Haley Riley is not your average beauty queen.
Sure, she’s been down the pageant circuit before: first in the Baby Parade when she was 2 or 3, then Junior Royalty and Harvest Queen pageants, all the way up to being crowned the Teen Blueberry Queen in 2014.
But those who know Riley best know that the newly crowned 2016 Florida Strawberry Festival Queen is happiest in her outfit of choice: a black skirt paired with a velvety blue jacket, stitched with the gold letters that detail her Future Farmers of America chapter.
A 17-year-old Durant High School junior, Riley is heavily involved in FFA and is the vice president of her school’s chapter. She has shown a variety of livestock animals both at the Florida Strawberry Festival and at shows around Hillsborough County. She plans on quickly changing out of her queen gear to show her steer at the 2016 Florida Strawberry Festival.
Her love for agriculture is what drives her the most.
“I have a passion for the strawberries,” Riley, a Dover resident, said. Her great-grandfather was a strawberry farmer, and both her parents and siblings have participated in either FFA or 4-H. “But I also have a passion for animals, livestock … agriculture has played a very large role in my life.”
But for a large part of the next year, Riley will trade out her boots and blue jacket for dresses, sashes and a trademark red lipstick. As queen, she is responsible for representing the Florida Strawberry Festival, Plant City and the wide world of agriculture through the end of 2016. It’s a position her FFA roots and strong agricultural background have more than prepared her for.
Still, those ties to agriculture and the Winter Strawberry Capital of the World didn’t stop her from being shocked the moment she was crowned the 2016 Strawberry Queen on Jan. 23.
“I actually was like, ‘No, no. This is a dream. I’m going to wake up in five minutes … this isn’t really real,’” Riley said.
But it wasn’t a dream. And slowly, it dawned on Riley that this — a moment girls in Plant City and Hillsborough County dream about for years — was really happening.
“At that moment, I saw my parents,” Riley said. “And I started crying, because … I don’t think they’ve ever been this proud before. It was an amazing, exhilarating feeling.”
Riley has always known she would compete in the pageant. That, combined with the opportunity to spread her love and knowledge of agriculture throughout Hillsborough County, put participating in the pageant at the top of
“Agriculture has played a very large role in my life. It’s gotten me to FFA, which has grown my public speaking skills. It teaches you many lifelong skills and lessons you’re going to need. That’s why I love agriculture.”
— Haley Riley, 2016 Florida Strawberry Festival Queen
her to-do list.
“It’s a good way to represent agriculture in our community and how it influences each of our individual lives,” Riley said. “I really want to do that.”
The new queen credits much of her success in the pageant to FFA, where she honed her public speaking skills. Once a sixth grader who quivered at the mere thought of speaking at a small contest, Riley is now prepared to speak in front of thousands of people this year.
“I’m definitely big in FFA,” Riley said. “I love to shed a positive light on the agricultural industry. Really, FFA and public speaking together forms confidence. I really think it’s prepared me for this pageant and just representing our community.”
She hopes to use her new position as queen to encourage girls in the community.
“You should be confident in yourself,” Riley said. “No matter what you look like, where you come from, age, anything. I just really want to make an impact on girls’ lives who don’t think they could be something. But everyone can be something and be confident in themselves.”
Riley is focused on the year ahead and is excited for the opportunities that the crown will bring. As her reign ends halfway through her senior year, she’ll remain focused on her next goal: attending the University of Florida. She later hopes to become a pediatric anesthesiologist.
It’s also likely that Riley’s family and friends will see her on the pageant circuit again when she gets to college, as she hopes to compete in the Miss America pageant.
If and when she does, she knows she’ll have an entire community standing behind her: supporting a Florida Strawberry Festival Queen.
Contact Emily Topper at etopper@plantcityobserver.com.