2007 Miss Monroe County crowned

Alyssa Lampkins woke up at 5 a.m., Saturday, to tend to her show pigs at the Monroe County Fair. Fourteen hours later, she was crowned 2007 Miss Monroe County.\n“I was expecting to be someone of the court, and then I didn’t hear my name called.” Lampkins, a 16-year-old junior at Bloomington High School South, said. “When they said I was queen, I was really, really shocked.”\nThe record-setting 33 contestants faced off for the title of Miss Monroe County, going through one-on-one interviews with contest judges before the actual competition. During Lampkins’ interview, she was asked what celebrity she wanted to be most like. She said she told the judges Carrie Underwood, the Grammy award-winning country singer, because she “strives to achieve, and that’s what I do.”\nContestants went through one round each of swimwear, professional wear and evening wear. Lampkins said she felt most uncomfortable during the swimwear portion of the competition.\n“Because I’m not always comfortable in a swimsuit,” Lampkins said. “I’m used to going to the beach and stuff and not being out in front of a lot of people.”\nLampkins’ mother Cindy was one of the nearly 1,000 people in the capacity crowd in attendance Saturday. Cindy Lampkins said she was surprised when Alyssa told her three months ago that she wanted to compete in the pageant, because Alyssa is not a “frou-frou” type of girl.\n“Alyssa likes barrel racing, horses, showing her pigs and she’s a down-home country girl,” Cindy Lampkins said.\nAlyssa’s family supported her with pink shirts that read, “Alyssa Lampkins is our Fair Queen.” Family and friends said the idea came from Alyssa’s cousin Misty Edwards.\n“I was just thinking of something to embarrass her and to let people around the fair know we were here for her,” Edwards said. “We knew she was going to win though.”\nWhile Lampkins won the 2007 Miss Monroe County competition, Juli Johnston, first-runner up, had the crowd's support. Johnston, a 17-year-old senior at Bloomington High School South, said she made a risky choice for her evening gown but wasn’t sure if it was what cost her the win.\n“This is my first year running,” Johnston said, “so I didn’t know they yelled that loud for other people too.”\nBut Cindy Lampkins knew why her daughter was the obvious winner.\n“She sets goals for herself, and she achieves them,” Cindy Lampkins said. “Alyssa sets her mind to do something, and she follows through with it. Good outcome or bad outcome, she still tries her best.”\nKate Middleton, 2006 Miss Monroe County and an IDS staffer, crowned Lampkins when she was announced the winner.