We
regularly hold a regional contest as part of the national and
international Rose of Tralee contest. This year's Regional Selection
was held on Saturday 4 May at the HV Irish Society.
The criteria for the selection of a Hutt Valley
Rose of Tralee are very simple - contestants must be:
*
at least 18 years of age, and under 27 years
of age
*
not married nor a parent
*
of Irish birth or descent
*
have been resident in New Zealand for at least
12 months
They are judged over the course of interviews and
during an on-stage appearance at a social gathering.
This social function is normally held at the HVIS
premises, and is a good, old-fashioned Irish function - good music,
fine food, grand craic, and of course the Roses.
In 2011 the Hutt Valley Irish Society selected
AILBHE RYAN as its Rose of Tralee.
Ailbhe was born on in Dublin and her father
was originally from Tralee and her mother from Cavan.
She is currently is a customer service consultant
working at Cigna Life Insurance. Ailbhe has a Bachelor Arts
honours degree majoring in history and politics and has
a Masters in International Relations. With her current role
she is doing a .Certificate in Financial Services.
She does Irish dancing and loves to cook and
bake. In 2007 she volunteered at a school in Haiti and has
spent time in Israel and Palestine for her thesis in Arab/Israeli
conflict. as a student.
Ailbhe was selected by our judges at the Regional
Selection evening.
The members present agreed that the choice
facing the judges wasn’t an easy one.
An attentive and eager crowd was present at
the Clubrooms, and the audience was in good spirits, enjoying
the challenge of evaluating the variety of abilities, talents,
and personalities of the contestants.
The Irish community in the greater Wellington
region is truly in good heart when it has young women such
as Ailbhe it can call it’s own!
In 2010 the Hutt Valley Irish Society selected Ashley
MacKenzie-White as its Rose of Tralee. Like our other Roses
before her, Ashley went on to represent us at the National Title
with distinction.
- Join the conversation 
We
regularly hold a regional contest as part of the national and
international Rose of Tralee contest. This year's Regional Selection
was held on Saturday 4 May at the HV Irish Society.
