Palermo to represent St. John at Louisiana Queen Sugar
Published 12:00 am Saturday, August 3, 2019
- Emma Palermo is pictured with Sheriff Mike Tregre and Parish President Natalie Robottom.
RESERVE — Emma Palermo will represent St. John the Baptist Parish Sept. 26-29 at the 78th Louisiana Sugar Queen Pageant in New Iberia.
Palermo was crowned Teen Queen at the local Sugar Queen pageant in 2018, and she is eager to compete against pageant winners from other parishes at the state level.
Janet Nelson, who was crowned the local Miss Sugar Queen in 2018, is the reigning Queen Sugar for the state of Louisiana.
“I’m looking forward to Sugar weekend and all of the events,” Palermo said. “Last year, I went to support my Miss Queen Janet, and now I get to do all the fun things I saw her do with the winners from the other parishes.”
Palermo will prepare for the pageant by touring sugar refineries and speaking with owners of the nearby sugarcane farms she and her friends explored as children.
“I’ve been heavily doing research on the sugar industry, especially on how they bring it in from harvest to our table,” Palermo said.
There will not be a local Sugar Queen Pageant in Reserve for 2019 due to scheduling conflicts with contestants leaving for college, according to coordinators. The Sugar Queen team hopes to reinstate the pageant earlier in the summer for future years.
The following sponsors made Palermo’s upcoming Queen Sugar appearance possible: Buddy Boe and the River Parish Tourist Commission, St. John the Baptist Parish and Parish President Natalie Robottom, Reserve Telecommunications, St. John Fleeting, First American Bank, Formal Connection, Don’s Country Store, Stuart Schultz M.D., Representative Clay Schexnayder, Sheriff Mike Tregre, Petra’s Restaurant & Lounge, the Reserve Lions Club, Gregg’s Neighborhood Market, Councilman Michael Wright, Judge J. Sterling Snowdy, District Attorney Bridget A. Dinvaut, Councilwoman Julia Remondet, Hymel’s Florist & Gifts, Assessor Lucien Gauff, Fred DeFrancesch and Tomy Acosta Law Firm, Representative Gregory Miller, J. Caldarera Construction, William D. O’Regan Attorney at Law, Rainbow Chevrolet, Councilman Tom Malik, Roussel’s Fine Jewelry & Gifts and the LaPlace Lions Club.
