When Princess Brooklyn Barnes thinks of the 1980s, she thinks of scrunchies, big hair, bright colors and the television show “Stranger Things.”
Barnes, 18, is a senior at Lebanon High School. Her parents are Nathan and Jill Barnes, and she has two brothers, Porter and August.
She is vice president of the associated student body and a member of the National Honor Society, and she will be one of this year’s valedictorians. She is a receptionist at RKI Insurance, math tutor, babysitter and Bible school leader.
On her creative side, Barnes likes to dance.
She’s been dancing for four years – a season that includes two years as team captain and two-time team titles as state champion. It’s no surprise, then, that she is also a dance instructor at Hollywood Studios.
After graduation, she plans to major in kinesiology at Oregon State University to become a pediatric occupational therapist.
Barnes’ favorite pastimes include reading and scrapbooking, and hanging out with friends and her cat, Omar. But if Taylor Swift invited her to dinner, she’d probably leave all of that in the dust.
“I am a big Swiftie and her music has always meant a lot to me,” Barnes said. “If I could ask her anything, I would ask when she’s going to re-release her debut album ‘Taylor Swift,’ and what made her change from a country artist to pop, and when she’ll change genres again.”
Still, past Strawberry Festival princesses have also been role models for Barnes, and she looks up to her dance coach, Megan Phillips, and her tutor, Emily Squires. Being a member of the royal court now, herself, she finds herself in the same role that all the little girls of Lebanon look up to.
“Growing up I always imagined myself becoming a Strawberry Princess,” she said. “What little girl doesn’t want to be a princess? My mom even named me after her favorite Strawberry Queen, Brooke Bingaman.”