It's Christmas Eve and the Brew and Burger on 47th Street where I work is crowded with last-minute shoppers and tired children brought in from the boroughs and New Jersey to see the tree at Rockefeller Center, by irritated parents and young nannies with short skirts who look at their watches anxiously. I'm 21 years old, just out from Ireland a couple of months and homesick. For … [Read more...] about The First Word:
At Home in America
Christmas
The First Word:
Silent Night
By Pat Fenton A Christmas Eve memory comes back to me, almost hauntingly in this crazy long night of the Pandemic, the Corona Virus we’re all living through. And it makes me think again of the importance of memory and how it brings us back so faithfully to the way we were. I’m 20 years old, a young soldier from 17th Street in Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn. And I’m down … [Read more...] about Silent Night
Winterval in Waterford City
By Maggie Holland, Editorial Assistant
January / February 2019
On Saturday, November 17, International Rose of Tralee, Kirsten Mate Maher joined Santa and the mayor in Waterford City for the launch of the seventh annual Winterval, Ireland’s largest Christmas festival. They gathered in John Roberts Square to turn on the city’s Christmas lights, with a musical performance by local band Brass & Co. Earlier in the day, Santa’s elves hit … [Read more...] about Winterval in Waterford City
Ireland's Biggest Santa Cycle Reaches €1 Million Mark for Sick Children This Christmas
By Maggie Holland, Editorial Assistant
January / February 2019
On Sunday, December 2, 500 Dubliners dressed as Santa Claus with Christmas lights took part in Ireland’s biggest Santa Cycle, now in its fourth year. After departing from the Phoenix Park, the Santas cycled through Dublin, past Our Lady’s Hospital in Crumlin, and finished in Clondalkin. The event was arranged by the Laurels Charity Crew, who won the charity event of the year at … [Read more...] about Ireland's Biggest Santa Cycle Reaches €1 Million Mark for Sick Children This Christmas
Nollaig na mBan
By Maggie Holland, Editorial Assistant
January / February 2019
One of the most unique of the many events the Irish American Partnership puts on each year to raise money and awareness of its goals is its celebration of Nollaig na mBan, or “Women’s Christmas,” an old Irish tradition honoring women’s leadership within the family and community, celebrated each year in January by giving women a day of rest and merriment after the Christmas … [Read more...] about Nollaig na mBan