MONTREAL – Saturday night was a big night for Montreal’s Irish community and for Samantha Cambridge in particular. Cambridge was crowned queen for the upcoming St. Patrick’s Day Parade on March 20.
For the past 60 years, the United Irish Societies of Montreal have been organizing a contest to select a queen and her court for the big day.
Cambridge was one of 22 contestants of Irish ancestry vying for the crown.
The women, aged 18 to 25 years old, competed in a series of public speaking contests, describing themselves and answering questions surrounding Irish history.
Keven Murphy, vice president of the United Irish Societies of Montreal, told Global News in a phone interview that the 23-year-old Cambridge was pretty floored when she found out she had won.
“It’s pretty stressful,” Murphy said. “You’re up there in front of 500 people, not just friends and family.”
Cambridge, a Lasalle resident, is currently completing a bachelor of arts in political science at Concordia University.
As the winner of this year’s contest, she’ll not only have the honour of appearing in Montreal’s 193rd St. Patrick’s Day Parade, but she’ll be flying to Ireland courtesy of Air Canada.
The four other finalists in Saturday’s event were named princesses and will make up the queen’s court. This year’s winners include Kelsey Farrell, Helene-Jane Groarke, Sydney Legare and Lara Mackenzie.
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