County Dairy Princess
Earns Top Honors

By Rob Potter
CALLICOON CENTER — March 3, 2000 -- Christine Weissmann vividly remembers when the Sullivan County Dairy Princess visited her kindergarten class a dozen years ago.
After school that day, Weissmann told her mother that she wanted to grow up and be a real princess.
Part of that dream was fulfilled last June 11 when Weissmann, the 17-year-old daughter of Jim and Evelyn Weissmann of Callicoon Center, was chosen as the Sullivan County Dairy Princess.
The dream added a new chapter last week in Liverpool, New York.
At the 37th annual New York State Dairy Princess Pageant on February 23, Weissmann was chosen the 2nd Alternate New York State Dairy Princess for this year.
Twenty-seven county dairy princesses from throughout New York State competed for the state title at the pageant, which is held by the American Dairy Association and Dairy Council (ADADC). Farmers from around the state help support the ADADC financially, and in turn, the organization spearheads advertising campaigns like the famous “Got Milk?” posters, television commercials and newspaper and magazine advertisements.
Delaware County Dairy Princess Marianne Moody of Hamden, who has become a good friend of Weissmann’s in the past two years, won the crown of State Dairy Princess.
The 1st Alternate Dairy Princess is Cairy Norman of Macedon, who is the Wayne County (NY) Dairy Princess.
The outgoing state princess is JoAnna DeBlock, who lives in Orange County.
Weissmann was pleasantly surprised by the results.
“It took a day for it to really sink in,” said Weissmann, who has been a 4-H member for 10 years and is one of 12 national 4-H delegates from New York State. “The next day I asked my mom how it felt to be a state mom. That’s when it hit me. I was really happy to place in the top seven – that was good enough for me. But to be second alternate is great.”
Weissman, who recently graduated from Sullivan West and is a member of the Callicoon Center Volunteer Fire Department, and the other dairy princesses competed in various categories at the pageant. They had to make impromptu and prepared speeches, take a product knowledge exam and be interviewed by the judges.
Weissmann, who made her own pageant dress, placed in the top three in the product knowledge category and won first place in the public relations category.
The top seven contestants were announced, and then the new state princess and alternates were chosen.
“I can’t believe she did it,” a proud Evelyn Weissmann said of her daughter. “All of the girls were sincere in what they were doing and really believe in what they are promoting. They were a good bunch of girls.”
“I was totally flabbergasted that she was chosen as the second alternate,” added Jim Weissmann.
Moody, Norman and Weissmann will spend the year representing the ADADC at events throughout the state. Among those will be farm cooperative meetings, county dairy princess pageants, farm meetings and the New York State Fair.
Weissmann said that her local milk promotion campaign during the holiday season really impressed the judges. The newspaper clippings of her visits to area Peck’s Markets for that promotion helped her win the public relations award.
“That wouldn’t have been possible without the help of Peck’s, Crowley, WVOS and the Democrat,” she noted.
She also acknowledged the support of many people here in Sullivan County, including area dairy farmers and Linda Kays, who is the New York State District 6 Director of the ADADC. District 6 covers Columbia, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Sullivan Ulster and Westchester counties.
“It should be a very fun year,” Weissmann said. “I will have the chance to meet a lot of people and be able to travel throughout the state. I’ll get to see many different kinds of farms. But I couldn’t have done it without the support of dairy farmers right here in Sullivan County.”
Weissmann wasn’t the only county resident to be recognized at last week’s pageant. Florence Brown of Kenoza Lake was presented with the Golden Cow Award. The award honors Brown for her many years of dedicated service to the dairy princess program.