Tennessee Valley Fair Pageant registration ends Aug. 29th

Campbell County girl is pageant director for tiny tot, little miss and princess categories

By Charlotte Underwood

KNOXVILLE, TN (WLAF)- It’s time for the Tennessee Valley Fair Pageant with contests for all ages! Registration closes on Fri., Aug. 29^th. Most of the pageant is open to kids in Campbell County, and there are some great prizes this year. The only exception is the Junior and the Fairest competition as they are for Knox and adjoining counties only. Check out the Tennessee Valley Fair Pageant Facebook page to register today!

Local Campbell County girl Bayli Alley is the Director for the Tiny Tot, Little Miss, and Princess contest for the second year in a row and said she “would love to have some Campbell County contestants!”

Tiny Tot is open to ages 4 to 6m Little Miss is open to ages 7-9 and Princess is open to ages 10-12.

She encourages area youth to register and get involved in the 2025 Tennessee Valley Fair Pageant! 

Alley is currently pursuing a master’s degree in communication and business leadership while also working as a second-grade teacher at a local school in High Point.

Alley has always been involved in pageants since she was quite young and has been involved in numerous volunteer organizations in Campbell County including the CC Cancer Association, Relay for Life, Sleep in Heavenly Peace, and preparing & taking goody bags / blankets to every resident at Cumberland Village Nursing Home each Christmas since 2014, as well as  putting together & delivering baskets of goodies to the residents at the Rainbow Home for many years. 

Those are just some of the things she’s done in Campbell County.  There are countless other things like Operation Christmas Child and numerous other things in Knoxville and surrounding areas. 

Community Service is a “huge part of her life” and that’s one of the main reasons she loves pageants and jumped at the opportunity to direct for the fair. 

Alley said she “wants to instill that same passion in young girls.”

She was her sorority’s philanthropy chair and was “shocked at the number of college students that had never volunteered anywhere.” 

It was very “eye opening” for her and “sparked a desire to reach kids at an early age to introduce the concept.”

“Pageants have shaped me into the woman that I am today, and I am truly blessed to have the opportunity to give back to an organization that has played such a pivotal role in my life. When I first started competing, mom and I didn’t expect them to be so meaningful. I think we both just thought that it would be a fun hobby, but then we saw just how much pageantry had to offer. Service has always been something extremely important to me, and pageants have a huge emphasis on serving your community. I love that pageants teach young women that it’s truly more than the glitz and glamour, but how you make people feel and what you can do to help others that truly matters,” Alley said.

Last year was her first year directing and she asked the contestants to make cards for East Tn Children’s Hospital. They made and her queens delivered 141 cards. This year she’s doing the same thing for first responders. 

Alley has been doing pageants since she was around three or four years old and got started at a fair pageant, (Anderson County & Tn Valley and also Claiborne County) at age 9.  She has held many titles from local to state to National. 

In 2014 she won Miss Preteen Tennessee, United Stares and went on to represent Tennessee at the National pageant where she placed 4th Runner Up.  Alley is currently Miss Historic Greenville in the Miss America Organization.  She won her first preliminary pageant and that gave her the opportunity to compete for Miss Tennessee.

In doing so, she won scholarship money which is a huge part of the Miss America Organization. 

According to Alley, her experience in pageants over the years has helped prepare her for life and give her a confidence in handling just about any situation.

“Pageants have given me so many necessary skills. The biggest thing that I have gained is overall confidence. If you can subject yourself to being judged on stage in the spotlight in front of an audience of people, you can truly do anything. I also believe that I was prepared for any career, because I have been interviewing since I was 13. A huge part of scoring in pageants is the private interview with the judges. I have been trained to confidently enter a room, answer any question, and leave having made a connection with the people behind the table. Communication skills are necessary in any career, and I have been developing them throughout my pageant journey,” Alley said.

To help others in their pageant journey, Alley has been advocating for the fair to increase their prize money, and they did so this year.  

According to Alley, “Pageants offer so much that people don’t always understand or see.”

“Pageants provide valuable life skills like public speaking, they build confidence, and they provide a platform to promote community service.”

To register for the Tennessee Valley Fair Pageant, they can visit this link or this link. (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED-08/26/2025-6AM)