Kray dedicates time to GJCF Queen Pageant

     She wears many hats, many titles. And for the past 19 years she’s been directing and organizing the Great Jones County Fair Queen Pageant.

     Marcia Kray takes pride in the annual event that culminates on Tuesday night during Sneak-A-Peak night at the fair when the new GJCF Queen and Princess are crowned on stage.

     When asked what her role in the pageant and preparation includes, knowing it’s a never-ending job, Kray smiled and said, “Everything.”

     She recruits candidates to run for fair queen, she secures the Eagles Club for the pageant, she prepares the application to make sure it jives with the Iowa State Fair rules and regulations for State fair queen, and so much more.

     Not every county fair has the pomp and circumstance that is offered at the GJCF queen pageant.

     “Some counties just do an application,” said Kray, who lends a hand at several other county fair queen pageants throughout the state.

     As soon as the current year’s queen is crowned, Kray starts things right back up again in anticipation for the next GJCF.

     “As soon as the girl’s are crowned, I start asking others to run next year,” she said. “It’s kind of a year-round, ongoing event.”

     Over the years, the GJCF pageant and events leading up to it have evolved. The girls are now required to attend a workshop and spa day where they get to know each other.

     “That has proven to be the biggest asset,” Kray said of getting all of the candidates together. “It’s a day of bonding.”

     Kray works with the girls on what it means to have stage presence and the basic mechanics of a pageant.

     “We also work on their interview skills,” added Kray. The interview is another big part of the pageant.

     Kray tries to instill the importance of being yourself, and not mimicking someone else.

     “Every one of the girls is unique in her own way,” said Kray. “And the judges won’t believe you if you’re trying to be who you’re not.”

     When it comes to the Q&A portion of the pageant, Kray said she also tells the girls that there is no right or wrong answer.

     After the pageant and leading up to Sneak-A-Peak night, Kray said she never knows who the judges pick for the top two spots of queen and princess.

     “I feel for the girls standing up on that stage because I was in pageants myself, and I know what it means to win or not,” she said.

     Kray started her royalty career as the Jones County Beef Queen back in the day. She was nominated for Miss Teen America.

     “I was a farm girl and knew nothing about pageants,” she said. “I was totally unprepared.”

     She helped with Miss Iowa USA pageant for 25 years, taking on the roles of emcee, judge and chaperone.

     Once she married Vic Kray, she began her stint in the adult pageant world. “I was asked to run for Mrs. Iowa and was the first runner up,” shared Kray of her late 1980s experience.

     In 1991, she was appointed to the Mrs. USA pageant as an attendee, and later ran for Mrs. America.

     She spent a total of 30 years in the modeling world, making a career out of it and appearing in Vogue Magazine. Kray said she didn’t have kids when she started her pageant career, so she had time to devote to it. Once her son Parker was born and grew up, she said starting the GJCF queen pageant allowed her to have her girly moment.

     “Jones County has a lot of great young women, I wish more would take the plunge and step out of their comfort zone and run,” urged Kray. She said the typical candidate is someone who people describe as “so nice” and is very involved in and around their community.

     A common misconception is that girls have to be involved in 4-H or FFA to run or qualify for fair queen. That is not the case.

     “These girls tend to know the fair in different aspects,” said Kray.

     The candidate simply has to reside in the county they wish to represent in the pageant or adjacent to the county where the majority of her volunteerism/service takes place. Krays said many of the candidates have been active in their communities, church, schools, etc., not necessarily 4-H.

     She said it’s been rewarding to watch so many of the former GJCF queens grow in their adult lives and reach their potential. In 2015, GJCF Queen Ellen Schlarmann was crowned Iowa State Fair Queen, a first for Jones County. Kray has also had several candidates run for Miss Iowa USA: Brooke Stahlberg, Amy Hein, Casey Welsch, and Alyssa Cook Chapman. Two of the queen candidates have gone on to become doctors.

     Kray also credits Dr. Ken Paulson for his never-ending support of pageant from Cedar Rapids. “He went to the GJCF all his life and he’s proud of the fair wants to be a part of it,” she said. “He’s a very generous man”

     Kray said the fair board is also a huge part of why the queen pageant is a success, with so much support from various angles of the fair.

     Aside from dedicating so much time to the pageant, Kray continues to work for Georgia Pacific after 29 years.