Seeing double

Margaret and Mitchell Jones aren’t just best friends; they’re also twins. Last week, their Homecoming celebration became doubly meaningful when the two were crowned Blooming Prairie’s Homecoming Queen and King together.
“We thought it might be close between a few people,” said Margaret, referring to the number of votes for queen and king candidates. “But we’re definitely glad we got to do it together.” 
The two were crowned King and Queen during a coronation ceremony on Sept. 28 at Blooming Prairie High School. 
Although it was somewhat of a surprise to receive the crown, Margaret admits she knew quite a few people had voted for her and Mitchell to reign as queen and king. 
“A lot of younger classmen came up to me and said, ‘Oh, I voted for you and Mitchell,’” Margaret said.  
And, while it was an honor to be named king and queen, the twins admit it was also a strange experience, as well. “People would come up to us this week and bow in the hallway,” laughed Margaret. 
The twins have attended school in Blooming Prairie since kindergarten, and have enjoyed growing up in the community. Their parents are Tara and Brian Jones, and they have an older brother Garrett (age 27.) There’s also another set of twins in the family: Taya and Spencer, age 22.  
While Margaret and Mitchell were somewhat surprised to be crowned king and queen, they still took advantage of the experience and enjoyed every moment. Margaret said she especially enjoyed the dress-up themes throughout the week, while Mitchell said he enjoyed the mischief that comes along with Homecoming week. 
Throughout the week, the twins participated in the coronation ceremony, games during the Friday afternoon pep fest and rode together in the Homecoming parade later that afternoon.
Margaret and Mitchell said that they also enjoyed being royalty alongside the other candidates, which included Jon Hatch, Ethan Strunk, Riley Olson, Kevin Eischens, Katelynn Grunklee, Alyssa Krohnberg, Kallie Klemmensen and Lauren Larkoski. 
“It will be a fun story we can tell our kids someday,” Mitchell said, with a smile. “It was fun while it lasted.”