Veiled Prophet Ball, an Experience Fit for a Queen, or a Girl Next Door – Part I

The new Veiled Prophet Queen of Love and Beauty, , sat down with Patch for a conversation about her magical experience as the newly crowned queen. is as delightful as she is beautiful. She holds a prestigious honor as VP Queen, but in her everyday life, she is very much “the girl next door” like those you will find on any college campus.

Patch: Hi Eleanor.

Eleanor: You can call me "Clarke"; that is what everyone calls me.

Patch: "Clarke," I am trying to imagine what this experience was like for you.

Eleanor: It still hasn’t hit me how big of a deal this is and how important this is. I am just still in awe and can’t believe it happened. It was just amazing.

Patch: Do you feel like you are just an everyday girl and this is like a fairytale?

Eleanor: Yeah. I would say yeah. (She smiled widely and giggled as she answered.)

Patch: How are the Veiled Prophet Queens chosen?

Eleanor: They have a committee that votes. It really didn’t have anything to do with me; it was all my dad. My dad is part of the order. He has been working so hard for so long. And he donates so much time and so much effort to make the parade what it is and the ball what it is. So, it was such an honor for me to represent my dad that night and show all the hard work he has done for the order. He was just so proud and it was such a rewarding feeling to do that for my dad. He still hasn’t stop smiling.

Patch: How far in advance did you know you were going to be the new Queen?

Eleanor: I found out around Easter of this past year. My parents called me and said they had something to tell me. I drove home. We went out to lunch and they told me.

Patch: Was finding out you were the new VP Queen surprising to you?

Eleanor: It was a complete surprise to me. I had no idea. I didn’t think it would ever happen to me in my wildest dreams. It was the most fun experience I have ever been a part of.

Patch: How big of a deal is it to keep this knowledge a secret?

Eleanor: I wasn’t allowed to tell anyone at all until that night when they opened the curtain and announced my name. So, it was a big secret for me and my family. That was a really hard secret. Everyone kept asking us. We just had to smile and not say anything.  My younger sisters didn’t know until earlier that day (of the ball).

Patch: What were your sister’s reactions?

Eleanor: I think they were really excited for me, because they had no idea. They were excited to ride in the limo, sit in the front row and have special treatment.

Patch: Tell me about that experience.

Eleanor: Men in the order who were in charge of Queen’s transport picked me, my mom and my two little sisters up in a limo and we all rode down together. They took me to a side-back entrance. They took my picture right out of the limo. Then, I was taken into the service elevator. I didn’t see the front entrance into the hotel until later that night. From the service elevator, they took me to the room where the other specials and the retiring queen were. They provided food for us. I had a sandwich.  We all put our dresses on. They had a hairstylist and makeup artist to fix any fly away hairs or any smudges to my make up. Then the florist brought up our flowers so we could see them and practice our bows beforehand in our dresses. Then our pages came up and I got to meet my little pages and they were adorable. I was so excited.

Patch: I was amazed at how the pages handled the trains on all of your dresses

Eleanor: They were so uniform and together. As I was watching them fix my train, I was like “Oh wow, they are so good at this.”

Patch: How did it feel walking down that long runway?

Eleanor: I was in so much shock as to what was happening. I wasn’t even thinking. I just walked and smiled and looked for the people I knew in the audience. The most nerve racking part was being behind the curtain when they were announcing my name. They were playing the music and the lights were flashing. It was just the initial shock that I had to walk out in front of everyone I know.

Patch: I can only imagine how hard it must have been to hold the flowers and take the bow.

Eleanor: The flowers were a lot heavier than I had anticipated. My mom had me practice with a champagne bottle or a heavy textbook. I have heard of girls practicing with a gallon of milk. It is more awkward than heavy. You just have to figure out how to hold them. My arms started to cramp toward the end. They were so heavy though, beautiful, but heavy.

Patch: What did you do until time to walk down the runway?

Eleanor: They filmed the ball, as you know. They played it throughout the hotel. So, they had a couple of TVs in our room and we all sat and watched it. Almost all of my friends were in it this year and I got to watch them through the TV screen. Finally, they called my name saying I needed to go down there and they put my train on my dress and then I went downstairs where they handed me my flowers and I got my portrait taken. Then they took me to the chute where I waited my turn.

Patch: What is required of you now as the Queen of the VP Organization?

Eleanor: I am in the parade this upcoming summer and I will sit on the float with the G.O. (Veiled Prophet) and wave. I will do community service because the VP has a community service initiative. They go around different parts of St. Louis and do community service. So, I will be doing that this summer. Also, I am going to be in the ball again next year which I am looking forward to.

Part two will continue tomorrow. Come back and read about Clarke’s plans for her reigning year as Queen of Love and Beauty.