After a 30-year absence, royalty is making an appearance at Athol Daze.

As part of an ongoing effort to revamp the annual festivities, Athol city staff resurrected the Athol Little Miss competition this year, with 12-year-old Chantelle Lickfold crowned Athol Little Miss Queen, and 11-year-old Kylee Amos dubbed Athol Little Miss Princess.

The city hasn't held the competition since the '70s, said city clerk Sally Hansen, likely because Athol Daze has been put on by so many different people.

It seemed as good a time as ever to bring it back.

"This was another way to bring out the kids, because Athol Daze is all about the children," Hansen said, adding that the city created a skateboard competition and Cutest Baby contest last year to bring in younger attendees. "We'll have it be an annual thing."

The new monarchy is already getting star treatment.

The girls were crowned earlier in their classrooms at Athol Elementary.

"I was really surprised," Kylee said with a smile in her family's Athol home. "They came with flowers and everything. It was really awesome."

The girls also get to make the titles their own, said Susie Wachter, Hansen's assistant.

Because the event had disappeared for so long, the new princess and queen will be charged with setting precedent for their appearances and activities.

"The only thing they're required to do is to be available for Athol Daze," Wachter said, adding that the girls will appear in the event parade Aug. 14 and also help judge the baby contest.

The rest is up to them.

Already the girls seem interested in performing a musical skit together, Wachter said, and Kylee will be making an appearance at Stateline Stadium and Speedway this month.

"They seem very interested in whatever they can get done," Wachter said. "They're available to do any kinds of parades or anybody else who has an event."

Chantelle and Kylee were chosen for essays they submitted describing why they desired the titles and why they should be crowned.

Chantelle stood far apart with a packed page of activities.

"It's a long list," the golden-haired seventh-grader-to-be admitted in June.

Chantelle is involved in 4-H activities, including cooking, drama, rabbit and poultry raising and food preservation. Her other interests include Christian Youth Theater, tap and jazz, swimming and basketball.

"I just like to do a lot of things," she said with a shrug. "I don't like to sit in front of the TV and just watch it for hours. I like to move and get up."

Being crowned queen is interesting, she said.

"I think it's pretty fun," she said.

Her mother, Latana, said she was proud of her daughter.

"I think it's pretty exciting just because she's excited," Latana said. "She was just bubbling."

Kylee snagged the princess title with her essay about her yearning to judge the Cutest Baby contest.

"I love babies," the brunette girl said with a smile.

The future fifth-grader, who said she wants to be a Christian singer someday, also wanted the crown so she could appear in the parade.

"I thought it would be an opportunity to meet new people," she said.

Kylee's father Kelly said he had no worries about his daughter appearing in front of crowds, especially after singing in the school talent show every year.

"She has never been afraid of crowds," he said.

Hansen said Athol Daze will offer plenty of excitement for other children, too.

The city will hold another skateboarding competition with brand new boards as prizes for each age division.

There will also be a pie cooking contest and vendor booths, as well as a silent and live auction to raise funds for maintenance of the city park.

One of the big favorites is Money in the Straw, Hansen added, where kids root through haystacks for hidden money that they can spend at game booths.

"We just put it (the money) back in every year so we can make it a fun event," she said.

The celebration will also have live music and a car show.

"It's all kinds of fun things," Hansen said. "It's a crazy day."