Rose of Tralee finalists helping Youthline
Entrants in the national Rose of Tralee final, to be held in Invercargill later this month, are not only preparing for the contest, they are also raising money for a good cause.
The 11 finalists from Auckland to Southland are helping raise money for Youthline’s 24/7 Helpline and their Walk the Talk campaign.
“In Tralee, the competition is to affiliated charities and we thought how great it would be here collecting for a charity,” Southland Rose of Tralee committee chairperson Laura Morrison said.
“Within seven days we’ve raised over $4000.”
After a weekend of activities, the national final winner will be announced at the Ascot Park Hotel on Saturday, May 14.
Personality and being a good role model were the key attributes judges would be looking for, Morrison said.
The winner will go to the annual Rose of Tralee festival in County Kerry, Ireland, in August.
“The ambassador is hosted in Tralee; we pay for the flights to Tralee and entry into the competition,” Morrison said.
The Rose of Tralee festival originated from a 19th century ballad of Mary O’Connor, The Rose of Tralee, and started in 1959.
At first it was only for Irish-born women, but from 1967 to those of Irish ancestry. Entrants come from the 32 counties of Ireland and from the United States, Canada, Germany, Australia and New Zealand.
Last year’s national winner Kelsi Wallace, of Invercargill, said taking part in the festival at Tralee was a great experience.
“Never in a million years did I think it would be so good. We spent a week touring Ireland and the festival was bigger than I thought.
“There were two parades in town with tens of thousands of people.
“It was televised live on RTE, Irish national television, with 1.3 million viewers. The highlight for me was meeting the other girls, now we’re best friends.”
Invercargill and Southland has two representatives in this month’s national final, Tarrah Shirley and Meadow Bodlin-Allen.
Morrison said tickets could still be purchased to events across the finals weekend, including a cocktail party at Motorcycle Mecca today.
The fundraising for Youthline will continue until the end of the month.
Donations can be made at: walkthetalk.nz/t/nzroseoftralee.
“In Tralee, the competition is to affiliated charities and we thought how great it would be here collecting for a charity.”
Laura Morrison Southland Rose of Tralee committee chairperson