Linden Cherry Festival crowns a new queen as the beloved community event returns
LINDEN — After a year of no festival and a drive-thru event last year the Linden community is back in person with a new queen.
Makayla Mellinger, a senior at Linden High School, was crowned Linden Cherry Festival Queen by the Linden-Peters Chamber of Commerce on April 30.
“Main goal is to represent Linden, all things Linden, especially our rich agriculture heritage, knowing about the local farmers, the local merchants, the high school, and all of the wonderful, wonderful opportunities that a small town has to offer,” Ann Marie Avansino, co-coordinator for the Linden Cherry Festival Queen committee and the 1983 queen, said. “So, the quaintness of a small town is something that she will represent for the rest of her life.”
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Mellinger, who is a Linden youth cheer coach, an FFA president and a class president, was among five queen contestants.
She will receive a $2,000 scholarship and an additional $500 from the Linden Lions Club. Haley Davis, the first runner up will receive a $1,000 scholarship, and princesses Rebecca Gennari, Ava Pazzanese and Eavalynne Robles will get $150 scholarships.
The Citizen of the Year Awards were presented to former Cherry Festival Queen Roxann Fugazi who was awarded the 2022 recipient and Steve Moore awarded the 2020 recipient. Both will preside as parade marshals on Saturday, May 21.
"The whole event is driven by the need of our local organizations to raise funds for what they do. So this gives them an opportunity to raise some money," Solari said.
A parade will kick off Saturday’s festival at 10 a.m. starting on Front and Market streets and the cherry pie eating contest begins at 1:30 p.m.
“The little pause, you know, due to COVID really made people hungry … not just for cherries but for each other,” Avansino said. “So, to be able to celebrate the Cherry Festival and the queen contest, it's kind of like opening the doors and the windows and letting the fresh air back in.”
If you go
When: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. May 21
Where: Linden Elementary School, 18100 E. Front St., Linden
Admission: Free
Information: lindenchamber.net/cherryfestival
Record reporter Angelaydet Rocha covers community news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at arocha@recordnet.com or on Twitter @AngelaydetRocha. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.
This article originally appeared on The Record: Linden Cherry Festival crowns a new queen for beloved event's return
