The 2014 North Idaho Fair and Rodeo wasn’t Haley Jackson’s first rodeo, and it certainly won’t be her last.

The 17-year-old Coeur d’Alene High School senior recently earned the title of queen as the new Miss North Idaho Fair and Rodeo, an honor she has been working toward for many years. She was crowned Aug. 22 at the fair and will reign through next year’s fair until Dec. 31, 2015.

“It was really fun because we got to ride out in the big Dodge Ram truck and I got to be crowned in front of the grandstands in front of everyone,” she said. “It was just really cool because the community gets to watch you get crowned. That was a lot of fun and an amazing experience.”

Haley is the captain of the Rolling Thunder 4-H Equestrian Drill team, where she has participated in many events and activities with teammates for seven years. Her role of captain and club president requires her to be a leader, resolve conflicts, organize practices and encourage a positive synergy within her team. She also gets to blow the whistle and wave the American flag.

“It’s fun to be on the team because I’ve grown up with it,” she said. “It’s fun to watch everyone grow up and then get new members and be able to mentor them.”

She said her favorite part of drill team is how she and her teammates all “mentally connect.”

“It’s weird, but I mean, we kind of read each others’ minds,” she said. “There’s just so much trust that goes into it when other girls are racing at you and almost run into you, but you trust them not to and to be able to handle it. It’s a great team-bonding experience and I’m really glad I did it because it’s helped me become who I am.”

Haley, of Hayden, has been active with horses for 10 years and has a close bond with her 9-year-old quarter horse, Junebug.

“Junebug is definitely my best friend,” she said. “We understand each other and she does get a little feisty and she tries to test your limits, but she knows that I can get her out of it. Once she realizes that, she’s like, ‘OK, you’re right, you win.’ We have a really great bond and I’m really thankful that she’s so loving and supportive of me. Every time I go see her, she comes running and she whinnies at me and it’s adorable.”

As the new rodeo queen, Haley will act as the North Idaho Fair and Rodeo ambassador and bring a little bit of North Idaho with her as she visits other rodeos and fairs in the region. She will be active in this role for more than a year, while she works as a restaurant hostess, is completing high school and is already taking courses through North Idaho College.

“The experience so far, it’s been crazy,” she said. “I’ve been really busy, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything because it’s great to represent such a great community ... everyone knows North Idaho, and we have such a great reputation that I’m really honored to represent it.”

One of her goals as queen is to bring her love of the rodeo to children who are sick and in the hospital. As a little girl, Haley was afflicted with scleroderma, a rare autoimmune disease that tightens and hardens the skin and connective tissues. She got through it and plans to use that experience as a tool to relate to children and inspire them as they fight their own battles with illness.

“I personally was in their position when I was little,” she said. “I want to prove to them and be their role model that you can accomplish whatever you want to be and you can do whatever you want to do, and you can’t let that get to you. You can’t let that be your barrier, you just have to move on. I just want to be a role model for that.”

Haley is the middle child with one big brother and one little brother. Her family is very animal-friendly, sharing their habitat and hearts with two cats, a dog and two horses. She said she looks up to her mom, who also serves as the adviser of Rolling Thunder. Her mom, Lori Jackson, is as proud as a parent could be of her daughter.

“We tease that we’re her ‘team.’ I’m her manager and her dad’s her driver,” Lori said with a smile. “No, it’s been great. It amazes her dad and I how natural she is and how confident and that, for me, is awesome just to know, everything she’s been through, that she hasn’t lost an ounce of confidence.”

Haley defeated one competitor for the position as queen, which also earned her a $1,000 college scholarship. Career-wise, she has her mind set on pediatric orthodontics, but in the near future, she aspires to take her royalty experience to the regional level and maybe someday become Miss Rodeo Idaho, which is just one sparkly belt buckle away from the national Miss Rodeo America Pageant.

“What I love the most about rodeo is the people,” Haley said. “I love the environment, the people, everyone’s so nice and everyone’s just there to have a good time. It’s like a big gathering of people who love rodeo. It’s nice to be with other people who enjoy the same thing as I do, and meet new people who do. I’ve just grown up with it.”