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| Wednesday, October 14, 2009 |
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CONDOLENCES |
To the family of Elizabeth Harris who died September 17 in Kennewick. Born and raised in Ireland, she immigrated to the U.S. in 1954.
To the family of Barbara Zimmer of Puyallup who died on September 4, aged 89. Born and raised in Ireland, she married in England during WWII and moved to the US shortly afterwards.
To Seattle's Ann Coyne on the recent death of her brother, Martin Sullivan, in London.
To Seattle harpist Peter Berry on the death in June of his uncle, Thomas Berry.
To Sara Buettner-Connelly on the sudden death in DC in August of her father William Connelly.
To the family of Ernest Stoole who died August 15 in Arlington. He was born in 1930 in Dublin and left Ireland in 1956.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a n-anamacha dílis
May their faithful souls be at God's right hand |
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Read the Seattle News in the most recent Celtic Connection, the voice of Celts around the Pacific Northwest. You can also pick up a copy each month at your local Seattle-area Irish Pub or Restaurant!
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| IRISH CONSULATE NEWS |
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| Click to read the latest issue of The Irish Echo. |
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Finian Rowland, film co-writer Ed Dobb, Danny Quinn and former Montana Congressman Pat Williams, shown following the screening of BUTTE, AMERICA at Seattle University on October 10 |
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Butte, America |
A packed house of over 350 people greatly enjoyed the screening of the documentary film Butte, America at Seattle University on October 10. The screening was intoduced by former Montana Congressman Pat Williams and film Co-Writer Ed Dobb. A shorter version of Butte, America will be shown nationwide on PBS (Channel 9 in Seattle) at 10 pm on October 20. | |
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IRISH SEATTLE NEWS
MASS IN GAELIC - Seattle's Irish community Mass of Remembrance in the Irish language is Friday, November 6, 7:30pm, at Seattle's St. Patrick's Church, 2702 Broadway Ave E (just off I-5 at Roanoke St). Mass booklets in English and Gaelic will be provided, and a choir will lead the singing of hymns in Gaelic. This Mass commemorates all deceased members of Seattle's Irish community, and the names of those in the Irish community who passed away in these past 12 months will be read out during the service. To submit names, or for more information, call 425-745-1263 or email Mass@irishclub.org.
CHILDREN'S CHRISTMAS - Seattle's Irish Community Children's Christmas Party with Daidí na Nollag (Father Christmas), is 1-4 pm Sunday, December 6, Maplewood Church Hall, 19523 84th Ave W (on 196th St), Edmonds. Everyone is invited to meet Daidí na Nollag when he arrives in his green robes at 2pm. To make sure there's a present for every child, we need to know your child's name and age. Please register by contacting Nanci Spieker at NanciS@IrishClub.org, or 206-427-3027.
MOTHER'S CHRISTMAS - The 2009 Nollaig na mBan (or Mother's Christmas) Dinner will be Sunday, January 10 at 6pm at Mick Kelly's Irish Pub and Restaurant, 435 SW 152nd St, Burien. For details and reservations ($30 pp), contact CandaceD@irishclub.org or 425-745-1263. Early reservations are advised as this popular dinner has sold out every year since 2000!
IRISH SENIORS - The 145 people who attended the Irish Senior's Luncheon on September 19 had a great time meeting old friends and making many new ones. 95 of the 145 were born in Ireland which made for some great conversations. Irish Consul General Gerry Staunton and his wife Mary also attended and were impressed at the size and enthusiasm of the crowd. Organized by the Irish Immigrant Support Group, photos of the Luncheon can be seen online at www.irishseattle.com.
FREE SENIORS' LUNCHEON - Billy Whelan, proprietor of the Wilde Rover Irish Pub and Restaurant in Kirkland, is hosting at no charge the next Irish Seniors' Luncheon on Saturday, November 7 at 12 noon. This extremely generous offer applies to any Senior of Irish-birth or ancestry, and the only requirement is to make a reservation in advance by contacting Mary Charles with the Irish Immigrant Support Group at 425-745-0137 or MaryC@IrishClub.org.
