SEATTLE IRISH NEWS - FEBRUARY 2010
By JOHN KEANE
 FATHER BILL TREACY who came to Seattle from Co. Laois in 1944 and who now lives at Camp Brotherhood in Mount Vernon, will be the main speaker at Seattle’s St. Patrick’s Day Mass for Peace. |
 MARY SHRIANE from Co. Carlow, a regular winner at Seattle’s Irish Soda Bread Contest, will help conduct an Irish Soda Bread Cooking Class on February 27. |
 MARY KELLY, Shawn Sheller and Rosie Stapleton organizing a Céili dance at Seattle’s sold-out Nollaig na mBan (Mother’s Christmas) dinner on January 10. |
SEATTLE’S IRISH WEEK 2010
Saturday, February 27
Irish Soda Bread Cooking Class, 1 PM, St. Patrick’s Church Hall.
Saturday, March 6
Irish Soda Bread Contest, 2 PM, T S McHugh’s.
Friday, March 12
Proclamation Luncheon, Noon, F X McRory’s.
Green Stripe Laying, 7 PM, 4th Avenue and Jefferson Street.
Saturday, March 13
St. Patrick's Day parade, 12:30 PM, Fourth Avenue and Jefferson Street.
Irish Festival, Noon – 6 PM, Seattle Center.
Friends of St. Patrick Banquet, 6 PM, Arctic Club Hotel.
Sunday, March 14
St. Patrick's Day Dash, 8:30 AM, 1st and Mercer.
Irish Festival, Noon – 6 PM, Seattle Center.
Matt Talbot Dinner, 6 PM, F X McRory’s.
Wednesday, March 17, St. Patrick’s Day
Mass For Peace, 12 Noon, Plymouth Congregational Church.
Irish Seniors’ Luncheon, 2 PM, F.X. McRory’s.
Irish Festival, 11:30 AM - 3 PM, Seattle Center.
More details on all these events can be found at www.IrishWeek.org.
RECENT PASSINGS
• John O’Connor, a 31-year-old Irishman was found drowned recently in Seattle's Ship Canal near the Fremont Bridge. Born in Dublin, John had been living in Seattle for the past few years, and was well-liked by those who knew him. The cause of the drowning is still undetermined.
• Jack Fitzsimmons, 89, who died recently in Langley was a former active member of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick and grandfather of Seattle fiddler Sarah Dillon.
• Margaret Rose Smyth, 98, who died recently in Mount Vernon, was the daughter of Thomas Smyth, one of the early Irish settlers in Skagit County.
• Jim Walsh, 92, who died in Seattle, was an Honorary Lifetime Member of the Irish Heritage Club and former Honorary Grand Marshal of Seattle's St. Patrick's Day parade.
• John Horn, 62, who died in Seattle, was a longtime member of the Irish Heritage Club.
• Thomas Wishart, 84, who died in Seattle, was a native of Belfast and brother of Jack Wishart of Sammamish.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a n-anamacha dílis – May their faithful souls be at the right hand of God.
PIPER'S CLUB TIONÓL – The annual West Coast traditional Irish music extravaganza, the Irish Pipers' Club's Tionól, is the weekend of February 13-14 at Seattle's St. Benedict School, 4811 Wallingford Avenue N.
Featured uilleann pipers include from Ireland Kevin Rowsome and Denis Brooks along with Seattle's Tom Creegan. Kevin Rowsome took his first uilleann piping lessons at the age of six from his grandfather the great Leo Rowsome.
In the early 1970s, Denis Brooks started Seattle’s Irish Pipers’ Club. Although he moved to Ireland in the late 1980s, Denis is a frequent honored guest at major piping events.
Tom Creegan is a native of Dublin where he learned the uilleann pipes at the famed Pipers’ Club on Thomas Street founded by Leo Rowsome.
Other great musicians involved in the weekend include Randal Bays (fiddle), Leo MacNamara (flute and whistle), Dave Cory (guitar and banjo) and Laura Ploudre (traditional singing).
Music workshops and Irish song and language workshops will be held all day Saturday, with more workshops and recitals on Sunday.
The Tionól Concert is Saturday night at 7:30 PM ($15.00 pp). For concert tickets ($15 pp). For details, call Rob at (206) 633-3651, or visit www.irishpipersclub.org.
SODA BREAD COOKING CLASS – A hands-on demonstration of Irish soda bread cooking will be held at St. Patrick’s Church Hall, 2702 Broadway E (off I-5 at Roanoke) starting at 1 PM on February 27.
Classes will be conducted by Mary Shriane and others who have been frequent winners of Seattle's annual Irish soda bread contest over the past 40 years.
