat fishing design. While she admittedly doesn’t fish, she does know how to sail, so she combined what she enjoys doing and what she thought life at the lake might mean for others.
“My grandparents live on Lake Syracuse, and I went there when I was little and learned to tube, then ski, then wakeboard and now I’m old enough to drive the boat, and I invite my friends over. The Fourth of July is my favorite,” Beer said.
Beer said participating in the pageant helped her get out there in front of the public and on a stage.
“The parade was my favorite part. Seeing the community, and, of course, I?loved getting a crown,” she laughed.
Beer said the experience might open the door for other pageants in the future like the Indy 500 pageant, but she’s not sure.
“I’m really glad I tried it, I had a lot of fun and thank you to everyone who put it together and put it all on,” she said. “All of the girls were so grateful.”
Next year’s theme is “Throughout the Years” to celebrate the 75th annual Mermaid Festival in North Webster.
