By Miles Layton

Madison Schwartz, a 13-year-old from Merry Hill, was crowned the 2026 Miss Chowan County Regional Fair queen Saturday night. Congrats!

Why cover the fair pageant? Answer: Because crowning a festival queen is common to most every festival across Northeast North Carolina. Also, the royalty chosen will serve as ambassadors at other festivals and remember a year filled with good memories for a long, long time to come. And it’s a tradition and a way to connect the past to the present.

In addition to the video, a photo gallery appears at the end of the story.

Competing against Schwartz, contestant number two, were Audrey Bender, 16, of Elizabeth City, and Aaliyah Blount, 15, of Edenton. Each was scored on a scale of one to ten in four categories: poise, talent, communication and personality.

The talent portion showed how different the contestants were.

Bender, a junior and cheerleader at New Life Academy, demonstrated her archery on stage. Emcee Kristie Mize said Bender’s interests include dance, drama, gymnastics, aerial skills, hunting, riding, art and sewing. She hopes to attend East Coast Horseshoeing School to study farrier work.

Schwartz performed a lyrical dance. Mize noted that she is in her sixth year of dance and also trains in sign language. A freshman at Holy Ground Homeschool Academy, she is vice president of the Chowan Junior Fair Board. She also plays basketball with Open Door Church, where she teaches and leads children’s church and attends youth group. Her hobbies include art, hunting, fishing, baking and time with her nieces and nephews. Her sponsor for the evening was SE Brabble and Sons.

Blount sang. A sophomore at John A. Holmes High School, she is part of the school’s Health Science Academy and works to keep a high grade point average. She volunteers when she can and hopes to study psychology, neuropsychology and biology at UNC Chapel Hill. Her hobbies include singing, theater, ukulele, video games, baking, cheering and, in Mize’s words, eating good food. And Blount is a joy to have in class – a good student. Go Aces!  

Each contestant also answered an onstage question.

Asked what makes the fair special to her and why, Bender didn’t hesitate. “I enjoy all of the animals that we get to bring and show,” she said. Spending time with them, she added, is probably her favorite part of the fair.

Schwartz was asked who has been the biggest influence in her life. She named her sister, Savannah. “I can just look up to her,” Schwartz said, adding that her sister has helped her through a lot.

Blount was asked, if she could have a 30-minute conversation with anyone, living or dead, who would it be and what would she ask? She said she loved the question and chose George Washington. She called him wise as well as the nation’s first president, and said she would ask how she could become a better leader and help others do their best.

While the judges finished their scoring, Mize used the pause to thank the people who keep the pageant running. She credited Becky Wilder for making sure the pageants have what they need, and thanked Amy, Carrie, Josie and the other helpers who decorate and support the Chowan County Fair Board. She also thanked BB White for pulling the event together and Kim of Secret Garden for supplying flowers for the fair’s pageants. Steve and Mandy Hill sang during the break, as they had earlier in the night while the contestants prepared for the talent portion.

With the scores tallied, the outgoing queen came to the stage first. Addison Marie Wagner, the 2025 Miss Chowan County Fair Queen, is the daughter of Scott and Jadelle Wagner and a freshman at Campbell University, where she is studying psychology with a focus on forensics. Mize thanked her for a job well done before calling the contestants back out.

A shout-out goes to the three judges and a tabulator who handled the scoring. Susan Evans, a retired teacher with 37 years in the classroom, was joined by Whitney Biggs, a medical staff professional with ECU Health and a Chowan County native, and Deborah West, an educator who owns Rural Innovative Solutions in Education in Elizabeth City. Liza Layton, who was Little Miss Chowan County in 1996, tabulated the results.

Gallery — Click to enlarge