Stevie Greek’s childhood is right out of a storybook. “I grew up on a farm on the outskirts of Delta, Pennsylvania…. From the time I was born, I was always out in the barn with my Dad. As a toddler, I used to wake up at 4:00 in the morning and go out with him to milk the cows, but I usually ended up falling asleep on a hay bale.”
At first, those special moments convinced her that she’d go into agriculture. “I was always very interested in the farm,” she says. “In fact, when I was younger I wanted to be a Large Animal Veterinarian. I used to sit on a bucket and watch Dr. Cohagen perform surgery on a cow with a twisted stomach and follow Dr. Brey around taking notes when he came to test if the female cows we had bred were pregnant.” But as she grew up, another passion emerged. “Over the years my Dad and I have done a lot of projects together,” she says, “from building a miniature bed for my favorite doll…to building a model house for an elementary school project to most recently building a nightstand I designed and refinishing old furniture that I had bought to furnish my new apartment.” Early on, the projects didn’t always go smoothly: “I was 6 when we [built the doll bed], and my dad made the mistake of letting me use the hand saw…I cut the hand he was using to hold the wood instead of the actual wood.” Accidents aside, Greek’s love of design led her to a major in Interior Architecture. “I really like to be creative, and I think as an Interior Architecture major, I get the chance to pursue that, while also gaining a measurable skill set and knowledge that will help me in my future career. Interior Architecture is really an art and a science.”
It’s one dimension of a four-part plan she developed in Kindergarten. “Actually,” she says, “I remember when I was about 5 years old, I used to tell everyone that I wanted to be an ‘Ar-Far-Ve-Act’ when I grew up, which was my invented term for a combination Artist, Farmer, Veterinarian and Actress.” She’s got the artist part down, but recently she had the opportunity to indulge her performing side.
In Summer 2011, Stevie competed in the Mason-Dixon Fair Queen Competition: a decision that was a long time coming. “Personally, I’ve been involved with the fair since it’s grand opening in 1998. The Mason-Dixon Fair is actually the youngest county fair in the State of Pennsylvania, so I had the unique opportunity to ‘grow up’ with my fair.” At first, her interest was mostly in farming. “From the time I was seven years old, I exhibited my dairy cows at the fair as a 4-H Exhibitor,” she says. “Those years I spent in the barns at the Mason-Dixon Fair are still some of my fondest memories.” It’s not a small commitment, either. “Some people would be surprised to find out that a lot of exhibitors who bring their animals to county fairs sleep in the barns overnight. Because of the feeding schedule and preparations for the shows themselves, it just makes more sense to, but also it is a ton of fun! I remember we would spend hours playing cards, running around like the crazy kids we were and working with our animals all together the night before the show.” After years of faithfully exhibiting as a 4-H member, Greek added something new to her schedule. “In 2004, I served as the Mason-Dixon Junior Fair Queen,” she says. “At that point, I was probably inspired to compete for the title because my cousin, Lisa Jones, had been named the Fair Queen a few years prior.” The win changed everything. “After being crowned the Junior Fair Queen, I spent the week experiencing the fair I had been participating in for 6 years in a totally new way. Whereas before, I mostly knew only those who were involved with the agricultural side of the fair, that year, I got to see first-hand the hard work and dedication that is put into making the fair a success every year by the Fair Board and all of the other Fair Volunteers.” She left extraordinarily impressed. “It was something that was really inspiring for me, especially since I come from such a small community (the town of Delta only has about 900 residents), to see what just a handful of hardworking people can accomplish together.”
Soon, the Fair Queen competition became a big part of the Greek family. “I don’t think I was the only one that was inspired,” she says, “because the year after that, my younger sister, Frances, competed for and won the title of 2005 Junior Fair Queen and the following year, my mother, Bonnie Jo Greek, began volunteering as the Mason-Dixon Fair Queen Program Coordinator. Through the following years, I would help my mother at the fair, showing the new Queens the ropes of handing out ribbons at the livestock shows and helping to keep the Queen tent running. I always knew that I would eventually run for Fair Queen myself, and as 2011 was the last year I would be eligible because of my age, I decided that this was my time to do it.”
