By popular vote, a 9-year-old Barnesville girl won the opportunity to open the 109th Pennsylvania Farm Show with her rendition of the national anthem.

Cadence Kline, a third grader at Mahanoy Area Elementary School, received the most social media fan votes in the farm show national anthem contest, “Oh, Say Can You Sing?”

And another Barnesville girl, Alexandra “Ally” Bet, 14, was also a top vote-getter in the social media contest. She, too, won the honor of singing the national anthem.

Cadence, daughter of Darren and Allison Kline, will take the stage for opening ceremonies at 8 a.m. Jan. 4.

Cadence started singing at age 4, when she was planning to audition for her first musical, her mother said.

The family learned about the contest from friends, Allison said. But winning it caught her daughter off-guard.

“I was really excited,” Cadence said. “I couldn’t believe so many people voted for my video and it made me really happy.”

Despite her age, Cadence isn’t new to singing the anthem for crowds.

She said she sings the song at school sporting events “a lot.”

“I sang the anthem solo in front of a large audience at Martz Hall in Pottsville for a Mahanoy versus Pottsville Schuylkill League playoff game, and I opened the 2024 Schuylkill County Fair by singing it, too,” Cadence said.

But the largest crowd she’s led in the anthem, she said, was at the 2024 Little League World Series in Williamsport.

“There were 9,000 people there,” she recalled.

Cadence’s parents and grandparents will accompany her to her farm show performance.

And when she is done singing, Cadence said, she has plans.

“I am really excited to see all of the animals and I cannot wait to get a milkshake,” she said.

Ally is the daughter of Kristopher and Josette Bet, and a ninth grader at Mahanoy Area Junior/Senior High School.

Ally said she sang the national anthem to open the farm show in 2020 and enjoyed the experience.

“I was very happy and excited that to get this opportunity again,” she said.

In the days leading up to it, Ally said she will continue to practice and attend her weekly voice lessons.

Ally started singing when she was 9, and is involved in musicals at her school. She also sings the anthem at high school sporting events.

When she visits the fair for her 10 a.m. Jan. 7 performance, she plans round out the day by visiting the animals.

Contest winners will sing in the Giant Expo Hall of the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex and Expo Hall at 8 a.m. each day of farm show, which runs Jan. 4-11. Performances can be heard throughout the complex and will be featured live on the farm show’s Facebook page.

Shannon Powers, a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, said many entered the “Oh, Say Can You Sing?” contest.

“The contest was open to all ages, and all ages entered. There are kids and adults among the winners. The largest demographic is teenagers in the school choruses,” Powers said.

“The 2025 farm show theme, Powering Pennsylvania, highlights the strength and vitality of our agriculture industry and its role in driving our state forward,” said Russell Redding, department secretary. “Our reliance on agriculture and our pride in the ‘Star-Spangled Banner’ unite us, regardless of our differences. Cadence and talented singers from across Pennsylvania will set a tone of unity and pride in our heritage and our bright future together as we begin each day at the 2025 Pa. Farm Show.”

The show will feature the return of favorites like the 1,000-pound butter sculpture, Farm Show Food Court, and Farm Market, Sheep-to-Shawl, sheepherding, lumberjacking, cow-milking, and hundreds of other daily events, cooking demonstrations at the PA Preferred Culinary Connection, and 1 million-plus square feet of hands-on agriculture education and chances to engage with the people Powering Pennsylvania’s $132.5 billion agriculture industry.

New features, including special guests and mini-highland cow-snuggling, plus a full schedule of events can be found at farmshow.pa.gov.