OFFICIAL PROGRAMME www.roseoftralee.ie | www.laoistourism.ie It is my great pleasure to welcome you all to the Rose of Tralee Regional Festival in I would also like to thank the key sponsors of the Portlaoise. I would like to particularly welcome the Irish & International Roses who have Rose of Tralee Regional Festival, including the travelled from near and far to County Laois. In 2013 the year of the Gathering we are Portlaoise Heritage Hotel, The Maldron Hotel, delighted to be hosting this event again here and we welcome all our visitors to Portlaoise Portlaoise, Castle Durrow & Dan Morrisey Ltd. and the County, and wish you all a memorable and enjoyable stay. I hope you all have a very enjoyable weekend and Laois County Council through its elected members and management is endeavoring to look forward to meeting you again in the future. promote and develop Portlaoise and County Laois as a key events centre in Ireland and this festival is one of the drivers of the process. County Laois and Portlaoise promises Peter Carey to be a hive of activity during the June Bank Holiday weekend with the Rose of Tralee Laois County Manager Regional Festival and the Gordon Bennett Irish Classic Car Run, which has become an Chairperson Laois Tourism Committee. integral part of the festival. I am delighted to welcome you to the Rose of Tralee This is the year of The Gathering – a concept similar to what the Rose of Tralee International Regional Festival 2013. It’s a particular privilege to extend Festival has been delivering for over 50 years. We are delighted that this year’s International a special welcome to all those who have travelled from Festival in Tralee will embrace The Gathering as we invite all those who have had connections America, Britain, Canada, Europe, Australia, the Middle with the Rose of Tralee to come and celebrate this special year with us in Kerry. We have planned East and from all over Ireland to celebrate with us this many extra events for people of all ages including JLS in Concert, The Stunning, Sharon Shannon weekend. and many more parades, fireworks and air displays. Each year over 1,000 young women participate in Rose of Finally, I hope you enjoy your time in Portlaoise and we look forward to seeing you in Tralee events worldwide and this year sees the biggest Tralee for the Rose of Tralee International Festival and Rose Gathering from 14th to 20th August gathering of Roses at any one single event. It is my this year. pleasure, on behalf of the entire Rose of Tralee family to congratulate the 61 Roses who are here with us, on Le gach dea-ghuí, being chosen to represent their regions, states, counties Front cover: 2011 Rose of Tralee, and countries. Oliver Hurley Queensland Rose Tara Talbot Each lady is an outstanding ambassador and exemplifies General Manager, Rose of Tralee International Festival the true spirit of modern young Irish women. As Cathaoirleach of Laois County Council, it gives me great pleasure to welcome you to Bennett Committee and the Traders and people of the town of Portlaoise and to County Laois for the Rose of Tralee Regional Festival 2013. Co. Laois. We are delighted to be associated with the Rose of Tralee International Festival again this I would like to take this opportunity to wish all the year. This Festival has gone from strength to strength over the years and attracts huge Roses the very best of luck over the coming days. media attention. County Laois is ideally situated to host this Regional Festival, due to our Each of you is a credit to your family, community geographical position. and Rose Centre. I hope you enjoy your time here I would like to commend Laois County Council and the Board of Laois Tourism for all their in County Laois and we hope to see you returning efforts in the organisation of the Regional Festival here. here in the future. I would also like to acknowledge the support given to this festival from Laois Partnership Company, the Hotels, the Vintners association, Chamber of Commerce, The Gordan Cllr Paul Mitchell Chairman Laois County Council The Rose of Tralee International Festival celebrates generous support and commitment over the past five years has seen the event flourish and the broader Irish family of some 70 million people. grow to what is now a major highlight on the Rose of Tralee calendar. To the Portlaoise You have joined that celebration through your Heritage Hotel, the Maldron Hotel and Castle Durrow Country House Hotel, who once participation in this gathering in Portlaoise. again have been outstanding hosts, our sincere thanks. To the