Maith thú, a Liam - Good for you, Billy Whelan!
SAMHAIN HARPS - This annual free Harp Concert, featuring six or more local harpists performing solo and ensemble, will be Sunday, November 1, 2-4 p.m. at Galway Traders, 7518 15th Ave NW in Ballard, in a celebration of Samhain, the Celtic winter festival. Co-sponsored by Galway Traders and the Puget Sound Folk Harp Society, the public is invited to attend for Free.
DIVERSITY VISAS -The US Diversity Visa Lottery is now accepting online applications through November 30, 2009. Applications are free and can only be made online at the official DV Lottery website, www.dvlottery.state.gov. If you have any questions or need assistance, call the Irish Immigrant Support Group toll-free at 1-877-517-3559.
HARP SCHOOL - Magical Strings offers beginning and intermediate classes in Celtic Harp this fall in Seattle, Bellevue and other locations beginning this month. For all the details, visit www.magicalstrings.com.
OCEAN SHORES - The 6th Annual Irish Music Festival in Ocean Shores on Washington's coast will be held from Thursday thru' Sunday, October 23 - November 1, at the Galway Bay Irish Pub. Visit www.galwaybayirishpub.com for all the details.
IRISH NIGHT - An Irish Night At The Glen, a Dinner Dance to support St. Mary's Food Bank, will be Saturday November 21 at Glen Acres Country Club, 1000 S 112th Street, just east of Hwy 509 and a mile west of Boeing Field. It's an occasion for Seattle's Irish community to gather for a night of ceol agus craic - good music and great fun - with all proceeds going to St. Mary's Food Bank. Tickets are $50.00 pp - call John O'Malley at 206-547-1612 or email JOMalley@mail.com.
IRISH BOOKS - Seattle's Irish Book Club will meet north of the border with its "sister" Vancouver Book Club on October 24th. After discussing An Irish Country Doctor by Patrick Taylor, participants will have a potluck followed by music and dancing. To join them, email hudit@comcast.net.
CONGRATULATIONS - to Fidelma McGinn, the Kildare-born Executive Director of Artist Trust which won a 2009 Seattle Mayor's Arts Award. Artist Trust is a Seattle-based nonprofit dedicated to supporting Washington state artists working in all disciplines.
GAELIC GAMES - The Seattle Gaels wrapped up their 2009 season in Boston on the Labor Day weekend. Two Ladies Gaelic Football teams and two Men's Hurling teams traveled to compete and despite some tough competitive games, no silverware was brought home this year. Most success was achieved by the Men's Junior B Hurling team which qualified for the North American Final but suffered a heartbreaking loss to Washington, DC, losing 2-13 to 2-8. On Friday, October 23rd, the Seattle Gaels will hold their 2nd annual Rock Paper Scissor Tournament at the Spectator in Lower Queen Anne and all are welcome! Check out www.seattlegaels.com for all the Gaels activities.
In Portland, OR, at the weekend, Paul Brady from Co. Cavan became the first player to win three successive World Handball titles which he only won following a great tie breaker game against an opponent from Texas.
AREA CONCERTS / CÉILIS, etc.
For the most up-to-date information on Irish and Celtic events in the Pacific Northwest, visit www.hoilands.com.
* The Seattle area's weekly Sunday evening (7 to 9 pm) Set Dancing sessions are held at Mick Kelly's Irish Pub, 435 SW 152nd St, Burien. Call Jim Belcher at 425-402-8363.
* Master Irish fiddler Kevin Burke joins old-time harmonica wizard Mark Graham for an evening of kindred acoustic music on October 24th, 7:30pm at the Empty Sea Studios, 6300 Phinney Ave N, Seattle.
* Celtic Thunder at McCaw Hall, November 10-11.
* This December, Magical Strings Celebrates 31 Years of magical Celtic Yuletide Concerts! For all the details, visit www.magicalstrings.com.
