Arts & Entertainment

Northern Ohio Rose Crowned in Westlake

University of Akron student Bridget Linton will now fly to Ireland to compete in regional selections.

Bridget Linton's dream came true as she was named the 2011 Northern Ohio Irish Rose Friday night.

Linton, a University of Akron sophomore majoring in broadcast journalism, competed with four other finalists for an all-expenses-paid trip to Portlaoise, Ireland to compete in the North American Rose of Tralee Regional Selection in June. If she's successful, she'll go on to compete in the Rose of Tralee International Festival in August.

The in front of at was part of an evening of entertainment with music, dancing and refreshments.

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After the opening ceremonies, emcee Dan Coughlin asked each contestant which famous person she would like to meet, a word she would use to describe herself and how it relates to her Irish heritage and what her favorite Irish landmark is.

Linton said her favorite memory of Ireland is from her first of nine trips when she toured the country while participating in an Irish dance competition at 9 years old. "Just competing was the most rewarding of it all, and being part of all of Ireland was a true blessing."

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"Unique" was the one word she used to describe herself. "I definitely stand out in a crowd," she said. "I won't be a wallflower; I will be a rose. I stand out from everybody so I think I uphold the qualities of what a Rose of Tralee should be. I feel like that sets me apart from everybody else."

The judges, 1971 Rose of Tralee Linda McCravy Shubeck,  Mayor Dennis Clough, Tricia O'Grady Fratini and Shirly Morgenstern deliberated for a short while before choosing Linton.

All five contestants, Madeline Fox, a 20-year-old sophomore at University of Dayton, Meghan Hanrahan, a 23-year-old graduate of Ohio University, Caitlin Mackin, a 23-year-old student majoring in court reporting and closed captioning, Jessica Ryan, a 20-year-old sophomore at Bowling Green State University and Linton of Green, are unmarried women with Irish heritage from Northeast Ohio. Linton has been in pageants before and was also Miss Ohio Teen 2010. Linton is also an avid Irish dancer and holds many medals.

Annie Dunn, reigning Northern Ohio Rose, handed her crown off to Linton at the end of the night, wishing her the best of luck.

"Today is bittersweet for me as my time as a Rose is ending," said Dunn, who had the honor of wearing the crown for two years. She admitted that she will miss her "celebrity status" in Ireland. "Tonight a new young lady will have an opportunity of a lifetime," she said.

The Rose of Tralee International Festival is a week-long celebration in Westlake's sister city of Tralee, County Kerry in which ladies from all over the world compete for the title of International Rose of Tralee.

"If you could combine an Academy Award for actors and the Heisman, that's what you get. That's what it is in Ireland," Shubeck said of the contest.

Contestants in the international festival in Tralee will be judged on poise, charm, conversation, knowledge of Irish heritage, ambition, intellect, humility and more.

"They're looking for a rose, not a shrinking violet," Shubeck said.

Westlake World Partners, a nonprofit organization set up to help run the contest by founders Dennis Clough, Nate Cross, Mike Kileen, Brett Luengo and Tom Scanlon, will pay for Linton's trip to Ireland.


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