NEWPORT-Preanna Davis, 18, won the title of Cocke County Miss Fairest of the Fair in August, on her third try.

Next month, she's headed to Nashville to try for the coveted prize of Tennessee Fairest of the Fair.

"I may be the only Cocke County Fairest of the Fair from Grassy Fork ever - I don't know," Davis said in an interview Tuesday at the offices of The Newport Plain Talk.

In 2007, when Davis was 16 years old, she won second runner up in the Cocke County Miss Fairest of the Fair competition.

The next year, in 2008, at the age of 17, she moved closer to the title and won first runner up.

This year she won the top prize of beauty queen.

Did her experience in the first two years of running for the title make a difference?

"It does get easier" with experience, Davis said, "much easier."

This year, Davis competed against 11 other women, in the areas of dance, evening gowns, individual modeling in evening gowns, and answering a question from judges.

Davis said being a beauty queen has "not really changed my life," though she did keep busy at the county fair after she won her title.

In addition, she was a "ribbon girl" at a horse show on a Saturday, where she worked from 6 p.m. to 1 a.m., she recalled.

As winner of the Fairest of the Fair, she did not receive money or a scholarship, but did get a set of pearls, and local businesses donated items to her, as well.

Davis just completed her first semester as a freshman at the University of Tennessee, where she is a psychology major. She said she pledged at Delta Zeta sorority. She hopes to become an attorney, she said.

"I would love to enter a Miss Tennessee preliminary (competition), possibly as Miss Jonesborough or Miss Oak Ridge," she said.

"I enjoy pageants, but I don't want to put everything on hold just to be Miss Tennessee," Davis said.

Davis lives with her mother, Paula Davis, in Grassy Fork. Paula Davis is a beautician at Trenz Hair Salon, and does her hair and makeup. She is also close to her grandparents, Tony and Carolyn Cook. Her mother will accompany her to Nashville for the pageant on Jan. 15. 

Preanna Davis works as a reservationist at Rafting in the Smokies, at the company's Gatlinburg office. She expects to work there again beginning in May.

Davis said she likes to exercise and read. She attended Cosby High School, where she was active on the basketball team.