2024 Florida Strawberry Festival Court member Abigail Louise Spivey wasn’t used to being cheered for as her name was called as a court member. She was used to doing the cheering.
The junior at Plant City High School, who is also dual-enrolled at Hillsborough Community College, is on the Plant City Varsity Cheer team, the 2023 award-winning Plant City cheer competition team and the award-winning Plant City High School Unified cheer team. She’s got lots of team spirit.
Oh, and she’s got chickens, award-winning ones. In last year’s Florida Strawberry Festival’s Mosaic Youth Poultry show, she exhibited the reserve champion.
During her on-stage interview question, Spivey, the daughter of David and Lisa Spivey, said her participation in cheer helped shape her into the person she is today. “From the second I joined the Unified cheer team I was surrounded by a community of the most loving individuals that I now call my friends,” she said.
That experience led her to another passion…becoming the Vice President of Plant City’s Raider Buddies and the Special Olympics Club. “Working with the special needs programs has been something that has made such a big impact on my life and it’s something that I hope to continue to do in the future.”
During the pageant, Spivey was the third contestant named to the court. “When they called my name I was shocked because it didn’t feel real,” she said. “When I saw Zion and Saragrace had been called before me I was happy because it means I get to spend the year with people I have grown to love.”
Q: What is your experience in pageantry?
The Florida Strawberry Festival Queen’s Scholarship Pageant was my twelfth pageant. I did Little Miss Plant City, Calendar Girl and Junior Royalty and never made it into the top 10. In December I went out for Plant City Sweetheart and then I came to this pageant and got on the court.
Q: What’s your favorite part of Florida Strawberry Festival?
Honestly I think my favorite part has to be the rides. I feel like the rides is where you can see a lot of our community come together. You’re on a ride with random strangers, screaming if you’re scared, enjoying the same thing at the same time as so many other people. The Space Roller, that has a large broom with six arms where the seat flips on the arm and then the arms spin, has been my favorite ride since the fifth grade
Q: What’s your favorite Florida
Strawberry Festival food?
I think I have two. One of them would have to be the Island Noodles without all the vegetables because I’m very picky and then second would have to be deep-fried Oreos. They are amazing and I always ask for extra powder on it. It makes it ten times better.
Q: Who’s your role model and why?
My dad is my absolute hero. He’s a third generation strawberry farmer. Growing up and always being in the berry fields, I’d hear him say ‘there’s my little strawberry queen.’ I owe this all to my dad. I couldn’t have done this without his support and love. He taught me by example from an early age by putting himself out there and providing for our community. He taught me the importance of agriculture . I hope to give back to Plant City the same way I’ve watched him all these years.
Q: Is there anyone you’d like to thank for helping you reach your goal?
Mine would also have to be Jessi Rae Varnum. When I look at myself back in June to now I don’t recognize myself. She helped me understand how to be confident and poised and represent myself well. She was there for me in September when I was going through grief for the first time. Even though I couldn’t talk to anybody, I could talk to Jessi. Her support helped me get through hard times and everything up until the pageant. And also the biggest thanks to “Mama Kay” Varnum. She was also one of my biggest cheerleaders and helped me believe in myself and supplied me with an unlimited supply of Diet Cokes.
Q: What are you most looking forward to about your year on the Court?
I just really want to represent my entire family very well and represent myself very well. It’s important to me to hold myself to a high standard. Representing our local farmers, that’s something so important to me. Representing my dad, representing the Spivey name, representing my mom, all those people I love best. That’s what I”m looking forward to.