The basic ingredients necessary for cooking soda bread will be provided and 10 participants will cook and bring home their own fully-cooked Irish soda bread loaf!
Cost is $10 pp and advance reservations required. For details, call (425) 582-8026 or e-mail: sodabread@irishclub.org.
IRISH OLYMPIANS – Among those cheering at this month’s Winter Olympics in Whistler, B.C., will be Seattle’s Eavanne O’Donoghue whose nephew Shane O'Connor will be representing Ireland in the men's Alpine Slalom on February 27.
Another of Eavanne’s nephews, Niall O'Connor, is the Irish Alpine Team Manager. Congrats and best wishes to all the competitors.
IRISH DANCE CHAMPIONSHIPS – The Pacific Northwest Irish Dance Championships will be held at the Hilton Seattle Airport Hotel on March 6-7.
Up to 600 dancers from the western U.S. and Canada, ranging in age from four to adults, will compete throughout the weekend in competitions starting at 8 AM each day.
This will be the eleventh annual staging of this feis and it is open to the public at no charge.
CRAIC FEST – Four of the most popular Celtic-influenced rock bands on the west coast will perform March 6 in the Great West Coast Craic Celtic Rock Experience in Aberdeen, on Washington’s coast, about two hours driving west of Seattle.
The Clumsy Lovers from Vancouver, Culann's Hounds from San Francisco, Amadan from Portland, and Ockham's Razor from Seattle will be performing at the historic D&R Theatre (205 South I Street) and tickets are available at: www.greatwestcoast.com.
IRISH IMMIGRANTS – Seattle's Irish Immigrant Support Group urges local action to support comprehensive immigration reform to help the thousands of undocumented Irish in the U.S.
A House bill has already been introduced by Congressman Gutierrez of Illinois and Sen. Schumer of New York is leading the effort in the Senate. To declare your support, please visit www.justiceforimmigrants.org or call your congressional representatives.
CELTIC CONCERT – On March 14 at 7 PM, Maplewood Presbyterian Church in Edmonds (19523 84th Avenue W) hosts Magical Strings in a celebration of Irish music, song, dance and spirituality to kick-off St. Patrick's Week in Edmonds!
All are welcome with a suggested donation of $20, $15 seniors, $10 children. Contact Rev. Barry Keating at (425) 778-5248 for information.
CANCER CYCLE – Three Dubliners will set off from Seattle on August 1 planning to cycle some 3,750 miles to Washington, DC, arriving on September 18, all in aid of cancer charities in Ireland and the U.S. For details, visit: www.cycleofamerica2010.com.
HARP CLASSES – The School of Magical Strings starts their winter classes in beginner and intermediate Celtic Harp on February 15 in Olalla; February 16 in Seattle; and February 17 in Bellevue. Register online at: www.magicalstrings.com.
BELLINGHAM PARADE – The first annual Bellingham St. Patrick's Day parade is March 13 at Noon. Starting from Cornwall and Ohio, the parade winds through downtown, and finishes at Cornwall and Maple. For more details, visit: www.bellinghamstpatricksday.com.
MISCELLANEOUS
• Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill, one night only at the Tripledoor in Seattle on February 16, 7:30 PM. Details at: www.thetripledoor.net.
• The ninth Friday Harbor Irish Music Camp, March 8-13, in beautiful Roche Harbor. Hosted by Randal Bays and Dan Paulson. For details, visit: fridayharborirish.com.
• A new Irish music session has started at Couth Buzzard/Espresso Buono, 8310 Greenwood Avenue N, from 11 AM to 1 PM on the first and third Saturdays of each month. The Used Bookstore and Coffee Shop’s website is: www.buonobuzzard.com.
• To keep up with all the Celtic events in the Seattle/Portland area, check the calendars online at: www.hoilands.com.
SEATTLE GAELS – At the recent Seattle Gaels AGM, Paul McGarry was elected Chair to replace the outgoing Terry Creighton who declined to run again.
The Gaels will host a Gaelic games tournament at Seattle’s Green Lake Park on June 5. All hurling, camogie, and women's Gaelic football teams are invited to come and compete.
Trophies and awards will go to the top teams and the Gaels will be hosting a great after-tournament party and awards ceremony! For details, visit: www.seattleGaels.com.
ALASKA PIONEER – The story of Irish Seattleite and Yukon Pioneer Bridget Manion Aylward is told in detail in this past December's Irish Roots magazine.
Bridget was born in Galway in 1865 and after her Yukon gold-mining days, lived in Seattle for over 40 years.
She died in Galway in 1958 but still has numerous relatives in the Seattle area, including grand-niece Kathleen Donohue of Bellevue. The entire article can be read on the Irish Heritage Club’s website at: www.irishclub.org/misc.htm.
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