B2—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 9,1982
Poultiy Queen looking
foiwanl to Farm
BY SALLY BAIR
Staff Correspondent
LaVon Fuhrman has always
looked forward to going to the
Farm Show each January. This
year she is especially eager to
attend because she will be working
to make the show interesting and
fun for the thousands of visitors!.
LaVon, 19, is Lancaster County’s
Poultry Queen and will be
traveling the familiar route to
Harrisburg five days next week.
She begins her royal activities by
participating in the Sunday
opening ceremonies which begin
with church services for the
commodity queens and 1 others
involved with the Show. Then she’ll
go right to work promoting what
she is most familiar with - the
incredible,- edible egg and other
poultry products.
She will be handing out “egg
sides” to first-day visitors, along
with redpe books and stickers
which say “Get Eggdted! ” LaVon
says she and her poultry
promoters are prepared to give
away 3,000 egg sides on opening
day.
LaVon says, “I’m looking for
ward to it. Crowds don’t bother me.
It’s fun to have a lot of people. ’ ’ She
is the daughter of Mr. & Mrs.
Harold Fuhnnan, Bainbridge.
Just five months into her year
long reign, LaVon has already had
lots of experience with crowds by
participating in events like mall
promotions and the big agriculture
expo held in Philadephia this
summer where she helped make a
100 pound taco scrambler. The
scrambler used 300 eggs, five
quarts of milk and 10 pounds of
Cheddar cheese along with other
ingredients and was cooked in a
four foot wide pan. It was served in
taco shells and was a real crowd
pleaser.
LaVon also worked in downtown
Lancaster during Harvest Days
when she helped make individual
ham and cheese omelettes which
were served to observers.
LaVon has participated in many
other events which may have
LaVon holds up what she likes to promote most - a dozen
fine, fresh ready to use Lancaster County eggs.
drawn smaller crowds but which
give her the opportunity to talk up
Lancaster County’s poultry in
dustry which leads the state.
She has spoken at Lions Clubs,'
Kiwanis clubs, banquets and open
houses and has visited one
elementary school.
She says, "I tell them the
statistics on the Lancaster County
poultry industry and how it has
grown and then tell them what I
have done.” Being Poultry Queen
has been a learning experience for
LaVon, and she says she studied up
on the industry for the local contest
and currently receives much in
formation from Vicky Wass, Egg
Promotion Specialist for the
Pennsylvania Department of
Agriculture.
In many promotions CaVon will
help mix up the Instant Egg Pick-
Up, a drink which consists of
orange juice, an egg and some
honey for sweetening. “Most
people like it,” she says, adding
that it provides a lot of nutrients
what with the protein and vitamins
from the egg and the Vitamin C
fr'om the orange juice. It is a quick
drink to mix up on the spur of the.
moment in a blender.
LaVon is always quick to point
out the benefits of-using eggs,
saying, “They are versatile and
used in every kitchen. They are an
inexpensive source of protein
costing about 60 cents per pound,
compared to meat.” She adds with
a smile, “You can use them for
breakfast, lunch and dinner.”
Enthusiastic about her role as
Poultry Queen, LaVon says, I feel
we should have more contestants.
It gives you some great op
portunities. Even just entering the
contest helped me meet a lot of
people and make a lot of friends.”
LaVon feels a commodity queen
can be very useful to promotional
work. “Some people don’t realize
what the industry is all about and
this is a good way to tel! them
what’s going on. People listen to a
queen.” Young children are
especially entralled with her
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Show
crown, which instantly sets her
apart.
Visiting the elementary school
was fun for La Von and she already
has scheduled several more school
appearances in 1982. She says, “I
really did enjoy going to school. I
took my puppet and spoke through
it.” Her puppet is a very cuddly
looking chicken that is bound to
thrill small hearts.
In addition to telling them about
the good nutrition of eggs, LaVon
also gave each child an egg side,
coloring pages and stickers which
were received with enthusiasm by
the children. They wrote her a very
touching letter of thanks for her
visit.
On her school visit -LaVon took
her incubator filled with eggs
about to hatch, and left it there for
the children to observe the hat
ching process.
Despite her wide variety of
experiences, when asked if she has
a goal she would like to reach
during the second half of her reign,
LaVon states, “I’d like to go to a
senior citizen’s group.”
Donna Hess, Lancaster County’s
alternate Poultry Queen, has
become very involved in
promotions and has riden with
LaVon in six parades and made
appearances with her. LaVon
appreciates this assistance from
Donna who has proved a real help
at some of the larger promotional
events, often pitching in when
LaVon is called away for picture
taking.
