Mary O'Connor Awardee Serena White
This Saturday, the 2011 Philadelphia Rose of Tralee will be chosen at a gala event at the Springfield Country Club. The Philadelphia Rose of Tralee was established in 2002 as an official center of the International Rose of Tralee Festival, one of Ireland’s longest running regional festivals that has as its central focus the selection of the International Rose of Tralee, a young woman of Irish descent who is chosen, according to the International Rose of Tralee website, by the “indefinable quality that captures ‘the truth in her eyes,’” a reference to the song on which the Rose festival is based.
The original Rose of Tralee was a woman named Mary O’Connor, a woman of humble beginnings who fell in love with the wealthy son of her employer. She, wisely sensing that their union could never be because of their class difference, refused William Mulchinock’s offers of marriage. But it was a flase accusation of murder against her lover that tore them apart. He fled to India where he worked a a war correspondant. When he finally returned, it was on the day of Mary’s funeral. Though William Mulchinock married and had a family and emigrated to American during the famine years, he returned to Ireland to live again in Tralee and was buried next to Mary in Clogherbrien, County Kerry.
Three years ago, the Philadelphia Rose of Tralee Centre established a separate award given the night of the Rose Gala to a woman who embodies the proud spirit of Mary O’Connor. This year, the Mary O’Connor Spirit Award is being given to three women who have worked tirelessly for a variety of causes in the Irish community: Pat Bonner, Frances Duffy, and Serena White.
Sarah Conaghan, co-chair of the Philadelphia Rose of Tralee, provided these brief bios of this year’s winners:
Pat Bonner and Frances Duffy: Still activists!
Patricia (Pat) Noone Bonner, was born the 5th oldest of seven children (5 girls and 2 boys) and was raised in Philadelphia where she still lives today. Her later school years were spent in the old Good Shepherd Parish and graduated in 1958 from West Catholic High School for Girls.
Pat’s first trip to Ireland was three months long. She and her father sailed to Ireland aboard the USS America in 1959. Her family roots are in County Mayo, specifically Ballina.
In 1964, Pat married Knute (Phillip, Sr.) Bonner and are the proud parents of eight children: Patrick, Mary Beth (she and her band provide the entertainment for the Philadelphia Rose Gala), Phillip, Jr., Sean, Seamus, Erin, Brigid and Deidre. Currently, they have seven grandchildren and one more on the way!
Pat is still very active with groups that promote the reunification of Ireland such as Clan na Gael, Irish Northern Aid and the Federation of Irish American Societies. Like many strong women through out history, it’s not the big dramatic things that have made a difference in people’s lives but the small and steady efforts of their tireless abundant devotion; this would sum up Pat. With her father, Martin Noone, who was a proud soldier of the East Mayo Brigade, Republicanism and the rights of Irish Soldiers has been instilled in her from an early age. She doesn’t just talk the talk but walks the walk. Not only would you see Pat and her husband Knute attending almost every Irish function in the area for over the past 40 years or more, they would have been volunteering. A number of years ago Pat started the Philadelphia area branch of the Irish Political Prisoners Children’s Holiday program when she learned that children of political prisoners were not given the opportunity to enjoy a holiday in the United States. Through her long standing friendship of over thirty years with the family of Tom Conaghan, founder of the Irish Immigration and Pastoral Center in Upper Darby, Pat began volunteering in 2001. As she would say “I’m only doing my father’s business!”
Frances O’Donnell Duffy was born on September 20 and raised in the Germantown section of Philadelphia by Irish immigrant parents, James and Bridget O’Donnell from Letterkenny and Creeslough, County Donegal, who instilled a great love for her Irish ancestry. Living in a very Irish neighborhood she had many friends with the same family background, and she and her friends enjoyed going to dances all over the city. It was at one of these functions that she met Daniel Duffy from Derry City, County Derry.
On August 2, 1958, Dan and Frances married and settled in Collingdale, PA. With moves to Germantown and West Philadelphia, they eventually settled in Upper Darby where they raised their four children, Mary Frances, Theresa, Danny and Maureen, instilling the same value and love of Irish ancestry in their own children.