* Sean-nós is a fun, easy form of old-style Irish step dancing and the 3rd Annual Sean-Nós Northwest Festival is January 15-16, at the Evergreen State College, Olympia. For information, visit www.myspace.com/seannosseattle.
* Gaelic Storm performs January 22 at Tacoma's Pantages Theater.
* The ninth Friday Harbor Irish Music Camp, March 8-13, 2010, in beautiful Roche Harbor. Hosted by Randal Bays & Dan Paulson, visit www.fridayharborirish.com for all the details. |
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Honorary Consul Reception
Dear Friends,
Thanks a million to all who turned out for the
Irish Consul's Reception at F X McRory's on September 19 where I was formally introduced as the 'forthcoming' Honorary Consul of Ireland with responsibility for Washington State. Special thanks to those who organized the evening, especially Noreen McCormack, Fr. John Madigan and Mick McHugh, to the musicians from the Irish Pipers Club, and the reception sponsors - the Irish Consulate, the Irish Heritage Club, the Friends of St. Patrick and the Seattle Galway Association. Thanks also to Consul General Gerry Staunton and Mary Staunton, to Mayor Greg Nickels, Congressman Jim McDermott, Sen. Ed Murray, Councilmember Jan Drago, Chief Pat Fitzsimons, Spokane's Jack Geraghty, and all who honored me just by being there. I thank those who roasted me and even sometimes spoke glowingly of me! It was a very enjoyable get together for Seattle's Irish community but also was a tremendous honor for me personally, and I extend a sincere Míle Buíochas, a Thousand Thanks to all.
For those who wonder, an Irish Honorary Consul is a private citizen who agrees to serve without pay to support the activities of the Irish government in areas where Ireland doesn't have a formal Consulate. My principal role as Honorary Consul is to assist the Irish Embassy in Washington, DC, through the Irish Consulate in San Francisco, in promoting contacts between Washington State and Ireland, in facilitating business and official visitors from Ireland, in supplying information on Ireland, and in providing consular services to Irish citizens who are visiting or residing in Washington State. So, if I can help, please don't hesitate to contact me at j.f.keane@gte.net or 425-290-7839.
Sincerely
John Keane
Ps. See some photos from the reception on the Irish Heritage Club Website. JK | |
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NEWS FROM IRELAND DECISIVE YES - Last week, the Irish electorate voted decisively 67% Yes to approve the Lisbon Treaty which they had rejected in June 2008 53% to 47%. Before putting the treaty to a second vote, the Irish government secured guarantees from EU Headquarters in Brussels that it would not meddle in Irish policy on abortion, taxation or military neutrality, and that Ireland could keep its seat on the European Commission.
REMAINING VOTE - Ireland was the only EU country that required a nationwide ballot to approve the Lisbon Treaty which cannot take effect unless all EU countries approve it. All countries have now approved the treaty except for Poland and the Czech Republic. The Polish President says he will now sign it while the Czech President wants additional concessions before signing.
BACK-DOOR CITIZENSHIP - Ireland's Taoiseach (Prime Minister) has indicated that he would favor relaxing naturalization laws and allowing people to claim Irish citizenship if their nearest Irish-born relative is a great-grandparent, provided they have spent some time either working or studying in Ireland.
HOUSING BUST - 116,000 Irish households are in negative equity, where the value of their outstanding mortgage is greater than the value of their property, and almost 200,000 households will be in negative equity by the end of 2010, representing a third of all Irish mortgages.
UNIVERSITY RANKINGS - The 2009 world ranking of over 2,000 colleges and universities worldwide ranks Dublin's Trinity College 43rd, while University College Dublin is ranked 89th. The QS World University Rankings uses both academics and employers to do the evaluations. Harvard was 1st on the list and Seattle's UW was 59th.
LIVABLE IRELAND - According to the UN's Human Development Index, Ireland is the fifth best place to live in the world in terms of quality of life. 182 countries were indexed for this year's report which has the US in 13th place. The list was compiled in 2007 before the worldwide economic downturn.