Since there is no state Poultry
Queen, LaVon and the Adams
County Poultry Queen, the only
two in Pennsylvania, often make
appearances on behalf of the state
poultry industry. Most of these
events are scheduled by Vicky
Wass, who works closely with the
two queens.
.LaVon adds, “I have gotten
tremendous support here from our
queen committee. They travel with
me and help schedule ap
pearances.”
A 1980 graduate of
Elizabethtown High School, LaVon
is now a member of the
Elizabethtown Business and
Professional Women’s Club, a
bowling league at Clearview Lanes
and attends St. Luke’s Lutheran
Church.
LaVon’s family is not directly
mvolved in producing eggs, but she
works as a secretary for Wenger’s
Feeds, Elizabethtown, which
produces only poultry feeds. It was
there that she became interested in
the contest and received strong
support to enter it. She expresses
gratitude to the company for
allowing her to make appearances
which take her away from the job;
it is a large contribution they are
making to Lancaster County’s
poultry industry.
In addition to learning more
about the industry and about its
products, LaVon says, “I have
learned to be witb people and to be
comfortable with people who I
might not normally meet." Such
people include Governor Dick
Thornburgh with whom she has
made appearances, and also
Agriculture Secretary Penny
Hallowell. She points out that she
usually gets more nervous when
meeting with a small group which
she knows than with larger groups,
usually of strangers.
When making speaking
engagements, LaVon says, “I try
to educate the public. 1 tell people
of all ages the benefits of eggs and
chickens and the importance of the
industry in the county. I also talk
about ducks, which most people
don't think of.” She quickly ticked
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)ty ;ry poi
friends she acquired - Brewster Rooster, Henrietta Hen and
other crocheted items related to the poultry industry.
off the numerous industries related
to poultry, including farmers, feed
mills, egg and poultry processors.
Although she doesn’t use it a lot,
she figures the song she made up
for the Lancaster County contest
sums up how great eggs are for
you. It is sung to a tune made
famous by another locally
produced agricultural commodity -
milk.
“They’re a special, special
treat.
You can buy them by the
dozen.
You can bake 'em, poach
’em, fry 'em,
Feed ’em to a Dad or cousin.
They’re a special treat,
special treat.
They’ve always been a
favorite.
They’re a special, special
treat-eat eggs!”
Ask to choose a highlight from
(otnesipad
c H/oies
Santa calls lucky
(We recently learned of a very lucky
country boy who got a phone call from
Santa, so we decided to share it with
you. Following is his mother’s version
of little Jonathan’s lucky day.)
LANCASTER Santa’s bag was
heavy and was slowing him down
from doing his early Christmas
rounds.
So on Tuesday evening before
Christmas, he called four-year-old
Jonathan Kurtz of Fleetwood and
told him he left a Christmas gift
under the tree at a friend’s house.
Santa then proceeded to ask
Jonathan if be could pick.it up
there because it was much to
heavy to carry any farther, what
with his heavy toy bag and all.
Jonathan was wide-eyed and
explained on the phone to his friend
her reign to this point, LaVon says
simply, “I’ve enjoyed everything
I’ve done. It would be hard to pick
out one thing.’’
Three scrapbooks are filled with
news clippings, programs and
other remembrances of the
promotional work she has done so
far, and there will be many more
needed before the conclusion of her
reign.
For LaVon, traveling to Farm
Show this week will offer an op
portunity to renew acquain
tenances with other commodity
queens whom she has met at
statewide promotions.
All of Pennsylvania’s
agriculture royalty will be on hand
to officially open the show and to
share some of the bounty of this
state’s diversified agriculture. To
LaVon, it is an opportunity not to
be missed - and a great way to
promote the products of Lancaster
County’s growing poultry industry.
little boy
what Santa bad said. His friend,
four-year-old Natbanel, just looked
at him in awe. After all, he had
never got a phone call from Santa!
Jonathan hurriedly jumped in
the car with mom and dad and
little sister and drove to Nathanel’s
house. When Jonathan walked
through the door his eye caught the
gift, ail covered with a white
blanket and a note saying, “Merry
Christmas Jonathan. ’ ’'
At first Jonathan didn't know
what to do. He just stared at the
box until some coaxing convinced
him to pull of the blanket.
There stood a huge play barn
designed after his parents’ real
farm.
It had a two and one-half foot
Harvestore silo and a place for
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