The 2018 Pella Tulip Queen is working to honor the life of a local woman responsible for the costumes the Royal Court, Dutchesses, and many others wear during the annual Tulip Time Celebration. Juliana Van Gorp is now a design student at Trinity Christian College, and has designed pins and buttons to remember Phyllis Zylstra, who died in December of 2019 after a long battle with breast cancer.

Zylstra, along with Jacki Craver, co-operated Custom Costumes for nearly four decades, and were responsible for design and creation of the costumes for the Tulip Queen and Royal Court and The Duchesses. Van Gorp says she’s hopeful the design of the pin and button will represent the effort Zylstra made and the impact she had behind the scenes to make Tulip Time happen every year. Van Gorp says the best way to purchase a button is to reach out to her via Facebook.