Amelia Beer, left, and Cruz Turner were chosen as the 2023 Mermaid Festival Queen and King on Friday, June 23. InkFreeNews photos by Keith Knepp.

By Keith Knepp
InkFreeNews

NORTH WEBSTER — Parents, family, friends and community members crowded the gymnasium bleachers at the North Webster Community Center Friday evening as the annual Cutie Contest looked to crown its 2023 Mermaid Festival Cutie Queen and Cutie King.

Fourteen young ladies, ranging in age from 5-7 took stage alongside eight young gentlemen, each hoping to eventually earn the crown and sash that would forever add their names to Mermaid Festival history.

In the end, Amelia Beer and Cruz Turner would earn the coveted titles of Cutie Queen and King. Beer, 7, is the daughter of Jason and Whitney Beer of Milford, while Turner, 6,  is the son of Aaron and Abby Turner of Leesburg.

Members of the court on the girls’ side, in order of finish, are Remington Nabinger, North Webster; Reagan Risedorph, Milford; and Julia Cotton, Fort Wayne. On the boys’ court are Phinneus DuBois, North Webster; Micah Snider, Pierceton; and Axel Lewallen, Leesburg.

As always, emceeing the event was Phil Metcalf, who informed the crowd that judging was based on the candidates attitude, cooperation, attire, self-confidence and appearance, saying “neatness and cleanliness counts.” Each candidate was given a score of 1-10 by each of the six judges. Once the scores were added up, the contestants with the highest tallies were named the winners.

This year’s judges were Ed Beckner, Mona Beckner, Christopher Smith, LeeAnn Smith, Jeanette Keim and Coryn Barton.

As part of the contest, the winners of the annual Cutie Parade, which was held in downtown North Webster Wednesday night, were announced. There were three categories of entry: walking, hand drawn and motorized.

Parade winners were:

Walking: Wade Anderson , first place; Mason Ruch, second; Jensen Lovely, third; and Cruz Turner, fourth.

Hand drawn: Mallory Maynard, first place; Henry Beer, second; Aubrey Granger, third; and AJ Kimmel, fourth.

Motorized: Lincoln Granger, first place; Emily Laureys, second; Zane Grady, third; and Phinneus DuBois, fourth.