South Carolina – Erin Moran

My name is Erin Moran, and I am honored to be your 2016 South Carolina Rose. I am 26 years old and love living along the Atlantic Ocean coastline in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. A native of the Boston area, I earned my first university degree in Communication from Westfield State University in Massachusetts, and I am currently pursuing my second university degree in Atmospheric Sciences through Mississippi State University. I have been working in television for more than five years, and currently enjoy my job as the Morning Weather Anchor for the local news affiliate of a major television network in the U.S. My very early-morning alarm clock means I am lucky to see many of our picture-perfect South Carolina sunrises! When I’m not reporting the weather for golfers and beachgoers, I delight in volunteering as a mentor to school-age children at the Boys and Girls Club of the Grand Strand. My love of science and children also collide during my frequent visits to local schools to speak with children about my job as a forecaster and how meteorologists use technology to predict the weather. I hope that I can inspire more children, especially young girls, to explore careers in science and technology. My Irish-American family includes my loving parents, four siblings and my adorable niece, Fiona. My two-year old lab-retriever mix pup, Nala, keeps me company while living so far from my family and has made South Carolina feel more like home. I am proud of my family’s Irish roots in County Kildare. My great-great grandfather, Patrick Hannigan, was born in Harristown, Kildare, Ireland in 1852, and lived there until he emigrated to the United States in 1870.