Taylor Stewart will hand over her Clark County Fair queen’s crown to someone new on Sunday, but the experience she has had over the last 12 months will stay with her forever.

Stewart said her year as queen met every expectation she had and gave her an opportunity to sell Clark County to people throughout the state.

She said she traveled to fairs throughout the state to promote what Clark County has to offer, and she used every opportunity she had locally to get the name of the fair out to the public.

“I wanted to promote the fair and do as many things as possible,” she said.

Stewart said going to other fairs showed how different each county is, but each with something unique to offer to fairgoers.

“You don’t really realize what other fairs are like until you actually start going to them,” she said.

Stewart had a reading program at the local library where she read to pre-schoolers, as well as attending events like the War of 1812 Memorial at the Heritage Center.

“I wanted to show that I wasn’t just doing things during the fair,” she said.

Before becoming queen, Stewart showed horses for 12 years as part of 4-H. The 2010 Shawnee High School graduate said she wasn’t sure how to spend her time at the fair this year.

“I won’t have anything to do,” she said. “Last year was so crazy with showing my horse and doing queen things. I never sat down.”

Stewart said she hopes that the next fair queen continues to promote the Clark County Fair.

Stewart is a junior at the University of Kentucky, double majoring in marketing and management. She is involved with honors programs at Kentucky, including a scholars in engineering and management program. Stewart hopes to have a career in advertising after graduation.

The 2012 Clark County Fair Queen contest will begin at 1 p.m. Sunday in the Champions Center Banquet Hall.