Irish Culture Flourishes in Calgary Thanks to Dedicated Volunteers at ICS
By CATHOLINE BUTLER
Rose McKiernan is the Cultural Director of the Irish Cultural Society Calgary (ICS) and we met at the well-known James Joyce Traditional Irish Pub on Stephen Avenue in Calgary on my recent visit there.
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| ROSE McKIERNAN |
The month of March is traditionally one of the busiest months on the Irish calendar and Rose spoke about some of the upcoming events planned for the cultural centre. On March 12, the ICS will host its traditional Green Tie Affair, which is a dinner and dance at the centre.
On March 17, St. Patrick’s Day, at 12 Noon, there will be a Mass at St. Mary’s Cathedral. Rose said, “we have a Mass for peace in the world in which all nationalities and denominations are invited to join us.
“The Irish Cultural Choir sing at the celebration and at the end of the Mass, we all sing When Irish Eyes Are Smiling. We also have Irish dancers. Afterwards, we have a reception in the parish hall and Bishop Henry, who usually says the mass, joins in the fun. The CARE committee from the Cultural Society puts on the food at the reception.”
On the evening of March 17, the Irish Centre opens up and they will host a pub night with entertainment and Irish dancers and both bars will be open upstairs and downstairs. Rose said, “the place will be jammed! We usually serve stew and scones. Everyone really enjoys the party and it’s not just Irish that come to it. There is also no entrance fee.”
The Irish Cultural Society of Calgary has events going on at the centre every week which caters to a diverse age group from 20 to 80 years old. “For instance,” Rose said, “We have two theatre groups – Ashling Productions and the Liffey Players – who put on plays throughout the year at the centre and also at the Pumphouse Theatre. Mike Tuohy, our president, takes part in the plays and he’s a brilliant actor.
“We have ceili nights with Irish musicians which draw up to 100 people, and we also have whist card games which are very popular. During the week the Irish dance schools use the hall to practice. Joe Massey teaches two Irish language classes, one for beginners and one for advanced learners.
“Sean Hayes and Eamon Groom bring in top-notch Irish musicians for concerts at the centre. On March 18, we have Raylene Rankin and Archie Fisher, and on April 8, we will have Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill. In July, we have a big Stampede breakfast and barbeque at the centre which takes place during the Calgary Stampede.
“We rent our upstairs and downstairs halls for weddings and parties and they’re always busy. Pat Hickey has been taking care of our bar for years and he’s wonderful. There’s always something going on at the centre.”
The Irish Cultural Society has a CARE committee and Rose explained their role within the community. She said, “we help out our members and their families whenever we can. For example, if someone died in Ireland and the family didn’t have the money to go home, then we would help with the cost of the tickets.
“Or if someone in the community was sick and needed to bring a family member from Ireland, we could help arrange that. We visit our sick members in the hospital and send flowers. It’s very important for people to know that they are not alone and that there’s somewhere to go for help. When we run low on funds, we run a really big fund raiser to get more money into our benevolent fund.”
“I can’t emphasize enough the great work that our volunteers do at the centre....they are the lifeblood of our community,” said Rose. “Volunteers are always welcome at the centre, so if there are others in the community who would like to volunteer in any capacity....we’d love to hear from you.”
Rose and her husband Peter have lived in Calgary for the past 23 years. Rose is originally from Cork and Peter is from Galway. They have two children, Orla and Maeve. Because the McKiernans are so involved with the centre and the Irish community, they often have musicians and students from Ireland who come into Calgary staying at their home until they get a job. In the case of musicians who are performing in concerts at the centre, Peter meets them at the airport and takes them to their hotel and often drives them around Calgary.
“Yes, we’ve had lots of people staying with us from time to time and they have all been just wonderful.” Rose said, “we try to help them to get jobs and get organized. We have become great friends with many of them and with their families back in Ireland.”
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For more information about the activities at the Irish Cultural Society Calgary, or to volunteer, call (403) 288-8641, or visit: www.calgaryics.org.
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