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To Kyle Perez-Robinson, the love Gilroy residents have for their town and its people is as strong and as invigorating as the bulb’s quintessential aroma.
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The Gilroy Garlic Festival is an event Perez-Robinson has always loved, but as this year’s garlic queen, she is thrilled to be part of it all.
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“I’ve been going to the Garlic Festival ever since I could remember,” Perez-Robinson says. “I always remembered seeing the garlic queens walking around with her court. It was always something that I wanted to do.”
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As the garlic queen, Perez-Robinson has spent the past few months attending events such as Relay for Life and Gilroy’s Memorial Day parade. Her hopes for the festival weekend include warm weather and lots of fun adventures that allow her to experience the festival in a whole new way.
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“My take away from this experience is that I really loved how much of a family the [garlic] court has become already,” she says.
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The environment at the competition between all the young women was constantly positive and supportive, says Perez-Robinson.
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“We were all really happy to participate in this event that represents our town and the outcome wasn’t necessarily as important as the experience and the journey that we were having and that we are still having,” says Perez-Robinson.
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Without a doubt, the 2016 Miss Gilroy Garlic Festival Queen is a Gilroy girl to the fullest.
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“One thing I really, really do love about Gilroy is that every time I go back home, I never fail to see somebody in the grocery store that I know,” she says.
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And despite being away at college for two years, Perez-Robinson believes that Gilroy is truly a unique city to call home because of its close ties and connections.
“I really love that even though the town seems to be getting bigger, there’s still that sense of a small, tight-knit community in that you can connect with somebody on an intimate level in the grocery store or in line for the DMV,” Perez-Robinson says. “I really appreciate that. We always have that bond over garlic.”
