Who will be the next Miss Niles?

The southwestern Michigan community will find out this weekend when the Miss Niles Scholarship Organization crowns its 80th queen.

The contest will be held at 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 23, at the Niles High School Auditorium. Nineteen contestants will vie for an opportunity to become Miss Niles 2015.

“We hope people will come out and support the pageant,” said pageant chair Tracey Hosffeld. “It should be a good time.”

Little Miss Niles, with 23 contestants ages 5-9 years old, will be held earlier in the day, starting at 2 p.m.

The theme for this year’s contest is “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” keeping with Blossomtime Festival’s theme of “Nursery Rymes.”

Each of the 19 contestants will perform in an opening number dance. Afterward, they will take part in a formal presentation in the evening gown of their choice. Finally they will all participate in an on-stage “Get to Know You” question and answer session in which they will share with the judges and audience a little about themselves.

Along with the crowning of the 2015 Queen and Court, there will also be a farewell from the 2014 Queen, Danielle Villa and her Court of Honor.

“I am very excited to see who will be picked, but at the same time it is really hard to give up my crown,” said Villa, a freshman pre-med student at Hope College in Holland. “It’s been an amazing, perfect year. Miss Niles is more than just a pageant. It’s been an experience to get out and do something positive in Niles.”

The 2015 Miss Niles will compete in the 2015 Blossomtime contest and take part in all of the Blossomtime events. During her reign, she will make numerous appearances on behalf of the Niles community and participate in service events.

Tickets can be purchased for $15 ($10 for students) from any contestant or at the door.

Former Miss Niles queens are invited to attend with a complimentary ticket and will be recognized on stage. Please contact Hossfeld at missniles@comcast.net, facebook: Miss Niles Scholarship Organization, or (574) 323-8231 to reserve your ticket.

This will be Hossfeld’s fifth and final year heading the Miss Niles Pageant. She was offered and accepted a position with the Miss America Organization to run the Miss Great Lakes Pageant, which includes Lake, Porter and LaPorte counties in Indiana.

She said she is looking forward to her new opportunity, but will miss the Niles pageant.

“I’ve met so many wonderful people and made lifelong friends through it,” she said. “It will be very bittersweet.”

Amanda Daly and Monica Bielski will co-chair Miss Niles in the future.

The contestants for Miss Niles 2015 are:

• Kylee Myer

• Brooklyn Kessler

• Stephanie Rickords

• Dolly Edwards

• Victoria Ebersol

• Toriee Wilson

• Tyreece Terry

• Tricia Marlin

• Chloe Butts

• Jessica Simpson

• Genesis Martin

• Alyssa Jones

• Simone Smith

• Brianna Gleason

• Rachel Hayes

• Miranda Bailey

• Emily Roberts

• Alisa Mazumder

• Tori Lausch