Rose queen, princesses, get their crowns

Members of the Tournament of Roses’ Royal Court donned their jeweled crowns for the first time in an elegant ceremony Thursday at the Pasadena Convention Center.

News anchor and Pasadena resident Colleen Williams of KNBC-TV emceed the event, which began with each of the six Rose Princesses appearing on the arm of a U.S. Marine escort.

The six Marines all had served in either Iraq or Afghanistan and received a long standing ovation for their service.

On their arms were Rose Court princesses Sarah Zuno, 17, of Highland Park; Hanan Worku, 17, of Pasadena; Morgan Devaud, 18, of La Cañada Flintridge; Kimberly Ostiller, 17, of Altadena; Cynthia Louie, 17, of La Cañada and Stephanie Hynes, 18, of Pasadena.

Each of the princesses wore a royal blue gown designed by Tadashi Shoji — hair and makeup by Amadeus Spa & Salon, crowns from Mikimoto.

After the princesses were introduced, Rose Queen Drew Washington — at 16, the youngest of the court — appeared in a white gown on the arm of Tournament of Roses Assn. President Rick Jackson.

“This experience is going to be an unforgettable experience,” Drew said on stage. “I’m really looking forward to creating a bond with these six sisters.”

Williams questioned each of the young women on their dreams for attending college. Back came USC, UCLA, Stanford and Brown. Career goals? Law, medicine, and in the case of Morgan and Sarah, broadcast journalism.

As for Hanan: “I want to change the world, no matter how hard that may be.”

And just how will the Royal Court members manage to juggle all of their duties — an estimated 150 public appearances during their yearlong reign — with their educations and career ambitions?

“I think we’ve just learned to fit it into our schedules,” Drew said. “Sleep is very important. We’re all very talented young women. We just have to learn to handle things.”

“Good,” Williams added. “Juggle early, because you know it only gets worse.”