ST. PAUL, Minn., Aug. 20, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Jeni Haler, a
19-year-old college student from Norwood
Young America, Minn., representing Carver County, was crowned the 61st Princess
Kay of the Milky Way in an evening ceremony at the Minnesota State
Fairgrounds, August 20.
Haler will serve as the official goodwill ambassador for more
than 3,600 Minnesota dairy farm
families. Jeni is the daughter of Rick Haler and Connie Helget Haasken, and attends the
University of Minnesota – Twin Cities, where she double majors in animal
science and Spanish/Portuguese studies.
Twelve county dairy princesses from throughout Minnesota competed for the Princess Kay of the
Milky Way title. Audrey Lane of
Prior Lake, representing
Scott County, and Sabrina Ley of Belgrade, representing Stearns County, were selected as runners-up.
Gabriella Sorg of Hastings, representing Dakota County, was named Miss Congeniality.
Scholarships were awarded to Annie
Culbertson of Pine Island,
representing Olmsted County;
Sarah Post of Chandler, representing Murray County; and Lane.
Haler's first official duty as Princess Kay will be to sit in a
rotating cooler in the Dairy Building for nearly six hours to have
her likeness sculpted in a 90-pound block of butter on the opening
day of the Minnesota State Fair. Each finalist will also have her
likeness carved in butter during the fair. This year marks butter
sculptor Linda Christensen's 43rd
year carving the Princess Kay of the Milky Way winner and finalists
at the Minnesota State Fair.
Throughout her year-long reign as Princess Kay of the Milky Way,
Haler will make public appearances to help connect consumers to
Minnesota's dairy farm families.
She will also promote the Fuel Up to Play 60 program, through which
she encourages students to get 60 minutes of exercise each day and
eat a healthy diet that includes three servings of dairy.
Princess Kay candidates are judged on their general knowledge of
the dairy industry, communication skills and enthusiasm for dairy.
The Midwest Dairy Association sponsors the Princess Kay program,
which is funded by the dairy checkoff.
Midwest Dairy Association® is a non-profit
organization funded by dairy farmers to build demand for dairy
products through integrated marketing, nutrition education and
research. Midwest Dairy is funded by checkoff dollars from dairy
farmers in a 10-state region, including Minnesota, North
Dakota, South Dakota,
Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma. For more information, visit
www.midwestdairy.com. Follow us on Twitter and find us on Facebook
at Midwest Dairy.
SOURCE Midwest Dairy Association