The 67th annual Vermont Dairy Festival kicked off this week in Enosburg Falls at the beginning of National Dairy Month.
Per tradition, it usually starts with the Scholarship Pageant Parade, featuring young women from around Franklin County competing for a collegiate scholarship.
But this year looks a little different. No eligible high school senior girls signed up to participate.
Pageant Director and President of the Lions Club Brent Garrow says this would have been the pageant’s 37th year. He’s shocked and said it was "disappointing" to see.
“I met with some of the senior girls and when it came time for the actual meeting, there were three of us here at the high school, we sat for an hour, and nobody came," Garrow said.
The pageant usually has upwards of 20 contestants and Garrow says there are around 200 eligible girls in Franklin County.
Participants are judged on a variety of categories like scholastic achievement, creative and performing arts, and appearance. The winner receives a scholarship towards college expenses.
"That's kind of too bad," said Kristi West, a native of Franklin County. "Because I know people that have gotten that before. And I think that ... you know, helps them with college."
Garrow could not point to a reason why contestants were not interested in participating, but hopes the event will return next year.
"Sometimes it takes something like this for you to stop and take a minute to appreciate the hard work that goes into our milk and our cheese and all the stuff that we put on our table."Kristi West, Franklin County native
Even in the absence of the scholarship pageant, Franklin County residents say they're proud of the dairy festival's community tradition.
Kelli Garrow, an Enosburg Falls resident, has joined in the festivities her entire life.
"Because it's a small town, we don’t have much else. So this is the one thing all year everyone in Franklin County looks forward to," she said. "People come out from everywhere."
Besides the community building, the event highlights dairy farmers' importance in Vermont. That's according to Kristi West, who attended the first day of the dairy festival Thursday and watched her granddaughter go on Midway rides and eat a candied apple.
"Sometimes it takes something like this for you to stop and take a minute to appreciate the hard work that goes into our milk and our cheese and all the stuff that we put on our table," West said. "The farmers put it there."
The festival runs through Sunday, June 4. Included on the schedule are a milking contest, bingo and live music.
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