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Irish Festival Queen 2008 Contest
Don't let the tiara fool you.
Kaitlin Basic wants Irish-American teens to embrace their heritage and celebrate it proudly. Gaelic Park queen Kaitlin Basic, of Lemont, (right) and Caitlin Bekta, of Tinley Park, pose with their prizes after the Irish festival competition. The Providence Catholic High School honors student was crowned the Irish festival queen at Chicago Gaelic Park in Oak Forest Sunday night before dozens of people at a Celtic Supper.
A three-judge panel selected Basic, 18, of Lemont, who beat out 16 other contestants to sit atop the Gaelic Park float in the upcoming Chicago and South Side Irish St. Patrick's Day parades. Both Basic and Bekta will attend the parades as well as all major Gaelic Park events, including the annual Irish Festival over the Memorial Day weekend. "This means everything to me. This is bringing my family together," Basic said after her win. "I come from a big Irish family and my grandma, this would mean everything to her." But Basic says she has her sights set a little higher. She wants to inspire teens to truly seize their Irish culture and heritage. She hopes that her younger age will speak to those others her age. "I hope this will bring the youth to appreciate their Irish heritage even more because usually it's only an older (people) representing as the queen and now I'm 18 and I can spread my word."
This sentiment is shared by the contest's runner-up, Caitlin Bekta, 20. Bekta, a Tinley Park native who is a sophomore at St. Louis University, said she wants to challenge the common image of what it means to be Irish. "I do feel that Irish heritage is sort of old and dying out and the youth, especially on the South Side of Chicago, think of being Irish think of St. Patrick's Day and drinking," she said. "I want to to bring them back to their true Irish roots like getting involved and doing things at Gaelic Park," said Bekta, a former Irish dancer and Marist High School graduate.
The title of queen is a major honor for the winner, some enter the contest every year, organizers said. "A lot of girls get a lot out of it, they feel that it's a way for them to show off their heritage and their Irishness and it's good for Gaelic Park, we have a lot of fun with it," said Kay Nightly, who had served as the queen coordinator for 20 years. She has turned her duties over to Colleen Murphy.
The winner and runner-up were announced after all of the contestants, dressed in evening gowns, gave a short description of themselves. Both women won prizes such as gift certificates, crystal and other items totaling $1,000. As the queen, Basic won a trip to Ireland, a major prize as her family hails from County Cork. "Oh my gosh! I've never been to Ireland, it's going to be so exciting. I had no idea I was going to win," she said. - Taken from Daily Southtown article: "Gaelic Park Crowns its Queen", March 6, 2008 by William Lee, Staff writer
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