These past few weeks, Larned High School (LHS) has been long awaiting the winter royalty crowning. Before Christmas break, the student body voted for four girl candidates and four boy candidates. The next day, they were announced as Talon Reynolds, Michael Graf, Daniel Kelty, Cordell Hammeke, Akielah Collins, Mackenzie and Madison Reinert, and Cortney Craft. Winter royalty has been a tradition at LHS for many years. The original crowning was supposed to be held January 12, 2024, but unfortunately, weather swooped in and the crowning was rescheduled for February 8, 2024.
After Christmas break, elections were held for king and queen. It was set up like a real election this year, unlike past years when it was on the computer. In the morning, students would line up and check in; then, they marked which candidate they wanted to win, just like a real election. These candidates would then be announced at the game later that evening. However, since the game was rescheduled, the winners were announced at the pep rally right after school, and the ceremony was held at the makeup game that took place February 8. The 2024 Winter Royalty queen was Cortney Craft and the king was Daniel Kelty.
During the pep rally, the candidates play games. This year, the game was a kind of relay race. First, the girls had to wrap a Christmas present blindfolded. Then they had to run with the present to the next table where the boys had to eat a slice of cake as fast as possible with only their hands. Finally, they played a round of human “Hungry Hungry Hippos” where the boys laid on a small scooter while the girls dragged them around to catch dodgeballs in a basket. Whichever team finished all of the tasks the fastest was deemed the winners. The game winning couple was Talon Reynolds and Madison Reinert.
Daniel Kelty and Cortney Craft were interviewed after the crowning. Cortney mentioned, “My favorite spirit day was Barbie Day because I actually got Daniel to dress up. My favorite game was Hungry Hungry Hippo, and no, I did not think I would win. I thought Maddie would win.” Daniel said, “I liked orange and black day because I have a lot of orange and black stuff. I was best at eating cake for the games, and I thought Talon would win.”
The rescheduled Winter Royalty game was mixed into a very busy week for Larned students. The Indians had a tough week with three games, but finally, the wait was over for the winter royalty basketball game. February 8, 2024 the girls and boys both played against the Smoky Valley Vikings. Unfortunately, they both lost with a score of 40-59 for the girls and 34-42 for the boys. During the games, there was a good size student section, and they cheered loudly in support of the Larned Indians. In between the games, the candidates walked across the gym floor and were once again announced as king and queen.
