2011 N.C. Azalea Festival Princess Hannah Smith (second from left), Miss Coastal Carolina Mary Catherine Tucker and UNCW women's basketball coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke visit with Gabriella Padgett, a patient at the New Hanover Regional Medical Center, on April 7, 2011 at the hospital. (StarNews photo by Paul Stephen)

Celebrity guests to the N.C. Azalea Festival are invited in numerous ways. Some have friends here and happen to have a break in their schedule.

“There are a lot of different ways the celebrities come here,” said Sandy Collette, the media contact for the 2011 festival.

None of the celebrities are paid for their appearances, including the queen.

“Their expenses are paid, but they are not paid to come here,” Collette said. “They come here out of the generosity of their hearts.”

Availability is key when the guests you’re trying to get are in the entertainment industry or other jobs where they are extremely busy most of the time, Collette said.

Here’s where you can find out who the 2011 celebrity guests are.

Date posted: April 8, 2011

User-contributed question by:
Rennie Mintz