Sisters enjoy their reign at Cy Young Days Festival

Walking on sunshine could describe the year sisters Morgan, 7, and Madison Miller, 5, are having as they serve as young representatives of the Cy Young Days Festival. The girls are from Cambridge and attend school in Newcomerstown, where their mother is a teacher.

Their parents are Matt and Katrina Miller.

Morgan Miller serves as princess attendant while her younger sister Madison was named the first Cy Young Days Festival little miss.

The pageant prepares the contestants for what is ahead. Morgan Miller remembered speaking and answering some questions from the judges who selected the winners. With her older sister committed to promoting the festival for the next year, the judges then surprised Madison with the title of little miss so she could join the fun.

The sisters’ favorite royalty activities include dressing up and going to lunches and dances.

There’s one thing about being a princess and helping to promote your community that isn’t as appealing. Madison Miller said no when asked if she likes being in parades.

“My arm gets tired,” Madison Miller said of some of the long parades the sisters participated in.

“One time she fell asleep in one,” Morgan Miller said of her younger sister.

In addition to participating in the Cy Young Days Festival, the girls have attended festivals in West Lafayette, the Barnesville Pumpkin Festival, the Blue Berry Festival, Cambridge Christmas Parade and more. At the events Madison Miller introduces herself, and then her sister talks about Cy Young and the festival.

“Do you know who had the most wins in MLB in history? Cy Young won a total of 511 games in his career,” Morgan Miller said, demonstrating her talk at festivals around the state. “I am the princess attendant for the Cy Young Days Festival. The Cy Young Festival honors Cy Young and the game he loved. We hope to see you next year at the Cy Young Days Festival in Newcomerstown; it takes place in the fourth weekend of June.”

The girls like meeting new people. Last year’s Cy Young Days Festival guest of honor and a former Cy Young Award winner Eric Gagne autographed baseball-shaped pins for everyone on the festival court to wear on their sashes.

They also made friends with Morgan Nance, a member of the royal court at the Johnny Appleseed Festival in Lisbon, and they still keep in touch with her.

The family especially enjoyed going to festivals they had never been to before.

The girls helped with two community service projects including making birthday boxes for a local food bank with other members of the court.

Outside of helping promote the community of Newcomerstown, the girls like to visit with their grandparents and play with their dog, a Black Lab named Lucy.

Morgan Miller is in second grade, and her favorite subject in school is math. “It’s easy,” she said.

Her younger sister leans toward art.

“I like painting and colors, learning what colors make other colors,” Madison Miller said. She is a preschool student this year.

When they grow up, Morgan Miller said she wants to be a singer like Taylor Swift, and Madison wants to help babies by being a lifeguard.

“I want to teach babies to swim,” Madison Miller said.

Jen Lindig, director of the royalty competition, called the girls a ray of sunshine.

“Their smiles just make my day,” said Lindig, who complimented the girls on their willingness to persevere at events despite weather conditions not always being optimal.

Lindig is in the process of working to simplify the applications for those wishing to serve as royalty and is developing a handbook. The 2024 Cy Young Days Festival royalty applications will be posted sometime in April on the festival website. The handbook will be available online too.

Lindig thanked the members of the Cy Young Days Festival committee for supporting the royal court program. The 2024 Cy Young Days Festival will be June 28-30.