Along with her husband, she became a member of the Derry Society in 1970 holding several offices including recording and financial secretary as well as treasurer. While a member of the Derry Society she worked on committees that brought several youth groups from Derry with the focus on arranging events and housing with families in the Philadelphia area, housing many in the Duffy household. The Duffy house saw many visitors from individuals such as Northern Irish political leader John Hume to the Doire Colmcille Minor Football Team. You never knew who you would find at the dinner table or sleeping on the living room floor. It didn’t matter –Frances always made them feel welcome. Over the years the Derry Society disbanded, but in 2009 Frances played an integral part in bringing it back to life. On May 1, the Derry Society will hold its second annual Derry Society Social at the Irish Center in Philadelphia.
Frances and her husband were involved with many of the Irish societies and were members of the Irish Center and the Federation of Irish American Societies where Frances held the office of recording secretary and is currently the treasurer.
They were members of Irish Northern Aid from its formation in the early ‘70s working toward a united Ireland. Frances is still a member of Irish Northern Aid.
On December 23,, 1975, Daniel Duffy was indicted by a federal Grand Jury which charged him with conspiracy to ship weapons to Ireland in the fight for Irish freedom from British rule. Frances showed great strength as she stood by her husband during this time. As a result she returned to the work force to help support her family. From May until July of 1976 she attended the trial in the afternoons while working in the mornings. When the trial was over and her husband was acquitted, she enjoyed being back in the work force and she remained in her position at Merrill Lynch for 28 years. She started as a PBX operator and worked her way up to become assistant to administrative manager and ended her career at Merrill as the main administrative support person for one of the firm’s most productive management teams.
In 2004, she retired and continued in supporting the Irish community by volunteering at the Irish Immigration and Pastoral Center in Upper Darby where she assisted by fielding phone calls and walk-ins for such things as Irish citizenship for Irish Americans, helping individuals with the forms to renew their passport, green card applications and filling out of forms for American citizenship. One of her most successful and rewarding accomplishments at the Center was the formation of the “Senior Luncheon Group”. Along with Mary and Sarah Conaghan, she worked to contact a group of senior Irish Immigrants and those of Irish American descent to gather at the Immigration Center on Wednesday for lunch and an afternoon of social interaction. After 8 ½ years, she left the Immigration Center.
She is still an active member of the Derry Society, Clan na Gael, and LAOH Trinity division where she holds the post of “Freedom for Ireland” representative.
Serena White arrived into the High (maiden name) family as Alicia Serena just after the start of World War II. Her family moved to Drexel Hill in 1953. Except for a year away, she has lived in the same home for more than 57 years. Serena’s mother, a Bolger, Kinsella, Reilly, is her Irish connection and their roots go back to counties Carlow and Cavan in Ireland.
Serena attended Archbishop Prendergast High School and was a proud member Prendie’s first graduating class. After high school, she taught third grade at St. Joseph’s in Collingdale, while attending Immaculata College. Then she went to work for Bell Telephone Company of Pennsylvania (now Verizon). During her 33 plus years at “Ma Bell”, Serena was part of the external affairs department. During her last eighteen months there, she worked in Harrisburg where she managed the special services group. When Serena retired in 1994, she was working and interacting with 38 independent telephone companies in Pennsylvania.
In 1976, Serena married and became a Mom to her 20-month-old stepson on the same day. Since her son had special needs, she joined a parent advocacy group that negotiated with schools and health professionals to get children the services they needed. Also part of Serena’s work was representing parents’ views at the vounty level and with the Pennsylvania Department of Education in Harrisburg, where she was the first parent Representative for the statewide Student Assistance Program.
In 2000, Serena met Father Gerry Burns. He asked her to do him a favor and the rest is history! Serena spent ten years with Tom Conaghan, Fran and Pat helping the Irish and Irish Americans at The Irish Immigration and Pastoral Center. Currently she devotes time to LAOH, Trinity division 4, where she has been a charter member since 1998. Serena also serves as 2nd Vice-President for the Federation of Irish American Societies, (including the Commodore John Barry USN Association), and is the National Secretary of Tar Anall America – a program that supports former Irish political prisoners and their families.
Serena has two beautiful and loving grandchildren who live with her. Her granddaughter Alicia is a 16-year-old veteran Rose Petal in the Rose of Tralee pageant, and grandson Paul is a 13-year-old first time escort.
