Woman goes viral after winning multiple awards at Virginia-based county fair

Many of her canned food and baked goods won first place at the Virginia Kentucky District County Fair.

(Getty Images/iStockphoto)

After winning multiple awards at a Virginia-based county fair last month, Linda Skeens has become a viral sensation on the internet and fans are continuing to wonder who and where she is.

While at the annual Virginia Kentucky District County Fair in June, Keens won a handful of competitions for her baked goods and canned foods.

As noted on the fair’s Facebook account, Skeens’s cake, pie, brownies, and sweet bread all received first place.

Additionally, she took multiple ribbons home in quite a few other categories. She received first, second, and third place for her cookies, savoury bread, and candy.

For her canned foods, she came in first place for her chow chow, corn relish, applesauce, pears, and grape jelly. She also received second place for her peaches.

Along with her cooking skills, Skeens came in second and third place for her Christmas decor and received a third place ribbon for her quilt.

Following her win, Skeens quickly went viral on social media considering her stack of achievements. Fans created multiple memes on Facebook about wanting to see her compete at a state fair.

On TikTok, a man named Jordan Keyes shared a song that he wrote about Skeens and her baking success. Other fans on the app have wondered who she is and noted that they were trying to find her, including Mason Mousette, host of the HOT 93.3 radio show in Dallas, Texas.

Mousette later shared that she got in contact with Skeens and had the opportunity to speak with her on her show, as she shared the interview on her TikTok account.

During the conversation, Skeens revealed that this wasn’t her first time winning multiple prizes. She said that she won “40 ribbons” at last year’s fair. She noted that during the event in June, she won a total of seven “best in show awards” and “30 more other ribbons”.

As Mousette acknowledged how the internet is “obsessed” with Skeens and wants her to cook for them, she said that she’s mainly been “busy cooking for [her] family”.

Aside from focusing on her loved ones, she shared that she was diagnosed with leukaemia a few months ago, but has been doing well.

“I was diagnosed with leukaemia back in December, so I’m doing great,” she added. “The doctor tells me I could live another 10 or 20 years with the treatment I’m on.”

She also credited her family and friends for keeping her happy and healthy, before Mousette addressed how the baker has been compared to many athletes, including Tom Brady and  NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt.

In response, Skeens said: “Comparing me to Dale Earnhardt Sr, I said no way I could ever be in his category. He’s my hero.”