Royalty

Ellie Ford is a proud member of the Walla Walla community who exemplifies leadership, hard work, and a deep respect for tradition. She serves as the Vice President of her local FFA chapter, where she plays an active role in planning events, supporting fellow members, and promoting agricultural education. Her involvement in FFA has helped shape her into a confident and dependable leader.

As part of her agricultural experience, she raises and shows pigs for the Walla Walla Fair, a tradition that has taught her responsibility, dedication, and the importance of representing her community with pride.

Beyond her involvement in agriculture, Ellie has already taken impressive steps toward her future career by earning her Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) license. She currently works at Wheatland Village, where she provides care to residents with compassion, patience, and professionalism. This hands-on experience in the healthcare field has strengthened her desire to pursue a career in nursing. She plans to continue her education and training to become a registered nurse, with a long-term goal of making a meaningful difference in the lives of others through healthcare.

In her free time, Ellie enjoys barrel racing, skiing, and spending time outdoors with her horses. Her love for the western lifestyle and rodeo culture has been a constant in her life, and she values the life lessons that come with it, like perseverance, humility, and respect. Barrel racing has taught her not only about competition but also about trust, patience, and the bond between rider and horse.

Taylee Smith is 16 years old and resides in Hermiston. She is the daughter of Tammy and Randy Smith and has an older brother, Roarke Smith. Taylee is a Junior at Hermiston High School and is an active member in FFA, where she competes in Parliamentary Procedures and Agricultural Issues.

Taylee has also been involved in 4-H for the past six years, where she showed horses and raised market swine. In 2024 she was the Grant County Fair and Rodeo Queen and a past Milton-Freewater Pioneer Posse Princess, where she enjoyed meeting new people and encouraging young girls to pursue their dreams of being a Rodeo Queen.

Currently she is focusing her time on her horses. Her journey with horses began in the seventh grade. Her first horse, Virgil, was a green horse and is the horse that she learned the most from. Learning on Virgil and the ability to learn quickly were the key factors in building her horsemanship.

Currently she has several horses that she uses for various purposes such as barrel racing, pole bending, attending parades, and participating in the Farm City Pro Rodeo flag team.

When she is not working with her horses, she enjoys spending time in the mountains fishing and driving the side by side. She also enjoys sewing and making jewelry.

Taylee’s plans after graduating High School are to attend Blue Mountain Community College and pursue a degree in Agriculture Business. She would like to eventually own her own business.