250TH ANNIVERSARY - 10 million glasses of Guinness are raised every day in 150 countries around the world, all starting in September 1759 when Arthur Guinness signed a 9,000 year lease on the St James's Gate brewery in Dublin. Guinness is celebrating its 250th Anniversary and The Hon Desmond Guinness, the great, great, great, great grandson of Arthur, marked the occasion last month in his home at Leixlip Castle, Co Kildare, near the site of the first Guinness brewery. Sláinte - to your Good Healh!
POSTAL CODES - A new postal code system will be introduced in Ireland in 2011 using an alphanumeric system. Towns will be represented by a 3-character code with YGL for Youghal, NVN for Navan, etc, followed by a number to identify a cluster of homes as in ATH 123 for Athlone 123. Present Dublin postal codes will incorporated into the new system, so that Dublin 4 becomes D04, etc.
ECONOMY FORECAST - Ireland's Central Bank claims that the Irish economy is "over the worst" and is now "bubbling along at the bottom". However, the bank also expects unemployment to average more than 14% during 2010.
WONDER HORSE - There was huge excitement in Irish Racing circles, and especially at The Curragh in Co. Kildare, when Sea The Stars, a 3-year-old Irish-trained colt won this year's Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in Paris to become the first horse to win six of Europe's top races - The 2000 Guineas, Epsom Derby, Coral Eclipse, Juddmonte International, Irish Champion Stakes and now the Prix de l'Arc. As the horse now retires to stud, even Time magazine wondered if he was the Best Racehorse of All Time.
NEW GAA - New versions of hurling and football, primarily aimed at those interested in the games as a recreational sport, will be introduced by the GAA in 2011. A new hurley will be introduced made from synthetic material and using a sliotar that's a bigger, softer ball. The football used will be smaller and also softer than in the standard game.
GLASGOW RANGERS GAA - Glasgow Rangers soccer club has welcomed the GAA's development officers to promote Gaelic Football and Hurling to boys and girls in the Rangers strongholds of Glasgow. This move by Rangers is the club's latest effort to rid itself of a sectarian image that is the product of 130 years of bitter rivalry with Glasgow Celtic, the "Catholic" soccer club in Glasgow.
PROTECTED STATUS - Irish foods that enjoy Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status under EU law are Imokilly Regato cheese (Co. Cork); Clare Island Salmon (farmed off the Mayo coast); Timoleague Brown Pudding (Co. Cork); and Connemara Hill Lamb.
VIKING SILVER - Discovered in 1999 in a cave near Tralee, Co Kerry, a hoard of Viking silver, including pure silver ingots, shears, combs and other objects dating from the mid-seventh to the late 9th century, has now been put on display for the first time.
CULTURE NIGHT - Friday night, September 25, was Culture Night in Ireland and hundreds of museums, galleries, theatres, etc., across Ireland remained open late for free performances and exhibitions of art, music, poetry, theatre and dance.
SKELLIG DISCOVERY - A hidden staircase has been discovered by an archaeologist on Skellig Michael, the sixth century monastic site on the island off the Kerry coast that is a UNESCO world heritage site. The staircase is part of an uncharted route on an isolated part of the rock's precipitous flanks. A cross hewn from bedrock was also found, one of only a handful in Ireland carved from bedrock.
DUBLIN CEMETERY - "Bully's Acre" has been a Dublin cemetery for at least 1,000 years and is believed to hold the graves of some of those killed at the Battle of Clontarf, including a son and grandson of Brian Boru. Over time it became more famous as a pauper's cemetery and many of the graves are of soldiers from various British regiments. Also buried here, at least temporarily, was the 1798 patriot, Robert Emmett.
NEWGRANGE DRAWING - 32,955 people from all over the world entered the drawing to be allowed inside the chamber at Newgrange, Co. Meath, for this year's winter solstice. Fifty lucky winners, along with a partner, will have the chance to enter the chamber of the 5,000-year-old mound to see it being illuminated by the rising sun.
