The Rose Queen and her Court make nearly 150 appearances over a two-month period leading up to the Tournament of Roses parade and Rose Bowl game. One of those stops was Wednesday’s monthly meeting of the Southern California Sports Broadcasters at legendary Lakeside Golf Club in Toluca Lake.
Larry Stewart
As someone who wrote about sportscasters for nearly 35 years during my 40-year career as a sportswriter in Los Angeles, I’ve become quite involved with that group since leaving the Los Angeles Times more than two years ago. The visit by the Rose Queen and her Court is an annual affair. I was there at Lakeside two years ago when Arcadia’s Courtney Lee was the Rose Queen. When I interviewed her for this blog, I was unaware that my friend, Dr. Andrew Lee, was her father. It took an email from Dr. Lee before the nickel dropped. And I was there last year when Natalie Innocenzi, another Arcadia resident, was the Rose Queen. So Wednesday’s luncheon was the third time I attended the annual visit by the Rose Queen and her Court to the Southern California Sports Broadcasters, and once again I was blown away by just how polite, smart and personable these young women are. If you ever need your faith restored in our youth, just hang with these gals for a couple of hours.
Rose Princess Tatyane Berrios (l), senior at Arcadia High, with former Wisconsin linebacker Aaron Norvell.
The one representative from Arcadia on the 2011 edition of the Rose Queen and her Court is Princess Tatyane Berrios, a senior at Arcadia High. Tatyane attended elementary school at Baldwin Stocker, then Camino Grove before moving on to Dana Middle School and Arcadia High. Her immediate future plans include studying in Buenos Aires in what she calls her “gap year” before returning to Southern California and hopefully attending UCLA. She eventually plans to be a pediatrician. “I have a lot of young cousins and just love children,” she said. Her father, Ariel, is a lawyer, and her mother, Leticia, is now a full-time mom after leaving the teaching profession some seven years ago. It was Tatyane’s twin sister, Yanitza, who talked her into trying out for Rose Queen. They were among an original field of 1,091. The field was trimmed to 284, then 81, then 31, and finally to seven before Evanne Friedmann of La Canada was eventually named queen. The other six finalists make up her court.
Rose Princess Tatyane Berrios (l) is interviewed by Heidi Androl, a reporter on Los Angeles Kings telecasts.
The group will continue to be on the go prior to the 122nd Rose Parade on Jan. 1 and the ensuing 97th Rose Bowl game, featuring TCU against Stanford. They were off to the City of Hope in Duarte following Wednesday’s luncheon at Lakeside. Then there was a dinner that night. It will all culminate on Jan. 1, when Evanne, Tatyane and the other princesses will arise around 1 or 1:30 a.m. They have hair appointments at 2 a.m. at the beginning of what will no doubt prove to be an eventful – and unforgettable – day.