Granddaughter of former manager of Waterford News & Star announced as Chicago Rose

Fiona Gaffney has been announced as this year’s Chicago Rose. The 26-year-old food safety data analyst has a strong Waterford connection.

Her grandfather, Kevin Cadogan, was a managing director at the Waterford News & Star. Fiona loved to hear stories from her grandfather about working for the newspaper. 

“I loved hearing about the night before the paper was due to go out and putting the whole thing together.” 

It was only right that the Waterford News & Star should sit down with the granddaughter of its former managing director and catch up on all things stateside and Rose of Tralee.

Fiona first heard about the Rose of Tralee in 2011 when her cousin was the Chicago Rose, and she came over to Ireland then to support her. At the time, she thought there was “no way” that she would ever participate in the competition. But after graduating in 2021, Fiona was looking for a way to socialise and make friends in a post-pandemic world.

In 2024, she took the plunge, and although she was not selected as the Chicago Rose, she ended up meeting two of her best friends through the process. In her books, the experience was a success.

Little did she know that just two years later, she would be giving it another shot.

“I got a lot more involved in the Chicago Irish community and started looking at it from a networking perspective. The festival has pockets in every corner of the world.” 

With a total of 24 contestants, her competition had doubled since 2024. The ages of the candidates ranged from 20 to 29.

The lead-up to the selection was also a step up. The centre aligned the selection with St Patrick’s Day, meaning the candidates attended dozens of events.

“St Patrick’s Day season here in Chicago is a month and a half. We start celebrating in the first week of February – I’m not kidding. 

“We were in the parades – both of them. We were at the river dyeing. We went to a ton of happy hours at the sponsor bars and things like that.” 

But Fiona doesn’t spend all her time socialising, in fact, this year she is hoping to graduate with a master’s in public health. 

“I think women’s health advocacy and research will be my calling for the rest of my life. The underrepresentation of women in medical research is such an issue.” 

She explained that hormonal health in particular, including issues like endometriosis and PCOS, is glaringly under-researched, meaning education around spotting the symptoms for these conditions is basically non-existent.

As well as women’s health, Fiona is passionate about the Irish American community in Chicago. She holds positions on committees of both the Ireland Network Chicago and the Young Irish Fellowship Club of Chicago.

She has a personal connection to these organisations. 

Fiona's mother Angela emigrated to the United States in the 1980s under the Donnelly Visa Programme.

“I grew up first generation, my mom’s family were in Ireland and Australia. They weren’t here, so it's been that second family I have been very fortunate to have. I want to make sure I’m creating those spaces for the next generation coming up.” 

To further deepen her connection to Ireland, Fiona has been learning Irish for the past three years.

“We see the passion that comes with Irish music, Irish storytelling, and Irish dancing all over the world. But I really think it's time for us to step up when it comes to the Irish language. 

“America is so multi-cultural, and my friends speak Russian, Chinese, Spanish, but we don’t speak Irish. I think there is a loss there.” 

Na Gael Chicago started in the 1980s with just 40 people, and today they have 185 students and a long waiting list. 

Through this school, Fiona was able to travel to Donegal and spend time at a Gaeltacht to improve her Irish.

“I’m a recruiter for sure, and I’m in the double digits now for getting people signed up to the classes.” 

Fiona is excited to meet the other women in the competition. 

“The morning after I was selected, I had messages from every other single one of the roses who had already been selected. That’s just so special.” 

She is also looking forward to a family reunion in Ireland with all of her extended family.