WEATHER BENEFIT - Microsoft has opened a $500 million Dublin "mega-data center", a 28,100 sq meter facility that enables Microsoft to offer cloud computing services to European customers. Dublin's climate on its own keeps the facility sufficiently cool almost 100% of the time, making the data center the most energy-efficient Microsoft has ever built.
GENEALOGY - Many Irish people served in the British military, and the UK's National Archives now has a free searchable online database of military records, with access to documents providing information such as place-of-birth, occupation, height, weight, eye color, medical conditions, ranks achieved, and regiments served.
CULCHIE CROWN - A Culchie has been defined as a "rustic rural" or an Irish yokel. But the Original Irish Culchie Festival in Ballyjamesduff, Co Cavan, considers itself to be the male equivalent of the Rose of Tralee contest. It has three rules: competitors must be 21, male and born anywhere but Dublin. Contestants match one another in contests such as turf-cutting, sandwich-making, welly-throwing and wheelie-bin racing, and the winner is selected by a panel of five female judges.
SMOKING FLIGHTS - Ryanair plans to sell Similar Smokeless Cigarettes to its passengers to smoke during flights. The cigarettes look and feel like a real cigarette and deliver a small amount of nicotine through inhalation but passengers do not light the 'cigarette'. It is also claimed they contain no toxins or chemicals and are harmless to the user and those around them.
WALKERS - Northern Ireland's Tourist Board has launched a new website for walkers who wish to Walk Northern Ireland. The revised route and accompanying website provides a 625 mile circular trail around Northern Ireland's finest landscapes.
FLYING LEGEND - Legendary Irish actor Maureen O'Hara recently attended the launch of a new book at the Foynes Flying Boat Museum in Co. Limerick. The 89 year old is patron of the museum and her husband, Charlie Blair, captained the first non-stop flight via flying boat from Foynes to New York in 1942, a flight that took 25 hours, 40 minutes.
ASK ABOUT IRELAND - When looking for information about Ireland, its culture, heritage and the way the Irish work and play, www.askaboutireland.ie provides unique access to new information, rare images and documents across a wide variety of topics from Irish public libraries and other culture institutions.
ROSES & PETROL - The new Irish-American feature film Red Roses and Petrol revolves around the family of Enda Doyle, a university librarian, poet, and rascal, who has left behind a trail of unresolved issues, a dysfunctional family, and a disturbing mystery. Based on the acclaimed play by Dubliner Joseph O'Connor, Red Roses and Petrol explores the complex dynamics of family relationships with sharp humor and surprising turns. |
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TID BITS
Irish American actor Martin Sheen will be shooting the movie "Stella Days" in the tiny town of Borrisokane in North Tipperary where his mother was born.
A Tipperary native has been appointed as Hillary Clinton's special economic envoy to Northern Ireland. Declan Kelly is a former vice-president of FTI, a global business consultancy that employs 3,500 people.
800,000 Washingtonians registered as Irish-American in the 2000 US census.
Up to 35,000 brand new homes are lying vacant in Ireland, up from 20,000 just 18 months ago.
The office vacancy rate in Dublin at the end of June was 21%.
Coca-Cola is the biggest selling brand in Irish shopping baskets with Avonmore milk second followed by Lucozade and Brennans bread.
Emly, Co Tipperary has been named Ireland's 2009 tidiest town. Other winners include Aughrim, Co Wicklow; Westport, Co Mayo; and Ennis, Co Clare.
Some 16% of households in Ireland are shopping regularly across the border in Northern Ireland to benefit from the weaker British Pound.
During the April-June period, 1,902,000 overseas visits were made to Ireland compared to 2,159,000 in the same period of 2008.
In 1860, New York was the largest Irish city in the world, with 203,760 Irish-born citizens.
The number of Irish divorces granted in 2008 was 3,630.
The 'uncrowned King of Ireland', Charles Stewart Parnell, died on October 6th, 1891, and some people still remember him on Ivy Day, October 6, by wearing a sprig of ivy on their lapel.
Dublin's 16-storey Liberty Hall has been a giant TV screen each night for the past two weeks with publicly submitted animated art pieces displayed each night from dusk until dawn. See one sample.
