Azalea Royalty

Saturday, March 10th was an exciting evening for several young women as they competed for the title of 2012 North Carolina Azalea Festival Princess.  This event is rich in tradition and has been part of the Festival since 1949.  Every year the Azalea Festival Youth Committee raises an excess of $28,000 to produce the North Carolina Azalea Festival Scholarship Pageant and the winner receives the Beverly Anne Jurgensen Scholarship Award.  The scholarship award is equivalent to one full year’s tuition at an in-state university and the court receives scholarship awards as well.  The scholarship award namesake was a beloved Festival volunteer whom was also the Festival’s first female President in 1992.  This year, the Azalea Festival Youth Committee raised over $10,000 in advertising sales alone and we are certainly proud of their commitment and dedication in making this year’s event a success.


The North Carolina Azalea Festival Princess is a year round representative of the Festival.  The Princess and her court attend all of the events surrounding the Festival, travel with the Official Party and have a float in the Parade on Saturday.  

Our 2012 North Carolina Azalea Festival Princess is Julia Lovett!  She is a senior at Cape Fear Academy.

2012 Princess Court Members

Holland McGraw of New Hanover High School, 1^st Runner Up

Emily Wilson of New Hanover High School, 2^nd Runner Up

Olivia Robertson of Hoggard High School, 3^rd Runner Up

Jessica Ellington of Laney High School, 4^th Runner Up

Congratulations to the 2012 North Carolina Azalea Festival Princess and Court!   

FOOTLOOSE!

We are proud to feature Kenny Loggins as a performance artist for the 2012 North Carolina Azalea Festival.  He will perform at 8:00 pm Thursday, April 12^th at Trask Coliseum located on UNCW’s campus.   There is no question that Kenny Loggins has impacted the music scene in the last four decades and with hits that cross music genres from country to jazz and rock, there is something for everyone!  Enjoy some of Kenny’s music and make sure to come by and purchase tickets at our ticket office or purchase them online at our website, the link is above.  Tickets are selling quickly and the prices are: $47.50 for bleachers and $37.50 for balcony.

At the heart of it all, there remains a brilliant singer-songwriter and guitarist with a lifelong passion for exploring the endless power of the song to communicate.  Loggins’ impact has been extraordinary; twelve of his albums have gone platinum and beyond.  Even with all of the professional success, Loggins finds himself doing again what he has always done -- writing and playing his songs, digging deep and looking toward the next step.

Get Involved!

Congratulations to Cameron Holmes, a fifth grade student of Bellamy Elementary School for her first place win in our North Carolina Azalea Festival Children’s Art Contest!  Cameron’s artwork will be featured in the 2012 North Carolina Azalea Festival Souvenir Book, she will ride in the 2012 Azalea Festival parade with Curious George and The Man with the Yellow Hat and has also been invited to the Governor’s press conference in Raleigh, NC on March 30^th, 2012 to present a copy of her artwork to Governor Beverly Perdue.  Cameron was presented with a $50 gift card for her first place win from Learning Express, a proud supporter of the North Carolina Azalea Festival Children’s Art Contest and she will also receive two tickets for when the Cole Bros. Circus comes to town for the Festival!

Our second place winner is Claire Hommes, a fourth grade student of Bellamy Elementary School.  Claire’s artwork will be featured in the 2012 North Carolina Azalea Festival Street Fair program.  She was presented with a $25 gift card from Learning Express and will receive two tickets for when the Cole Bros. Circus comes to town for the Festival!

Our third place winner is Alison Pond, a fifth grade student of Murrayville Elementary School.  Alison was presented with a $15 gift card from Learning Express and will receive two tickets for when the Cole Bros. Circus comes to town for the Festival!

Honorable Mentions:

Alex Kaiser of Cape Fear Academy

Lanvy Lutz of Murrayville Elementary School

Taylor McMillen of Parsley Elementary School

Mariah Nixon of Mary C. Williams Elementary School

Silas Scribner of Parsley Elementary School

Demi Thomas of Bellamy Elementary School

Lilli Treppel of Myrtle Grove Christian School

We are so proud of all the artwork entered into the Children’s Art Contest this year; the creativity, talent and imagination were unbelievable!  Great job to everyone!

Looking to find a way to get involved and support our community?  There are great events coming up that you can get involved with in March and April so take a look!

Senior girls from the area high schools compete for the title based on a private interview with judge, evening gown competition and on-stage presentation.  BB&T and the Azalea Festival Youth Committee sponsor the NC Azalea Festival Scholarship Pageant.  The winner is the recipient of the Beverly Anne Jurgensen Scholarship Award, named after the beloved past president of the North Carolina Azalea Festival.  The Azalea Festival Youth Committee conducts fundraisers year-round to obtain proceeds for the annual event and to present the pageant.

The North Carolina Azalea Festival Scholarship Pageant will take place Saturday, March 10^th 2012 at Kenan Auditorium and begins at 7:30 PM.  Tickets are $10.

Thank you for the hundreds of volunteers who have participated in the past for this wonderful event.  This effort, involving agencies of the city, county, state, local businesses, Keep American Beautiful, volunteer organizations and the North Carolina Azalea Festival committee scour the county the weekend prior to the Festival.  We are all proud of our community and especially proud of the individuals and organizations whom help to make this clean up a success.

Azalea Pride will take place Saturday, April 7^th 2012 around Wilmington.  Event times and more information will be available closer to the event.

The Azalea Festival 5k/10k and 1 Mike Fun Walk is an annual even hosted by the Cape Fear Volunteer Center.  All proceeds from this event benefit the Cape Fear Volunteer Center Big Buddy Program.  Big Buddy is a one-on-one mentoring program that matches “at-rick” youth ages 6-16 in New Hanover and Brunswick County with positive adult role models.  Youth are identified as “at-risk” due to the following circumstances: involvement with the juvenile justice system, excessive in-school and/or out-of-school suspensions, poor academic performance and lack of positive role models.  The Cape Fear Volunteer Center is a 501c3 and works to recruit and train volunteers, match volunteers with youth, offer support and guidance through case management and provide monthly group activities.

The Azalea Festival 5k/10k and 1 Mile Fun Walk will take place Saturday, April 7^th 2012 at Try Sports Field in Mayfaire Towncenter and begins at 8:00 AM.  The cost for participating in this event is $30.

So get out there and get involved!  More information on these events is available on the North Carolina Azalea Festival website.