So, a ballerina, a roller derby girl and a mom walk into a bar in St. Paul and …

Wait, this isn’t one of those bar jokes. There really is a ballerina, a roller derby girl and a mom, and they really do walk into bars in St. Paul (and schools and nursing homes and community centers).

The women aren’t a punch line, though; they’re serious about meeting and greeting the people of St. Paul as candidates for the 2012 Queen of the Snows and the four Wind Princesses of the royal court of the Winter Carnival.

Let us raise our glasses, then, to 13 candidates who hope to represent our carnival and our city in 2012. Let us also introduce you to them here, in alphabetical order:

Lindsay Auger, 30, White Bear Lake, sponsored by R.F. Moeller. Auger grew up in White Bear Lake and is studying to become a certified gemologist appraiser, so she’s ready to wear (and repair, if necessary) the crown of a snow queen.

Elizabeth Buenzow-Voracek
, 22, St. Paul, sponsored by the Original Gabe’s by the Park. Buenzow-Voracek is pursuing a master’s degree in counseling and psychological services at St. Mary’s University. At age 8, she was diagnosed with Type 1 juvenile diabetes and has made it her personal mission to give a face to living successfully with diabetes. To keep her company on cold St. Paul nights, she recently adopted a 6-year-old schnoodle (a cross between a schnauzer and a poodle) named Lucky. A sign, perhaps?

Stacy Eckman, 25, Blaine, sponsored by Pro Pharmacy. Eckman works as a resident counselor to developmentally disabled adults. She served as an ambassador for the city of Blaine in 2004-05. As a proud Minnesotan, she loves camping and the Minnesota Twins. Her favorite memory of Winter Carnival is when a piece of the 1992 Ice Palace was given to her. She kept it in her freezer for a year!

Kassandra Giles, 21, Eagan, sponsored by the J.W. Hulme Co. and Fusion Martial Arts. The 2010 Miss Eagan Princess and 2008 Miss Congeniality is an Inver Hills Community College student who works at the Rainforest Cafe and at Build-a-Bear Workshop at Mall of America. She is the sister of Kati Giles (below). The Giles’ research of carnival history indicates that three pairs of sisters have served as princesses, most recently twins in the 1980s.

Kati Giles, 23, Eagan, sponsored by Aesop’s Table. The 2011 Miss Inver Grove Heights and Miss Congeniality is a student at Inver Hills Community College, a ballet instructor at Pat Peare School of Dance and Stage Arts in Eagan and a server at Mall of America’s Rainforest Cafe.

Ashleigh Hayes, 22, St. Paul, sponsored by the Rice Street Festival. Ashleigh, born and raised in St. Paul, will graduate from the University of St. Thomas this spring with a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering. Already paying it forward, she volunteers as a math tutor at the Laura Jeffrey Academy, a charter school for girls in St. Paul. Hayes is not new to the Winter Carnival, having served as the 2005 Junior Royalty Queen of the Snowflakes. She recently represented the North End of St. Paul as the 2010-11 Queen of the Rice Street Festival.

Nicole Hinzie, 27, White Bear Lake, sponsored by Western Insurance Agency. Hinzie is a registered nurse at Children’s Hospital in Minneapolis. She recently returned from a mission trip to Kenya, where she was spotted kissing a giraffe. Whenever experiencing a new adventure, she likes to celebrate with her trademark midair-jump photo. Nicole has been passionate about the Winter Carnival since 1998, when she started searching for the medallion.

Sue Kangas, 38, of St. Paul, sponsored by Lowertown Entertainment District and Sun Ray Lanes. As of last month, Kangas graduated from the University of Minnesota three times. She is now considering law school. You also may know this contestant by her stage name – Lola Blackenblue of the Garda Belts, a skater with the Minnesota RollerGirls roller derby league. She is a strong supporter of promoting girls’ access to sports and extracurricular activities as a way to build confidence that can last a lifetime.

Natalka Kramarczuk Hertaus, 41, Forest Lake, sponsored by Fury Motors. Hertaus, a married mom of three, is a senior business analyst at Ameriprise Financial and owner of Budget Blinds of Hugo. She grew up in Northeast Minneapolis and still has ties to her Ukranian community. She has participated in the Minneapolis Aquatennial since 1992 in volunteer roles, most recently as a captain.

Amber Montgomery, 21, Shakopee, sponsored by Designer Carousel. Montgomery attends Brown College for radio broadcasting and works at 93X as a promotions intern. She was Miss Shakopee in 2007-08.

Monette Moorman, 29, St. Paul, sponsored by Hamernick’s Decorating. Moorman is a project assistant for a mechanical contractor. Winter is one of her favorite times of the year – she can’t resist buying anything with a snowflake on it.

Rebecca Weber, 25, Mahtomedi, is sponsored by Southern Lights. In her position with the National Marrow Donor Program, Weber educates potential donors on what to expect. Her hobbies include long-distance running, and she has completed several marathons.

Gina Werner, 34, Hastings, sponsored by Grand Spectacle. This married mother of two is a senior paralegal in the juvenile prosecution division of the Hennepin County attorney’s office. Werner, whose two sons were born with heart defects, volunteers at Children’s Hospital of Minnesota, working with the families of hospitalized children. For the past four years, she also has chaired Parents for Heart Group of Minnesota, a nonprofit dedicated to the education and support of families whose children have heart defects. In her spare time, she likes to build snow forts.

Copyright 2012 Pioneer Press.