PRIDE OF MONTPELIER QUEENS … The 2025 Queens of the Pride of Montpelier Pageant feature Little Miss Carissa Harter (front middle), Junior Miss Aria Armstrong (left), Teen Miss Sophia Hildebrandt (back middle), and Miss Caddisy Chamberlain (right).
MISS MONTPELIER … Carrying the honor of Miss Montpelier is Caddisy Chamberlain.
JUDGES … The judges were invited on the stage for Disney Princess Trivia, playing on the royal theme of the pageant.
JUNIOR MISS MONTPELIER … Crowned Junior Miss Montpelier 2025 is Aria Armstrong.
JUNIOR MISS CONTESTANTS … Seven young ladies competed in the Junior Miss group.
(PHOTOS BY BREANA RELIFORD / THE VILLAGE REPORTER)
LITTLE MISS CONTESTANTS … There were 11 contestants in the Little Miss group.
By: Breana Reliford
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
publisher@thevillagereporter.com
The Pride of Montpelier Pageant welcomed this year’s sparkling and shining contestants to compete for the titles of Little Miss, Junior Miss, Teen Miss, and Miss Montpelier this past weekend.
On Saturday, June 21st, 2025, held at the Montpelier School Auditeria, the pageant welcomed 19 contestants this year vying for the crown.
With the pageant beginning at 5:00 p.m., the audience was lined up outside the doors before they opened at 4:30 to take their seats and support their favorite contestant.
The girls participating this year ranged from first grade to tenth grade. The theme, “Once Upon A Crown”, offered a scene of fairytale princesses and royal regalia to set the stage; a very fitting theme to crown queens.
The pageant featured several different portions for the judges to assess. The pageant opened with a musical number full of contestants and titleholders, followed by an introduction of the esteemed judges, the Summer Wear competition, the Talent Performances, and the Introduction of Montpelier Royalty.
After the 10-minute intermission, the contest continued with the 2024 Queens Entertainment, featuring Disney Princess Trivia that the judges could take part in, the Evening Wear competition, the 2024 Queens Final Walk escorted by a family member, and finally the crowning of queens and other special awards.
The Little Miss division had 11 contestants competing for the crown. In this division was Natalie Warner, Kimber Whitman, Emalee Gifford, Paisley Turner, Carissa Harter, Evelynne Cluckey, Alainey Weber, Aubrey Warner, Sophia Salazar, Adolynne Warner, and Rhylee Villanueva. These contestants ranged from first grade to third grade.
The Junior Miss division featured six contestants. Competing in this group was Emerie Alpaugh, Evangeline Boyd, Meredith Cluckey, Aria Armstrong, Karlee Moore, and Braelyn Harter.
In the Teen Miss division, competing was Sophia Hildebrandt. Although no one accompanied her in this division, she still tried her best to put on an outstanding performance for the judges and audience.
Similar to the Teen Miss division, the Miss division also only had a singular contestant. However, that didn’t stop Caddisy Chamberlain from stealing the spotlight and giving it her all.
Once the judges had totaled their scores from each of the different portions of the pageant, the results were in to give out awards and recognize each contestant for their participation.
Each of the contestants received a prize bag from the directors for all their efforts.
First, the Little Miss contestants were welcomed back to the stage to present the awards. Alongside them was outgoing queen Elsie Thorp ready to hand over the title.
The first award was the highest-scoring interview from a series of questions that were conducted earlier that day. The winner of this award was Carissa Harter.
The next award was Little Miss Photogenic, which was presented to Rhylee Villanueva. The third award was Little Miss Congeniality, which was voted on by all the contestants, and was presented to Carissa Harter.
The second runner-up award was given to Sophia Salazar. The first runner-up was presented to Evelynne Cluckey.
The award of first runner-up also comes with the responsibility of taking over the title of Little Miss if the winner is unable to fulfill their duties throughout the year. The winner of Little Miss Montpelier 2025 was awarded to Carissa Harter.
Next, the Junior Miss contestants took the stage, with outgoing queen Kaylee Barrett joining them, ready to crown the next queen.
The winner of the highest-scoring personal interview was Aria Armstrong. Evangeline Boyd received Junior Miss Photogenic. The winner of Junior Miss Congeniality was Meredith Cluckey. The first runner-up for the Junior Miss division was Meredith Cluckey, while the winner of Junior Miss Montpelier 2025 was crowned Aria Armstrong.
The Teen Miss and Miss contestants were brought onstage and given their awards together.
Teen Miss Montpelier 2025, Sophia Hildebrandt, was crowned by outgoing queen Rosalee Mills. Miss Montpelier 2025, Caddisy Chamberlain, was crowned by outgoing queen Piper JoHantgen.
Caddisy was also given the Miss Talent Award for her performance of harmonica solos throughout the song “Piano Man” by Billy Joel while simultaneously painting a picture live on stage. Caddisy also received a $75 scholarship, sponsored by Four Of A Kind Entertainment.
Although the queens had been crowned, there were still more awards to give out. All the contestants gathered onstage together to hear the final award winners.
The top seller for the 50/50 raffle received a special plaque and was revealed to be Caddisy Chamberlain.
The Montpelier Civic League awarded a girl in each age division for their contribution to the community, friendliness, courtesy, and graciousness to show the importance of being a good citizen.
The winners of this award were Sophia Salazar, in the Little Miss age group and Aria Armstrong in the Junior Miss age group.
The Volunteerism Award was given to a girl in each age group that has displayed exemplary volunteer work, community service, and their plans of what they will do as a Montpelier queen.
In the Little Miss age group, the award was presented to Evelynne Cluckey. In the Junior Miss age group, Karlee Moore received the award.
One contestant from each age group also received a $50 award sponsored by the Montpelier Rotary. In the Little Miss group, it was given to Rhylee Villanueva. In the Junior Miss age group, the prize was awarded to Emerie Alpaugh.
The next award was given to the contestant who showed inner and outer beauty, including how this contestant lifts up others. It was awarded to Little Miss contestant, Kimber Whitman.
The winner of the People’s Choice Award was presented to Caddisy Chamberlain.
The newly crowned queens will also have the opportunity to move on to compete in the Pride of Williams County pageant in early 2026.
In the meantime, they will prepare by participating in parades, community activities, and taking part in local events before returning next year to hand off the crown to the next queens of Montpelier.