The Royal Rosarians are the "official greeters and ambassadors of goodwill" of

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. The group was founded in 1912. Its members are most visible during the

Portland Rose Festival The Portland Rose Festival is an annual civic festival held during the month of June in Portland, Oregon. It is organized by the volunteer non-profit Portland Rose Festival Foundation (named the Portland Rose Festival Association until the 2000s ...

or at events at the International Rose Test Garden, Washington Park, and the Peninsula Park Rose Garden. Additionally, members, along with the elected Queen of Rosaria, travel to various events and festivals throughout the world. The group also welcomes visiting dignitaries at the

Portland International Airport Portland International Airport is a joint civil–military airport and the largest airport in the U.S. state of Oregon, accounting for 90% of the state's passenger air travel and more than 95% of its air cargo. It is within Portland's city li ...

and

Union Station A union station, union terminal, joint station, or joint-use station is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway company, railway companies, allowing passengers to connect conveniently bet ...

. The Rosarian's motto is "For You a Rose in Portland Grows".

History

In 1911, ten Portland businessmen served as representatives of Portland at Seattle's Golden Potlatch Festival. On the train home, the men decided to create an official group to serve as ambassadors of Portland, and specifically its Rose Festival. Around 100 men initially joined and made their first appearance at the 1912 festival. The Rosarians are highly based on English royal tradition. In 1989, the Rosarians inducted their first three female members.

Uniforms

The Rosarians are known for their all-white wool suits and straw hats, which they tip to welcome visitors. The Prime Minister and other high officials wear a cape in addition to the standard uniform.

Queen and Court

Every year since 1908, a group of up to 15 high school girls from the metro area are chosen in march based on various scholastic and civic achievements. Beginning the first week of May, they travel full-time 5 days a week for 5 weeks, visiting community events, business leaders, hospitals, senior living centers, youth organizations and civic groups. All of the young women receive a $3,500 scholarship (valid at any college or trade school) as well as a complete wardrobe provided by local real estate company the Randall Group. A panel of judges selects one of these girls to be the Queen of Rosaria based on "leadership and scholarship achievement, school activities, civic involvement, volunteer service, communication skills, and overall impression." The queen serves for one year, travelling with Rosarians to various events throughout the world. The names of each years Queens is engraved into an in-ground bronze plaque along the Queen's Walk in the International Rose Test Garden. A coronation for the queen is held during the Rose Festival at Oregon Square.

List of Queens

The following is a list of all Rose Festival Queens: *Carrie Lee Chamberlain (1908) *Thelma Hollingsworth (1914) *Sybil Baker (1915) *Muriel Saling (1916) *Nina Keets (1917) *Clara Fleischman (1919) *Claire Squires (1920) *Dorothy Metschan (1921) *Harriet Griffith (1922) *Lucy Lee Thomas (1923) *Edith Daily (1924) *Suzanne Honeyman (1925) *Dorothy Mielke (1927) *Elise Bristol (1928) *Lenore Tamiesie (1929) *Caroline Hahn -

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...

(1930) *Rachel Atkinson -

(1931) *Frances Kanzler -

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

(1932) *Jean Stevenson - Jefferson (1933) *Beth Skinner -

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People and characters * Franklin (given name), including list of people and characters with the name * Franklin (surname), including list of people and characters with the name * Franklin (class), a member of a historic ...

(1934) *Irene Hegeberg - Jefferson (1935) *Janet Sooysmith -

(1936) *Dorothy Hardin - US Grant (1937) *Frances Hulse - US Grant (1938) *Jean Hoover -

(1939) *Virginia Rothenberg - Jefferson (1940) *Betty Jane Harding - Girls Polytechnic (1941) *Shirley Fowler -

(1942) *Shirley Howard -

Commerce Commerce is the organized Complex system, system of activities, functions, procedures and institutions that directly or indirectly contribute to the smooth, unhindered large-scale exchange (distribution through Financial transaction, transactiona ...

(1943) *Jo Anne Bush - US Grant (1944) *Joan Williams -

(1945) *Lloyde Hough -

(1946) *Georgene Ormston - Girls Polytechnic (1947) *Barbara Logue -

(1948) *Joyce Sommerlade - US Grant (1949) *Dorothy Anderle -

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

(1950) *Gloria Krieger - Jefferson (1951) *Jeanne Wallace -

(1952) *Nancie Williams -

(1953) *Jan Markstaller -

(1954) *Nancy Wyly - Jefferson (1955) *Sharon Frey - US Grant (1956) *Alice Eastman -

(1957) *Ruth Parrett - US Grant (1958) *Mary Sue Woolfolk - Jefferson (1959) *Jean Ann Jackson -

(1960) *Linda Fuqua -

(1961) *Cherie Lynne Viggers - Wilson (1962) *Linda Jean Jackson - US Grant (1963) *Sharon Arneson (1964) *Sally Swift - Roosevelt (1965) *Julia Ann West - US Grant (1966) *Ana Maria Enriquez - Jefferson (1967) *Margaret Mary Huelskamp (1968) *Rhonda Anderson -

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia *Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria ** Marshall railway station Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Is ...

