Senior Alejandra Gonzalez took a leap into something new this year, something not many think of when they think of the term “extracurricular.” Gonzalez stepped into the glass slipper role of the Daffodil Court, where she took home the title Princess Alejandra last fall.
Gonzalez took the stage March 2 at the Daffodil Queen Coronation.
To her surprise, Gonzalez heard her named broadcasted over the loudspeaker as the 2024 Daffodil Festival Queen.
“Honestly, it was very unexpected. When I was actually sitting there with the rest of my court, we were all holding arms with each other and I was squatting down ready to start screaming when the Queen was actually chosen,” Gonzalez said.
Although it may seem like becoming Daffodil Queen was the most difficult part of the process, instead Gonzalez claims it was learning to become a princess.
“We had about 11 to 12 practices where we would spend from seven in the morning to noon going over how to be a princess and what to do. We even had a luncheon where we practiced learning how to eat with proper forks. When I became queen, it was pretty much learn as you go along, so it’s definitely a lot more laid back I’d say,” Gonzalez said.
Amongst all of the hard work Gonzalez says she poured into learning how to become a princess, the now queen looks back and acknowledges how much fun and excitement took place during the learning process of becoming royalty.
“I’d say my favorite experience is definitely meeting my court. We have 22 princesses from around Pierce County that have all just been amazing,” Gonzalez said. “When I was selected queen, no one was upset, no one was mad, everyone was just ecstatic. Even the next Tuesday [when] I was able to see them that day, everyone was coming up to me and hugging me and so I really loved that.”
While over the last several months Gonzalez has gone through the proper training to learn how to become a princess, she says she has also learned how to dig deep and find a stronger connection with those around her. The senior has also been able to learn the ability to recognize the accomplishments of her peers.
“Something that I have learned from this is definitely that there are people out there who have done things that are just as amazing as you and taking the time to recognize that is truly incredible,” Gonzalez said, “I would have never met anyone from Orting or Sumner and all these places if not for Daffodil, so taking the time to actually connect with the community is a big thing that I learned.”
Gonzalez looks at back at the entire day that led up to her coronation and believes that regardless of the outcome, it still would been perfect and she wouldn’t have changed anything about her process to becoming queen.
“Honestly, I wouldn’t have chosen to do anything different. When I went and did my interview, I was 100% myself and strangely enough I wasn’t nervous,” Gonzalez said. “My main focus was not to be Queen and was not to be Miss Congeniality, which is another thing you could get. It was honestly just to have fun and talk with the adults, because at the end of the day, that truly was all that mattered.”
When the time finally came for the queen to be announced, Gonzalez stood side-by-side, arm linked to arm, with her entire court. The shock that she felt when it was her named that boomed over the speaker was breath stopping.
“I froze in place. I was confused. I looked around and they have us take two steps forward after we’re chosen. After all that happened, I was trying not to cry because my mom was wailing in the background and the rest of my family [was] freaking out. I was in pure shock when I was chosen and I was completely frazzled and anxious,” Gonzalez said.
But, humbly Gonzalez credits her parents for her ability to successfully have become the Daffodil Queen, alongside PHS Band Director, Eric Ryan.
“My parents have definitely been some of the biggest supporters especially because coming into this whole thing, this was something I chose… So going into that they really did just support me through all of it. Even in the moments where they’re like, ‘Is that something you want to do? You’re gonna get really busy’. [Also] definitely my teacher Mr. Ryan, he’s been a big support with it,” Gonzalez said.
Amongst all the excitement, hard work, dedication and patience that the entire process took, Gonzalez hopes that she will be able to leave a memorable legacy behind to future daffodil courts and kids, who just like Gonzalez, come from a diverse backgrounds.
“I truly believe that legacies are built on the effort that you put into things and not the amount of time that you are somewhere. So the legacy I hope to leave behind and the whole reason that I accepted being queen was I wanted to emphasize that even if you’re from a diverse background, if you’re a military kid, if you’re a kid who’s moved around a lot, you still have just as much of a chance as any other kid who’s lived here their entire life, to try for something as big as this. That’s the only reason I wanted to be recognized as queen,” Gonzalez said.