Women in Ireland have a life expectancy of 82 years, while men have a life expectancy of 77.3. In the US, women's life expectancy is 81.3 years and that of men is 76.7 years.
Irish jockey Niall "Slippers" Madden is so-named to differentiate him from his jockey father, Niall "Boots" Madden!
The past week marked the 30th anniversary of the 1979 visit of Pope John Paul II to Ireland.
A Presentation Order nun was dismissed after refusing an order from her religious superiors to leave her post as a teacher in the Presentation primary school in Bandon, Co. Cork. After appealing to an Employment Appeals Tribunal, the school has been forced to reinstate her.
A Catholic institute of theology, operated in conjunction with the Jesuit-operated Milltown Institute, may soon be established at the once Protestant bastion of Trinity College Dublin.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited Dublin and Belfast this past weekend to stress the Obama administration's commitment to political progress and economic development in Northern Ireland.
The archive of Street Directories from 1809, covering Belfast and other Northern counties, is now online.
See photos of Irish Central's list of Ireland's Top 10 Natural Wonders and other Top Ten Irish lists
After the Westminster elections next year, Mark Durkan will stand down as leader of Northern Ireland's SDLP party and from the NI Assembly. Durkan succeeded John Hume as SDLP leader in 2001.
The former chief constable of the Leicestershire Constabulary is the new Chief Constable of the PSNI, Northern Ireland's Police Service.
A new report claims that Ireland's health service is better than the public thinks it is and that it suffers from a "marketing problem". Among other points made, Ireland's performance in relation to waiting times is better than the UK.
The BBC and others report that Pope Benedict XVI has accepted an invitation to visit the UK, and speculation mounts as to whether that will also include a visit Northern Ireland. The last papal trip to Britain was in 1982.
Experience the sights and sounds of the All-Ireland Gaelic Football Final.
A recent survey of Galway found that almost 20% of the city's population describes itself as non-Irish. 3% were "Black Irish", 2% "Asian Irish" and just over 11% are "other white".
A Bill has been introduced in the Dáil (Irish Parliament) to double the plastic bag fee to 44 cents (US 65¢). The plastic bag fee was introduced in Ireland in March 2002 at 15 cents (US 22¢).
Ireland's birth rate is the highest in Europe with almost 72,000 babies born in 2007 and 75,065 births in 2008. 7.2% of birth mothers were from other EU states and 3.6% from Africa and Asia.
The average age of women giving birth in Ireland is 31.1 years, with 27% aged 35 or older.
Just 3.5% of new mothers were 19 or younger, compared with 6.2% in 1999.
Gardaí (Irish Police) are now armed with pepper spray canisters.
Ireland's An Post (Post Office) has printed a commemorative stamp www.irishstamps.ie to mark the 250th Anniversary of Guinness.
The use of cannabis by young people is higher in Northern Ireland than elsewhere in Europe.
Watch an Allied Irish Bank commercial from last January showing Irish surfer John McCarthy riding 50ft high 'Aileens' (giant waves off the Cliffs of Moher).
Random drug tests were carried out on 75 Gaelic Footballers and Hurlers in 2009 - a third of which were conducted "out-of-competition" - and all came back negative.
Ireland has 41 ambassadors abroad with 76 embassies and consulates.
One proposal in Ireland to save money is to remove the free passport scheme for seniors. Presently, Irish Passports are free for those 65 and over.
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IRISH PROVERB
Dá mbeifeá chomh láidir le crann darach, gheobhadh an bás an ceann is fearr ort!
Even if you are as strong as an oak tree, death will still vanquish you.
Slán
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ARE YOU A 2009 IRISH HERITAGE CLUB MEMBER? Please show support for Irish activities in the Seattle area by becoming a member. Membership is open to anyone interested in "Things Irish". Dues are $20 (single membership) or $30 (family membership), and you can pay by cash, check, or Secure Credit Card. For more information, email Membership@irishclub.org or visit www.irishclub.org. |
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2009 Members remain in good standing until March 31, 2010 |
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