Sitara T. Slugshine (aka Joanie M. Starshine Kent) was flabbergasted. “I dropped my toast when I got the phone call,” says Slugshine, because it had finally happened; she had become the SLUG queen.
After competing in the annual SLUG queen (Society for the Legitimization of the Ubiquitous Gastropod) pageant seven times — three of which she was first runner-up — her time to grace the oozy throne has come.
The “raining” SLUG queen, Queen Panda SnuggleSlug, has abdicated due to other commitments, making Slugshine the 42nd Eugene SLUG queen — 42, a lucky number as it is the answer to life, the universe and everything in Douglas Adams’ science-fiction novel The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
SLUG queens have been a lovable fixture of this quirky city since 1983. The SLUG queen is the unofficial goodwill ambassador of Eugene. Each summer, a new SLUG queen is chosen through a hilarity-filled competition.
Though they are SLUG queens, they can confirm that they don’t have any adverse reactions to salt. Jubilee Hedonisto (aka Jilynn Cherish), an old SLUG queen (because there are no “former” or “ex” SLUG queens, just old), can confirm this as she was “a-salted” with Himalayan salt during her crowning day. Hedonisto ascended the throne in 2023.
Despite their title, SLUG queens aren’t sluggish. “We just like to show up to local events and be active in our communities. We try to uplift local community events,” Hedonisto says.
Slugshine looks forward to her rain. She describes herself as “one of those types of slugs that is going to just be appearing randomly,” planning to show up downtown, clad in her SLUG queen attire.
The attire of a SLUG queen is a unique representation of who she is in the SLUG queendom. She’s gone through different iterations, but Slugshine’s latest style is inspired by Alice in Wonderland, with Slugshine dawning a toadstool hat and accompanied by a mechanical opossum, Mimsy.
“People will tease me and say, ‘Oh, you’re a SLUG queen. You know, opossums will eat you,’” says Slugshine.
So far, Slugshine hasn’t had any issues with Mimsy.
The competition itself is a celebration of silliness. “Bribes” are allowed, and that gives old SLUG queens the chance to meet with contestants before the big competition in August. Those vying to ascend the SLUG queen throne are judged on their persona, which sometimes doesn’t differ too widely from when their makeup, wigs and glitter are off; their costume; how they answer questions; and a three-minute talent portion.
For one of Slugshine’s most memorable talent displays, she re-fashioned a pineapple costume into a corn costume and sang and danced to the viral TikTok song about corn at last year’s pageant. She made sure there was butter, because “everything was better with butter.”
The contestants are judged by the old queens and celebrity judges, and while rules are few in the SLUG queendom (the rules are there are no rules), the hope of the SLUG queen community is that queens will always be a part of their kooky cohort. “We like to see folks demonstrate that they want to continue being part of the group,” Hedonisto says.
But with all their silliness and quirks, SLUG queens prioritize community involvement. It’s one of the things Slugshine is looking most forward to during her rain. “It’s the perfect opportunity for me to get out and share my causes in Springfield, Creswell, Cottage Grove, Junction City, Veneta, all of Lane County, really. I’m an all-around slug,” she says.
Slugshine cares about an array of causes, as diverse and unique as her SLUG queen persona. Cat adoption, the local Trek Theater, agriculture and Irving Grange are just some.
Hedonisto says Slugshine’s community involvement is part of what makes her a true SLUG queen. “She’s very active in the community, and these things are all part of what being a SLUG queen is about, adding our glitter and silliness and celebrating community.”
At the age of 8, Slugshine was diagnosed with scoliosis, eventually requiring the implementation of two titanium implants. (The “T” in her name stands for “titanium.”) She says she’d like to go to a local school to talk about scoliosis awareness.
A particularly hard year for her was 1999 when she was diagnosed with bipolar mania, causing her life to come undone. “I lost my apartment. I lost my husband. I lost my job, and I also lost health care, so I was needing all these different supports,” Slugshine says. “So I went through a lot of different things to get where I am today, and if I didn’t have the community service organizations and the nonprofits in Eugene and Lane County, I might not have been here.” Because of her experiences, she supports mental health awareness and plans to create care packages for women’s shelters, since she experienced domestic violence herself.
Hedonisto admires Slugshine’s resilient spirit. “She has really faced a lot of adversity, and she’s come through it and just continues to shine in the most wholesome and loving and sparkly way,” she says of Slugshine.
Despite all she’s been through, Slugshine is happy to finally have her time to shine. “People always see me and they say, ‘Oh, it’s Sitara. You’ve been competing for the SLUG queen. Have you won yet?’ And this time I’m gonna go, ‘Why, yes, I have, by golly.’”