Ripon Christian High senior Ellie Dyt of Crows Landing was selected as the 2022 Dairy Princess for the California Milk Advisory Board’s District 4.

Dyt was crowned in front of a crowd of 160 people at the Van Foeken Event Barn in Hilmar on June 16.

Dyt will represent District 4, which includes Alameda, Alpine, Amador, Calaveras, Contra Costa, El Dorado, Mariposa, Merced, Monterey, Sacramento, San Benito, San Francisco, San Joaquin, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Stanislaus, Tuolumne, and Yolo counties. As Dairy Princess, she will play a key role on the CMAB’s Communications Services team in meeting community relations objectives.

Dyt is the daughter of Rich and Jacquie Dyt. She will be a senior at Ripon Christian High School and plans to pursue a degree in Criminal Justice. Dyt is a fourth generation dairy farmer and grew up on her family’s dairy farm.

She is an active member of Ripon Christian High’s FFA Chapter, and currently serves as Vice President. Dyt is also on the Dairy Cattle Judging Team and participated in numerous public speaking competitions.

She is a member of the Ripon Christian High Volleyball and Tennis Teams. She has been on the Honor Roll and a Southern League Scholar Athlete throughout her high school career. Dyt is also an Altar Server at St. Joachim’s Catholic Church.

Crowned 1st Alternate Dairy Princess, Nicole Bettencourt, is the daughter of Manuel and Fatima Bettencourt. She will be a senior at Aptos High School and plans to attend Stanford University to pursue a degree in Portuguese Studies and Environmental Studies. She is also considering studying Agriculture and Sustainable Farming Practices. Bettencourt is the President of the Aptos High Portuguese Club.

She is active on the Speech and Debate, and Mock Trial Teams. Bettencourt serves as Queen for the Portuguese Community of Watsonville and attends parades and community events for the Our Lady of Fatima Festa. She is also publishing a history project on Portuguese agricultural settlers and has completed a research project and annotated bibliography on Portuguese dairy farms in the Central Valley. She runs her own website on California Portuguese Youth Cultural Heritage and Studies and is active in her church, Our Lady of Help of Christians, and at Dancenter as a dance teacher and performer.

Bettencourt will assist the new District 4 Dairy Princess in her duties, which include speaking on behalf of the California dairy industry to various audiences throughout the year.

As Dairy Princess and Alternate, Dyt and Bettencourt will attend a professional development training focused on presentation skills, advocating for the California dairy industry, leadership and business etiquette.

Participants were judged on speaking ability, education, dairy background, poise, and personality.  Judges for the contest were Guy Gary, Makenzie Neves, and Karyn Leary.

California is the nation’s leading milk producer. The state also makes more butter, ice cream and nonfat dry milk than any other state. The state is the second-largest producer of cheese and yogurt. Dairy products made with Real California Milk can be identified by the Real California Milk seal, which certifies they are made with milk produced on California dairy farms by California dairy farm families.