The 14th Annual Miss Czech-Slovak Iowa Pageant was held on May 16th in conjunction with the Houby Day Festival held in Czech Village, Cedar Rapids, IA. This is a change from the previous year when the pageant was held with the St. Joseph's Day Dance in March. The pageant kicked off with a parade at 10:00 AM with nine convertibles carrying Miss Czech-Slovak queens and contestants.
Two excellent contestants vied for the crown of Miss Czech-Slovak Iowa. Ashley Pudil is the daughter of Kevin and Denise Pudil of Cedar Rapids, IA. She is a student at Loras College at Dubuque, IA, declaring a major in English-Creative Writing as well as Spanish. Ashley is preserving her family's heritage by serving as Czech School administrator this summer. She performed an ethnic dance that was performed by the Omladina Dancers at the Czechoslovak Genealogical Society Conference in St Louis, MO. Hannah Van Deusen is the daughter of Ray and Terri Van Deusen of Cedar Rapids, IA. She is a student at Coe College, planning to major in music education She is also taking Suzuki teacher training to be a better qualified Suzuki violin/viola teacher. For her talent, she performed a violin piece composed by Miloslav Gajdos, called Zingaresca.
The judges for the pageant were: Kathy (Roushar) Jorgenson, Minnetonka, Minnesota, President of Czech Genealogical Society International, Michael Klimesh, Spillville, Iowa, Ancestry and Immigrant History Enthusiast and Sandy (Benak) Schnackenberg, Gretna, Nebraska, Past Nebraska Czech-Slovak Queen Pageant Chair. The judging eventswere held at the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library with the kroj modeling, oratory and talent presentation open to the public in the Mitvalsky Room.
Before the crowning of the new queen, Janna Waters spotlighted her reign as outgoing Miss Czech-Slovak Iowa in her farewell speech saying, “It's been a really fantastic learning experience.” The royal court assisting with crowning the runner-up and Miss Czech-Slovak Iowa 2015-included current queen Megan Lehmann; Morgan McMichen, Miss Czech-Slovak US; Sam Uthoff, Czech Prince; Brandon Knight, Mladší “younger” Prince; and Victoria Knight, Little Sister.Hannah Van Deusen was crowned Miss Czech-Slovak Runner-Up 2015-16 and Ashley Pudil was crowned Miss Czech-Slovak Iowa 2015-16 Queen. 
Both Pudil as queen and Van Deusen as runner-up will serve as ambassadors for the Czech and Slovaks of the state by attending parades, festivals and other events with the royal court. The goal is to represent the culture and share it with communities around the state.The reigning Miss Czech-Slovak Iowa Queen 2015 is Megan Lehmann, daughter of Steve & Karen Lehmann of Cedar Rapids, IA. She will represent Iowa at the national pageant in Wilber, Neb. during the first week-end in August. The out-going Queen 2014-2015 was Janna Waters, daughter of Pat & Joan Waters, Marshalltown, IA. She served as the Master of Ceremonies for the pageant judging events and evening banquet.The Miss Czech-Slovak Iowa pageant committee wishes to thank everyone for attending 
and supporting the pageant on May 16, 2015. The organizations, businesses and individuals that made contributions, bought ads and were sponsors contributed to the success of the pageant. We appreciate your support of our program that strives to instill pride in our culture for future generations. Sponsors for the 2015 Miss Czech-Slovak Iowa Pageant
- Western Fraternal Life Cedar Rapids, IA – Garnet Level $500.00
- CSA Prokop Velky #137 – Crystal Level $250.00
- Pat & Joan Waters – Friend of the Pageant Level $100.00
- Protivin Czech heritage Partnership - Friend of the Pageant Level $50.00
- Eileen Tlusty - Friend of the Pageant Level $50.00
- Jim & Caralee Gruntorad - Friend of the Pageant Level $50.00
- Fairfax Savings Bank - Friend of the Pageant Level $50.00
The new Little Sisters also were announced during the ceremony. Victoria Knight, 11, the daughter of Tom and Karen Knight of Hiawatha, will serve her third year as Little Sister. She is a fifth-grader at Pierce Elementary. Aislin Andrews, 8, the daughter of Chad and Danielle Andrews of Lisbon, and Ingrid Landa, 7, the daughter of Craig and Christine Landa of Toddville, are the new Little Sisters. Aislin is a second-grader at Lisbon Elementary and Ingrid is a first-grader at Alburnett Elementary School.
For the first time, the Czech Royal Court has a "Little Brother," bestowing the title on Lars Landa at the crowning ceremony. Lars, 9, is the son of Craig and Christine Landa and is a third-grader at Alburnett.
