Looking very Irish: Bill McLaughlin, founder of the Irish American Business Chamber, which will receive a special award this Sunday.
Sylvia Platypus, a Psycho-Celtic glam blues band, will be raising money at The Rotunda in Philadelphia on Saturday night. ” As Sandy hit the Caribbean, the suggestion for a hurricane relief concert was raised,” says Janet Bressler, vocalist and principal songwriter for Sylvia Platypus. “Then, the devastation arrived so close to home, and the choice became obvious.”
According to Joe Magee of Galway Guild, the bands appearing at Deck Fest at The Deck in Essington (which include Jamison, Clancy’s Pistol, and Split Coil) will be taking up a collection for Sandy victims as well. There’s a pub crawl linked to Deck Fest from 6 PM to 12 AM, which will take revelers to Jimmy D’s in Folcroft, RP McMurphy’s in Holmes, and Mary Magee’s in Prospect Park. Doors open at 3 PM.
For you Solas fans, at least a few members of the group will be at the Irish Center on Saturday night—Winnie Horan, Mick McAuley and Colm O Caoimh will be giving a concert on Saturday night and workshops in the afternoon.
The AOH Notre Dame Div. 1 will be celebrating veteran’s day early on Sunday with a ceremony in front of their building in Swedesburg featuring US Army Major Jared Auchey.
On Sunday, join the rest of the Irish community in honoring three new inductees to the Delaware Valley Irish Hall of Fame: its current president, Kathy McGee Burns; Irish Immigration Center Executive Director Siobhan Lyons, and Irish Edition photographer Tom Keenan. A special award will be given to the Irish American Business Chamber and Network, founded 13 years ago by businessman Bill McLaughlin in an effort to build a business bridge between the US and Ireland and which now has 2,000 members.
We go to the Hall of Fame dinner every year at the Irish Center, but this year is special for us at irishphiladelphia.com, since we count all of these people among our friends. And may we just say, they all deserve it!
On Monday, join your favorite Irish retirees for the monthly seniors’ lunch at the Irish Center. President Vince Gallagher will be providing live music for you to eat and dance by (though not simultaneously, please).
And on Tuesday, Gaelic football fans should head to the Irish Center too—to meet Donegal GAA manager Jim McGuinness and two of his players along with the Sam Maguire Cup which they won this year in a hard-fought match against Mayo. McGuinness has Philly connections—he was here in 1999 to play for the local Donegal GAA football team.
Speaking of the Irish Business Chamber and sports, the Chamber is hosting Gareth Maguire, managing director of the Sports Changes Life organization that works to bring real change to the lives of young and underprivileged children in Ireland through the means of sports involvement. The event, held at the Pyramid Club of Philadelphia, will be moderated by Ed Hastings, PhD, executive director of Neumann University’s Center for Sports, Spirituality, and Character Development. This will also be a networking reception with cocktails and hors d’oeurvres.
If you’re Irish and thinking of becoming pregnant—there’s a free Tay-Sachs carrier screening at the Irish Immigration Center in Upper Darby on Saturday, November 17. Eastern European Jews, French Canadians, and people of Irish descent are at higher risk than other populations of this genetic disorder that cripples and kills young children. If you have (or had) at least 3 Irish grandparents and are 18 years or older, you may be eligible to receive Tay-Sachs disease carrier screening at no cost to you. The Albert Einstein Society and NTSAD-Delaware Valley have funded a study to look at risks for Tay-Sachs disease in Irish Americans. To sign-up or for more information about the study, please contact Amybeth Weaver at irish@tay-sachs.org or 484-636-4197.