people of Laois, thank you for opening up your towns to welcome the friends, supporters and families of the Rose of Sponsorship is key to the running of any festival Tralee, we are extremely grateful for your support. and we are especially grateful to Newbridge Silverware who remain a strong supporter and Welcome, enjoy the festivities and family fun, and thank you for taking the time and lead sponsor of the Rose of Tralee International showing the generosity to be part of this occasion. Festival for many years now. A special thank you to Regional Festival hosts Anthony O’Gara - Laois Tourism and Laois County Council. Their Executive Chairman, Rose of Tralee International Festival Check out our website for all the latest news on this year’s festival at www.roseoftralee.ie • Buy tickets on-line • Roses and Escort Profiles • Festival History • Festival Programme • How to be a Rose and more... 22 2013 OFFICIAL PROGRAMME She was lovely and fair as the rose of the summer OFFICIAL PROGRAMME 2013 3 Welcome A MESSAGE FROM THE ROSE OF TRALEE 2012 Greetings to you all and welcome to Portlaoise! I can’t believe it has been a year since I took part in the Rose of Tralee Regional Festival, which I can only say was an incredible experience. It is one of the main highlights of my whole Rose journey. This is where you get a real taste of what the festival is all about and make great friends along the way. It is the best feeling to see your family and friends supporting you in the crowd. No matter what, they will be so proud of you and that is incredible! Getting to Tralee is a bonus but all of the girls that take part are still Roses for the year in their own areas. I met so many wonderful Roses and made a new group of great friends. We stayed at the Portlaoise Heritage Hotel which was superb and we met with many of the local Laois business people who were so kind with their hospitality. I would also like to extend my sincere thanks to Laois County Council and the Maldron Hotel Portlaoise for treating us so well. I personally had never been to Laois before but was so impressed by every place we visited. Becoming the 2012 Rose of Tralee was an added bonus on to what had been an incredible time in my life. Since becoming the Rose of Tralee I have been involved in local community events and I have rubbed shoulders with a host of Irish celebrities, graced the pages of magazines, newspapers, and made television and radio appearances all of which have been incredible fun! Undoubtedly, my highlight was travelling to the United States last March for the St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in New York and Washington and catching up with the roses of 2012 over there while walking down Fifth Avenue in the Parade. I also travelled to the White House and met with President Obama which was a huge moment for me! Of course the Rose of Tralee is about so much more than just its glamorous side. Another highlight was when I travelled to Kolkata in India last October with the Hope Foundation and that was a tough week but a very rewarding experience. The organisation works tirelessly to ensure the protection, education and nurture of street children in Kolkata. I was given an insight into the horrible reality of slum life, and the grim poverty that is everyday life for the population of Kolkata. I have also worked with our other charity partner for the year, Epilepsy Ireland, to raise awareness of the condition and travelled to Belarus with other 2012 Roses and Escorts to volunteer for Chernobyl Children’s International. It was a life changing experience to say the least and one that I will cherish. I am so grateful for the opportunity to make any difference I can and to be inspired by the incredible people who work tirelessly for these organisations. I would like to wish all the Roses the very best of luck as they take to the stage with Dáithí over the course of the weekend, you will undoubtedly have an unforgettable experience and remember ‘once a rose, always a rose’. Nicola McEvoy Rose of Tralee 2012 Dáithí Ó Sé Dáithí Ó Sé has presented a variety of programmes on RTÉ presenter and presented a variety of programmes including Glór including Today, The Daily Show and The Rose of Tralee and was a Tíre, Dáithí ar Highway 61 and Dáithí ar Route 66. Before becoming judge on The All Ireland Talent Show for three series. He will also a weather presenter Dáithí worked as a teacher, a butcher, a ferry present on a new summer series called Epic Walks. driver around the Blasket Islands and even a short stint as a ringmaster with Duffy’s Circus.