Behind the bonnet: Maggie's 'Disney princess' enchants all

Jun. 19—For those active in local Facebook groups or those who frequent Maggie Valley, the sight of Miss Maggie in her green, yellow and red dress is one that is very familiar.

Mary, the mother and nanny by day, plays the part of Miss Maggie and is the youngest to have done so. She says the role is one she loves.

Like the other Miss Maggies before her, she keeps the Miss Maggie role separate from her own life.

"It's really the best thing ever. I love it so much," Miss Maggie said.

Mary is one of the oldest of nine children, so, in addition to being a nanny, she has lots of experience with children. She said that is one of her favorite parts of getting to be Miss Maggie.

"If I could have had 10,000 kids, I would have," she said. "Kids are my passion. Being able to do this is just an extension of allowing me to be with kids and show them love. I get to do so much. I love getting to be with kids all the time."

Raising the profile of Miss Maggie

The dream of being Miss Maggie has not been without its hiccups. After donning the bonnet for the first time at the end of 2019, things were derailed just a few short months later. Everyone remembers when the Covid pandemic hit and how things shut down.

After the restrictions were lifted and people started to get out and about again, things got rolling again for Miss Maggie. However, Mary says that it was still kind of tough sledding. People were not really aware of who Miss Maggie was or what her role in the town is.

That is when Mary and her husband, Robert, got the idea to create the Facebook page. They reached out to Smith at the Chamber again and pitched the idea. It was approved. Mary said that the page has helped grow not just the profile of Miss Maggie but of the town as a whole.

"It has blown my mind how fast it has grown beyond my wildest expectations," she said. "That has almost become a full-time job, keeping up with all of that. That has helped in so many ways to reach people and teach them about Maggie Valley, show them the love Maggie Valley has for people, promote who Miss Maggie is, but ultimately promote our beautiful town and this incredible area and the businesses and all it has to offer."

She said that she has enlisted the help of the "younger generation" in setting up an Instagram page for Miss Maggie as well.

Even though the Facebook page has increased the reputation of Miss Maggie, there are some that still do not know who the mascot is. She said that during the one event in particular, roughly 7,000 people rolled into the Valley with very few recognizing the iconic Miss Maggie character.

"Nobody knew who I was, which was fun and awkward all at the same time," Miss Maggie said.

Despite the few events where no one knows her, Miss Maggie said that there are even more times where people seek her out.

"It's so rewarding," Miss Maggie said. "All the people that message and want to find me and want to meet me. It's blown into a huge thing I could never imagine. It's like a Disney Princess, but on a much smaller scale. It's the Maggie Valley Disney Princess. We had someone message the page and say 'We're here with our grandchildren and great-grandchildren and they want to meet you.' It happens all the time and it's just mind-blowing that so many people want to meet me. It's incredible"

Becoming Miss Maggie

Mary said the dream of becoming Miss Maggie is one that's been brewing for two decades.

"Twenty years ago, we came to Maggie on our honeymoon," she said. "We saw her down at Joey's while eating breakfast. I looked at [my husband] and said 'I'm going to do that one day.' We didn't live here and had no intentions of moving here, so he was like 'Sure, whatever, you can.' We would come back every year on vacation and see her and our kids would watch here. Every time we would come back, I'd say 'That's what I'm going to one day.' We still had no intentions of ever moving here."

The young couple is originally from Mississippi and moved to Maggie Valley from Florida in 2016.

"As we spent the years following our honeymoon vacationing here, we fell more and more in love with the slower pace of life the mountains had to offer," she said. "As the years passed, our trips to the valley became more frequent and with every trip, we kept saying we wanted to make this area home."

In 2015, the couple began looking at houses on a vacation to Maggie.

"In 2016, we decided to stop talking and start acting," she said. "Our children were not getting younger and the appeal of small town America was calling us. We put our house on the market and had an offer in 24 hours. It was meant to be."

Just eight weeks later, they were Haywood County residents.

"I never would have dreamed we would live here, but here we are," she said. "It was a leap of faith moving away from family and everything all of us had ever known, but the blessing we have received in return have been amazing."

After being in the area for a couple of years, Mary reached out to Maggie Valley Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Teresa Smith about becoming the new Miss Maggie. Smith thought it was a great idea and from there, the newest chapter of Miss Maggie's time in the valley had begun.

"A dream from 20 years ago when we had no intentions of moving here came true," she said. "When I wanted to do it to begin with, it just looked fun. It looked like something out of my comfort zone, but something that would be fun to just go say hey to people and hold babies. It has turned into so much more than that. It's so rewarding. It's amazing."

The perks of Miss Maggie

With Mary donning the Miss Maggie attire, the town's mascot has begun to broaden its horizons. Miss Maggie said she had a few favorites among the town's festivals, such as Thunder in the Smokies or JeepFest, but enjoys getting to take part in all of the events.

"I have gotten to do so many amazing things," Miss Maggie said. "I've had so many opportunities that have been incredible. I got my first motorcycle ride. I got to ride a mechanical bull. I got to sit in a 1921 Studebaker. There are just so many opportunities. All of the festivals are so amazing in so many ways."

One of the projects that Mary and Robert have worked on with the Facebook page has been their weekly series of posts titled "Where's Miss Maggie Wednesday." On Wednesday, Miss Maggie will post an image from somewhere around town with a free cup of coffee to whoever guesses it right.

On Thursday, Miss Maggie will post the answer along with more photos and a description of where she is.

The series started out in local parks and outdoor areas, but the supply of locations quickly dried up. After that, Mary and Robert went to Smith and the Chamber and asked if they could highlight local businesses that are Chamber members, leading to the current iteration of the series.

"It's so much fun because I get to participate," Miss Maggie said. "It's really cool. At Dale's, I got to ride motorcycles. I got to throw axes, play golf, eat good food."

While Miss Maggie has always been a part of the town of Maggie Valley, Mary has really worked to raise the profile of the character. Above all of that, however, her favorite thing about her role is getting to meet the people in Maggie Valley, whether that be locals or tourists coming through town for the various festivals.

"I love meeting people," Mary said. "I love hearing stories. I love talking to the prior Miss Maggies and hearing their stories."