“On Tuesday, October 29, Lindsay C. ’25 was crowned the 106th Rose Queen, selected from a pool of six other members of the Rose Court. She is the first Westridge student to hold the title in nearly 25 years, following in the footsteps of Sophia Bush ’00, who served as the Rose Queen in 2000.” To read more about Lindsay C. becoming the Rose Queen, click here.
When you think of royalty, decked-out in jewels, perfect manners, and leadership come to mind. While these descriptions certainly apply to Westridge’s newly appointed 2025 Rose Queen Lindsay C. ’25, she is also a busy high school senior working to balance her crown and her school life.
Aside from her royal responsibilities, Lindsay spends her days attending her classes like Environmental Science and Sustainability, serving as the Co-Sustainability Chair of the Associated Student Body (ASB), and relaxing with friends at the senior tables.
When she’s not at school, Lindsay’s life is filled with community engagement, speeches, and overall representing the city of Pasadena. While these new additions to her life are great, it certainly means she has less time to lounge in the senior hammocks.
No day in Lindsay’s life is typical anymore, but she shared with Spyglass an example of an event-packed “Day in the Life:”
8:40 a.m.: Her morning starts calm, with the day’s events only intensifying as time passes. Advanced Physics I is her first class of the day, where she takes notes on a lecture about Newton’s Third Law of Motion.
10:00 a.m.: She speeds down to the Science Office to take an Environmental Science quiz, a class she can’t attend that day.
Usually, the next step in her day would be to go to her next class, but instead, Lindsay switches gears by trading her khaki skirt for a Rose Court approved business casual outfit.
“At 10:20, I changed into my Rose Court outfit because we all have to match, including our earrings, our socks, our jewelry, all that has to match,” Lindsay said, recalling some of the countless rules she’s learned in etiquette classes, a staple of her Rose Court training.
10:25 a.m.: Lindsay is then quickly picked up by one of her chaperones, and she and the rest of her Rose Court head to one of many events scheduled that day. On the way to her first event of the day, she prepares by looking at her “hustle sheet,” a schedule the Tournament of Roses team creates for her. “[The hustle sheet] tells us if we’re speaking, who’s going with who, what our outfits are, what the committee’s outfits are, they show us further volunteering opportunities, if there are meals, if there are seating arrangements,” Lindsay said.
Driven in the signature white Tournament of Roses Honda vehicle, Lindsay heads to the Altadena Arts Magnet School, where she spent about 4 hours meeting the faculty members and engaging with the kids, participating in art activities like creating coasters out of clay and visiting the school’s dance studio.
2:30 p.m.: Soon after, Lindsay returns to the Rose Court’s home base, the Tournament House, where she’s able to eat a peanut butter cup and talk with her Rose Court friends. “I love the Queen and Court Room. That’s our spot because there’s a lot of couches in there, and they keep the snacks stocked,” said Lindsay about her favorite room in the house.
Despite this being a perfect opportunity for her to relax, the work of a queen never ends. Part of Rose Court protocol is writing thank you notes—handwritten messages of gratitude to every place they visit. Only after the Rose Parade Committee approves the contents and handwriting of their letter can the members of the court take a short break. “If there’s time, we will go back to the Tournament House and have some downtime, but usually they put us to work, so we’re in there writing thank you notes to organizations or sponsors, or if we have a fitting, we will all write thank you notes for the tailor.”
3:30 p.m.: The Rose Court heads into their Tournament of Roses van to go to the Boys and Girls Club. Lindsay and her team partake in similar community activities like playing games and talking with the children part of the Boys and Girls Club. Even though these tasks can be tiring, they are still rewarding. “It’s always a really good type of tired. The only reason why I’m tired is because of all the work, but I’m happy doing the work,” Lindsay said.
6:30 p.m.: Lindsay is done for the day with Rose Court activities, and she is able to head home and do homework, college applications, and maybe write a thank you note or two.
This whirlwind is just one example of what a typical day in the life for Rose Queen Lindsay; however, as we get closer to the illustrious Rose Parade, her daily schedules will only get busier.
This past Saturday, November 16, Lindsay and the Court had their “first drill and test.” “We’re gonna ride [the float] for a quarter mile, and we’re doing fire drills,” she said, speaking about the then upcoming practice.
Being on the Rose Court isn’t all roses and diamonds; it’s hard work. But it’s the hard work that Lindsay is excited to do. When asked what Lindsay has loved about being on the Rose Court, she said, “I mean I really think it’s the other girls because we hang out so much that we’ve just become actual friends. It’s not like I only see them as princesses, like we hang out with each other outside of this.”
Here are some more rapid-fire responses from Lindsay C.:
What has been your favorite behind-the-scenes moment so far?
“We had a Rose Court retreat for bonding, and the first thing we did was karaoke night, and that brought everyone out of their shells, even some of the chaperones were singing.”
Do you and the other Rose Court members have a favorite snack?
“Everyone has requested peanut butter cups. Nutella dips and sticks too. We go through those pretty quickly. One girl on the court, Sonaya, really loves Doritos. Really [the Tournament Team] just raid the shelves at Costco for any snacks we want.”
What is your favorite room in the Tournament House?
“My favorite room is the Rose Bowl Game, like the game on January 1. It’s the only modern-looking room in there. There are football helmets from all the teams in the PAC 12 and Big 10, and there are interactive screens for MVPs.”
What is the most surprising thing about being on the Rose Court?
“The etiquette training was surprising in a lot of ways. Did you know you can only cut your food three pieces at a time? You have to be consistent about eating, like if you eat continental style or American style, you can’t switch.”
Do you get to keep the crown?
“No. It is worth half a million dollars I think, six carats of diamonds, 600 pearls. On coronation day, there is a designated room and crown watcher, so there was one person watching the crowns at all times.”
Is there anything you miss at Westridge, now that you spend more time away?
“I really miss hanging out at the senior tables; it’s a really big part of our grade bonding, and I feel like I’m never there anymore. I like to go in the mornings to hang out though and during that morning break time.”
Have you received any advice from previous Rose Court Members?
“A lot of girls before the parade will take Advil because their necks will hurt later [from wearing the crown], because the parade is like two and half hours and five miles long”.
Ever thought about what a queen keeps on her at all times? Here’s what’s in the 106th Rose Queen’s bag:
