A Schuylkill Haven woman, college student and cancer survivor was crowned Pottsville Winter Carnival's 2013 Queen of the Snows on Saturday.
"Seriously, I've been dreaming of this since second grade. And this is just a dream come true. Words can't express what this means to me right now," Corene Parrish, 20, of Schuylkill Haven, said moments after she received the honor on stage at Pottsville Area High School's Robert W. Wachter Auditorium.
She was one of the 17 Senior Princesses who participated in the event, The Greater Pottsville Winter Carnival Association's 46th Coronation Pageant, before a crowd of more than 300.
Sponsored by D.G. Yuengling & Son Inc., Parrish is a daughter of Dee Holley and Terrance Parrish. Her family includes two sisters, Holly, 18, and Amanda, 17. A 2010 graduate of Schuylkill Haven Area High School, she is a junior at West Chester University, majoring in cellular and molecular biology. She works as a waitress at On the Border restaurant.
Before the judging, each of the finalists was asked a question by Master of Ceremonies Henry H. Nyce, publisher of The Republican-Herald: "This year's Winter Carnival celebrates 'Hard Rockin' Coal County.' It embodies a theme of hard work and determination. What life experience of yours exemplifies your hard work and determination?"
In her response, Parrish talked about one of her life's greatest challenges:
"If I had to a choose an experience that exemplified my hard work and determination, I would definitely choose my junior year of high school when I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease. And I managed to do chemotherapy and maintain a 98.9 grade point average. And I always make sure that no matter what, I always persevere and I always put 100 percent into everything that I do. And I believe that as long as you can persevere, you can do anything. And hard work instills that inside of you."
The queen is honored with gifts including a $500 cash award, according to the event program.
The winners were picked by a panel of judges: Scott Jacoby; Dr. Melissa Burke; Schuylkill County Judge James P. Goodman; Alisa Rhoades-Hobbs; Becky Deatrich, the 2011 Greater Pottsville Winter Carnival Queen of the Snows; attorney Richard Thornburg; Dr. Elizabeth Robinson; Kelly Malone; state Rep. Mike Tobash, R-125; and Helen Coyle.
The five runners-up were: first, Samantha Jansson, 25, of Cumbola; second, Jessica Weiss, 20, of Minersville; third, Alicia Karabinas, 29, of Frackville; fourth, Meghan Corson, 26, of Orwigsburg; and fifth, Brooke Shilling, 23, of Pottsville.
And Jesselyn Heaps, 22, of Pottsville, was named "Miss Congeniality."
The Winter Carnival Association named Schaeffer's Harley-Davidson, Orwigsburg, as this year's "Distinguished Citizen." Owners Carol and Dennis Schaeffer came on stage to accept the honor.
Traditionally, the outgoing Queen of the Snows is honored with a trophy for her service. This year, that trophy was given a name, "The Wendy Nabholz Memorial Trophy."
Wendy Lee Nabholz, 46, of Pottsville, who worked as a dance choreographer for Winter Carnival for many years, passed away in August after a battle with cancer.
The first recipient of the trophy is the 45th Pottsville Winter Carnival Queen of the Snows, Brittany Kuperavage.
Entertainers at this year's event included performers from L.A. Dance Theater, who gave the production the excitement of a Broadway show with dance numbers from shows including "Chicago" and "Hairspray."
On Feb. 2, Devan Direnzo, 16, of Minersville was named 2013 Snowflake Princess and Helena Michelle Fredericks, 8, of Pottsville, was named 2013 Snowdrop Princess.