Events in the Fair Queen competition emphasize intelligence and leadership. In addition to an essay, Stevie completed “an interview with the judges, as well as a biographical speech and a fishbowl question that is answered onstage.” Every event created a new memory, but the interview was a definite highlight. “My favorite part was the interview,” she says, “because I didn’t need to worry about memorizing anything or speaking in front of a crowd. It was just me and the three judges, and I just got to relax and be myself.”
Being herself paid off: she won. “It felt a little surreal when they announced my name, maybe because I felt that this was such a long time coming. I had always thought about what it would be like to be the Fair Queen, what outfits I would wear and what extra community events I would attend. Hearing my name and seeing the looks on my family’s faces in the audience, I felt very proud.”
As the winner, she got “a gift basket donated by different departments of the fair and a cash prize,” but the experience didn’t end in Delta: Greek won the chance to compete in the Pennsylvania State Fair Queen Competition. “At first, I was pretty nervous about competing…. I had seen the queens in the past go, and I had watched some videos from previous years—it’s intense! But after my initial nervousness, I was excited because this experience would truly be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” The weeklong event definitely took dedication. “First,” she says, “on Thursday night, we gave Formal Introductions, in which we introduced ourselves to an audience of just less than 1,000 people in an evening gown while also trying to leave a lasting impression of our fair in under 15 seconds. On Friday, we had Formal Interviews with the three judges who were each Certified Fair Executives from the nearby states of Delaware, Maryland and Ohio. Saturday was the day that I delivered a speech to the judges meant to answer the question, ‘Why should YOU come to MY fair?’. We were also judged on two essays, our first being the essay we wrote for the competition at our own fairs and the second one being titled, ‘Why I wish to become the 2012 PA State Fair Queen’, and [we were judged] at a reception hosted by the 2011 PA State Fair Queen, Claire Werkiser.”
Luckily, there were many fun moments to break the tension. “Our time in Hershey was pretty regimented, but when we weren’t being officially judged, we had a Queen’s Pizza Party where we exchanged gifts with other Fair Queens from the State (I got an awesome cookbook from the Lebanon Area Fair!), we volunteered at the Fair Queen Program Table at the PSACF (Pennsylvania Association of County Fairs) Tradeshow, and we attended a private concert by the country group, Lonestar in honor of the PSACF’s 100th Anniversary, which was this year.” Being in Hershey had its perks. “Since the Convention/Competition was held at the Hershey Lodge and Convention Center, there were also several banquets where we were served delicious gourmet food and of course, chocolaty desserts!” While she got to satisfy her sweet tooth, she also got to indulge her love of music. “Probably my favorite part outside of the competition was getting to play the wash bucket bass with a pair of entertainers at the Tradeshow!”
Ultimately, Greek says, “I did not win the title, but I still feel like I accomplished my goals in attending the pageant, and it was a great experience.” Though the competitions are over, Greek won’t step out of the spotlight anytime soon: as the Vice President and Alto Section Leader of the Chatham Choir, she spends hours every week singing, planning and teaching. “Chatham Choir was the first place that I really felt like I belonged when I transferred to Chatham in 2010,” she says. “It is something that I still look forward to every week, even more now that I am an officer. I really enjoy putting effort into and having a positive impact on the groups and organizations I am involved with and care about, and I think that’s why after nearly 5 semesters, Choir is still so important to me.” As a leader in the Choir, she fearlessly guides vocalists in deconstructing extraordinarily challenging repertoire. “My favorite type of music to perform is actually classical music or really complex and interesting choral music. In high school, I competed in PMEA (Pennsylvania Music Educators Association) Choral Festivals, and I loved the chance to spend an entire weekend singing the most challenging and beautiful music I had ever performed.” Hearing Greek sing once is enough to prove that she’s spectacularly talented; spend only a few minutes with her, though, and it’s easy to discover that she’s wildly humble. “To me music is more ‘just for me.’ I am not a person that would ever audition for American Idol. I don’t really see myself as a performer; I am actually pretty shy. With music, and I guess also with my experience in pageants, I do not get up in front of people unless what I’m doing really means something to me.” Hopefully Greek will always find meaning in the Choir, because she certainly means a lot to Chatham.