The Albany Tulip Queen and Court is a symbolic monarchy with a yearly coronation at the

Tulip Festival Tulip festivals are held in several cities around the world, mostly in North America, usually in cities with a Dutch heritage such as Albany, New York, Ottawa, Ontario; Gatineau, Quebec; Montreal, Quebec; Holland, Michigan; Lehi, Utah; Orang ...

, which takes place in May at Washington Park in

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...

annually. The Tulip Queen and her court serve as ambassadors of the city and engage in

community service Community service is unpaid work performed by a person or group of people for the benefit and betterment of their community without any form of compensation. Community service can be distinct from volunteering, since it is not always performed ...

projects during their one-year term. The Tulip Queen is selected through a process involving letters of recommendation and

interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" ...

s by a selection committee. Women aged 18 to 24 are eligible for nomination. The selection of the Tulip Queen began as a beauty pageant, but for many years now the Queen and her court have been selected solely based on their community awareness, history of serving the community, and dedication to Albany. Along with the queen, four court members are selected to work throughout the City of Albany during the year. Each year the Queen and her court select a literacy project to implement in the City of Albany. The crowning of the Tulip Queen starts with a short processional. First come the police, then the Albany Police Band playing

bagpipes Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, No ...

and drums, then a car containing last year's Tulip Queen and the current

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

. Next come a series of five cars each containing the five Tulip Queen finalists. After the processional, the mayor, each finalist, and few other people give speeches. The mayor reads a note that says who has won the Tulip Queen title. Finally, last year's Tulip Queen takes off her crown and puts it on the head of the new queen. The four finalist not crowned then become the court members. The Tulip Queen and her court serve their year of service until the next Tulip Festival takes place and a new queen is crowned. The Albany Tulip Queen and Court are an asset to the city of Albany contributing thousands of hours each year in volunteer service.

List of Albany Tulip Queens

{, class="wikitable" , - ! Year !! Tulip Queen !Tulip Court Members* !Notes , - , 1949 , Jeanne Coakley-Foley , , First Queen , - , 1950 , Dorothy Ward-Scalone , , * d. 2007 , - , 1951 , Judy Davenport , , , - , 1952 , Jo Pangie-Henk , , , - , 1953 , Peggy Retter Quinn , , , - , 1954 , Lois Tewell-Woodworth , , * d. , - , 1955 , Suzanne Schuster , , , - , 1956 , Nadia Spiak-Rymanowski , , , - , 1957 , Carol Thorsen-Quackenbush , , * d. 2015 , - , 1958 , Jane Armstrong -Snowden , , , - , 1959 , Carol Smurl-Fields , , , - , 1960 , Julie Kaiser , , , - , 1961 , Patricia Ponticello , , , - , 1962 , Nancy Self-Fornato , , , - , 1963 , , Joanne Gross , , , - , 1964 , Maureen Glasheen , , , - , 1965 , Bonnie Mason , , , - , 1966 , Donna Vache-Fish , , , - , 1967 , Karen Holtslag , , , - , 1968 , Kathy McTague-Odabashian , , , - , 1969 , Linda Kinnicutt-Lamb , , , - , 1970 , Chritine Little-Daddario , , , - , 1971 , Janet Schlegel-Larkin , , , - , 1972 , Judi Murphy , , , - , 1973 , Patty Mutterer , , , - , 1974 , Jacqueline Regina-Dushensky , , , - , 1975 , Blaine Ryan-Lynch , , , - , 1976 , Patricia Murphy Moonan , , , - , 1977 , Mary Kelly Illnicki , , , - , 1978 , Marjorie Tetrault , , , - , 1979 , Sandy Rector-Deluca , , , - , 1980 , Elizabeth Miller-Grandjacquet , , , - , 1981 , Stephanie Freeman-Cohen , , , - , 1982 , Shelia McGrath-Babbino , , , - , 1983 , Mary Theresa Moreland , , , - , 1984 , Debra Capazucco-Peda , , , - , 1985 , Jill Harris-Johnson , , * Current Selection Committee Member , - , 1986 , Andrea Palumbo , , , - , 1987 , Anne Marie Dolan-Scott , , , - , 1988 , Maria Mokhiber-Ziamandanis , , , - , 1989 , Heather Britt-Subik , , , - , 1990 , Diane Foley-Chowenhill , , , - , 1991 , Kelly Hogan-Finelli , , , - , 1992 , Jennifer Recene-Gallagher , , , - , 1993 , Wendy Sims , , , - , 1994 , Victoria Lee Palmer , , , - , 1995 , Stacey Vennard-Kirk , , , - , 1996 , Tamara Thorpe-Odem , , , - , 1997 , Christina Roberts-Ryba , , * NYS Supreme Court Justice , - , 1998 , Katie O'Malley , , * Founder and owner of Katie O Weddings and Events , - , 1999 , Nichole Stack , , , - , 2000 , Kelly Conlon , , , - , 2001 , Amy Kaplan , , * Currently Selection Committee Co-Chair , - , 2002 , Jennifer Gould-Lobban , , , - , 2003 , Kaylin Gross , , , - , 2004 , Meredith Rose-Kelly , , , - , 2005 , Amy Deitz , , , - , 2006 , Amanda Benincasa , , , - , 2007 , Amisha Gomes , , , - , 2008 , , Sarah Volk , , * Selection Committee Member , - , 2009 , , Juliana Hernandez , , , - , 2010 , Mishka Gilkes , , , - , 2011 , Karen Colehour , , , - , 2012 , , Emily Finnegan , , , - , 2013 (65th) , , Kate Bender{{cite web , url=http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Photo-gallery-Tulip-Festival-4508393.php#photo-4613067 , title=Photos: Tulip Festival , date=11 May 2013 , Meghan Cahill, Gigi Diffenback, Fendi Munos, Alexis Osborne , * Meghan Cahill Selection Committee Member , - , 2014 , Caitlin Whelan , Jillian Callanan, TaraMarie Crisafulli, Kasmira Wilkins, Meghan Yi , , - , 2015 , Alexandra Cronin , Morgan Heyward, Jacqueline Murphy, Eva Petkanas, Sarah Wilamowski , , - , 2016 , Adaviah Ward , Samantha Coons, Mariah Rickard, Racquel Saddler , , - , 2017 , Ashley Loggins , Erin Bryk, Kelly Phillips, Julianna Rauf, Amanda Volk , , - , 2018 , Sawyer Cresap , Katherine Donnelly, Xavia Francis, Natalie Joseph, Elizabeth Stenard , , - , 2019 , Emily Barcia-Varno , Parneet Kaur, Megan Morrill, Michaela Schramm , * Reign ended July 18, 2020 , - , 2020 , Kaya Rifenberg-Stempel , Kimberly Guzman-Reyes, Samantha Peck, Maya Wilson, Karina Wojnar , * Reign began July 18, 2020 *The first several decades of the tradition did not honor the court in the way that it currently is. The court began to participate in events year round in the 1980s.

Notes

External links

Albany Tulip Queen
(official site) American upper class Culture of Albany, New York High society (social class)