Greater Latrobe grad captures crown with 2nd entry in Westmoreland Fair queen competition

The second time was the charm for Ella Ciesielski when she donned the Westmoreland Fair Queen crown on opening day of the annual agricultural exhibition in Mt. Pleasant Township.

It didn’t hurt to have some experience in competing for the title — and performing the duties that go with it, including presenting ribbons to those who capture prizes during the festive event that continues through Saturday.

A veteran 4-H member and Unity resident, Ciesielski finished in third place when she initially entered the queen contest in 2023.

“I did not prepare for the impromptu speech at all,” she recalled. “I kind of stood up there and completely froze. I just blurted some stuff out as much as I could.”

Things were different this time around for the 19-year-old. With help from her mother, Melissa, Ciesielski devoted many hours to perfecting a prearranged speech. She also prepared responses for various topics that might come up during the impromptu portion of the contest.

“I did a lot more to prepare, to make sure I was really ready,” Ciesielski said. That included rehearsing her primary speech, which covered reasons why people should attend the fair.

She set out to hook her listeners, and the contest judges, by relating some of her favorite fair experiences: “hearing the roar of the truck pulls” and “getting covered in powdered sugar while you share a funnel cake with your friends.”

“I made a recording of my speech, and I would listen to it when I was in the car or while I was cleaning horse stalls,” she said.

Ciesielski’s mother said the time spent helping her daughter prepare for the queen contest was well worth it.

“This is probably the greatest honor that she’s received here,” she said. “She worked really hard.”

The 2024 Greater Latrobe Senior High graduate benefited from taking a public speaking course at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg.

She also got some helpful advice from Emma Heeter of Clarksburg, Indiana County, a 4-H alumna and lifelong friend who won the fair queen contest in 2022.

Ciesielski heeded her friend’s tip to “take your time and breathe. It’s OK to take it slow and not rush through it.”

While she got encouragement from friends and family, there was a more basic impulse that caused her to seek the queen crown again.

“I just love this fair so much,” she said. “Coming here for so many years, I just wanted the opportunity to give back to this fair that has given me so much.”

Ciesielski’s parents met at the fair. And it’s where she has met many like-minded friends, including members of the Heeter family.

Ciesielski said she’s enjoyed cheering on friends who have sought ribbons at the fair as much as taking part in competitions herself.

“I love being able to spend time with my friends at the fair and seeing them accomplish their goals,” she said.

President of the Mavericks 4-H Club, Ciesielski has two lambs entered in a market show set for Tuesday evening at the fair. Over the past 11 years, she’s raised and shown many other animals there, including goats, pigs and steers.

She and fellow Mavericks members won Best in Show honors this year and last year, with joint scrapbooks documenting their club activities.

In 2019, she claimed a first-place photography prize at the Pennsylvania Farm Show, with an image she captured of her pet cat.

Ciesielski was waiting to receive a schedule of activities such as parades she’ll expect to participate in as a Westmoreland Fair representative, after this week’s activities at the fairgrounds have come to a close.

“I love parades,” she said.

She has plenty of other activities on her plate, including working at horse farms in Scottdale and New Alexandria.

Her $500 queen scholarship will help as she enters a welding program at Westmoreland County Community College, after spending a semester as a psychology major at Pitt-Greensburg.

“I decided that just wasn’t the route I wanted to take,” she said. “I wanted to work with my hands and get dirty.

“I knew that I wanted to learn a trade. Welding sounded like it was fun, and there’s a good bit of money in it.”

After this year, Ciesielski will be too old to continue as a 4-H member, but she’s planning to continue with the Mavericks as a mentor and leader.

“They already recruited me to be the lamb leader for our club,” she said, adding she’ll mentor younger 4-H’ers who will pursue scrapbook projects.

Ciesielski is encouraged by the enthusiasm and dedication she sees among younger 4-H members who participate in the county fair.

“I think the fair is a great way to get youths involved,” she said. “I witness it every day. All these kids are really passionate about what they do, and they’re really hardworking.

“I have no doubt that they’re going to keep ‘ag‘ going.”