(1969) *Laurie King - Wilson (1970) *Kristi Lee - Roosevelt (1971) *Mary Matney - Madison (1972) *Anne Du Fresne -

(1973) *Danita Ruzic - Madison (1974) *Heather Van Wessem -

Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...

(1975) *Diana Fredericks -

(1976) *Sue Higgins -

(1977) *Tina Klassy -

(1978) *Rochelle Anderson -

(1979) *Robin Marks -

(1980) *Kim DiPietro - St. Mary's (1981) *Leslie Carlson -

(1982) *Kira Rembold -

(1983) *Stephanie Dir - Central Catholic (1984) *Raina Beavers -

(1985) *Claudia Reimer - St. Mary's (1986) *Rene Pearson -

(1987) *Kelly Manning - Wilson (1988) *Deanna Connell - St. Mary's (1989) *Erin Neill -

(1990) *Jennifer Deas - Wilson (1991) *Malia Yoshida - Wilson (1992) *Mikylah Myers -

(1993) *Joy Lawrence -

(1994) *Larisa Pennington -

(1995) *Kristin Waldram - St. Mary's (1996) *Adrian Williams -

(1997) *Alisha Moreland - Jefferson (1998) *Amber Starks -

(1999) *Amy Seely - Wilson (2000) *Wesley Grout -

(2001) *Leela Joshi - Wilson (2002) *Priscilla Isaacs -

(2003) *Tara Beatty - Wilson (2004) *Katelyn Callaghan - Central Catholic (2005) *Grace Neal -

(2006) *Elizabeth Larson -

(2007) *Marshawna Williams -

(2008) *Rachel Seeman - US Grant (2009) *Victoria Dinu - US Grant (2010) *Lamarra Haynes -

(2011) *Kate Sinnott - Central Catholic (2012) *Hannah Rice - Madison (2013) *Emma Waibel - West Linn (2014) *Kahedja Burley - Jefferson (2015) *Grace Ramstad -

Centennial A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century. Notable events Notable centennial events at a national or world-level include: * Centennial Exhibition, 1876, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ...

(2016) *Michaela Canete -

Century A century is a period of 100 years or 10 decades. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c. ...

(2017) *Kiara Johnson - Parkrose (2018) *Mya Brazile - St. Mary's (2019) *Anya Anand -

(2020) *Lili Rosebrook - Valley Catholic (2021) *Senya Scott -

Ida B. Wells Ida Bell Wells-Barnett (July 16, 1862 – March 25, 1931) was an American investigative journalist, sociologist, educator, and early leader in the civil rights movement. She was one of the founders of the National Association for the Advance ...

(2022) *Déja Fitzwater - Tigard (2023) *Kobi Flowers - Jefferson (2024) *Ava Rathi -

(2025)

Gallery

File:'Rosie the Riveter Day' recognizes service and sacrifice during WWII (40082621385).jpg, Rosarians celebrating Rosie the Riveter Day File:'Rosie the Riveter Day' recognizes service and sacrifice during WWII (27105246638).jpg, Female

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

veteran Ada Wyn Parker poses for a photo with a group of Rosarians File:Grand Floral Parade 2008 - vintage car.jpg, Rosarians in the 2008

Starlight Parade The Starlight Parade is an annual parade held in Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at ...

File:SECNAV honored at 106th Annual Rose Festival Fleet Week 150605-N-OO032-087.jpg, Rosarians tipping their hat to

Navy Secretary The Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department within the United States Department of Defense. On March 25, 2025, John Phelan was confirm ...

and former

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

Ray Mabus Raymond Edwin Mabus Jr. (; born October 11, 1948) is an American politician and lawyer. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 75th United States Secretary of the Navy from 2009 to 2017. Mabus previo ...

File:US Navy 090605-N-7783B-042 Rear Adm. James D. Kelly, deputy commander, Navy Region Northwest, kneels to be knighted.jpg, Rear Admiral James Kelly is knighted by Queen Marshawna Williams in 2009 File:Washington Park Rose Garden, West Hills - DPLA - 2f8daae10566e63af99ce1c67273b267.jpg, '' Royal Rosarian'', a statue depicting a Rosarian tipping his hat

References

External links

* {{Official, http://www.royalrosarians.com
Royal Rosarian Foundation

Royal Rosarians
at the Oregon Encyclopedia 1912 establishments in Oregon Civic organizations in Oregon Culture of Portland, Oregon Organizations based in Portland, Oregon