Remembering Philomena and Daniel Browne. From left: Barney Boyce, Tom Farrelly, Kathy McGee Burns, Carmel Browne Devlin, and Annette Browne Ward.
So many walks of life were represented: First woman president of the Philadelphia Mayo Association, inexhaustible parade organizer, industrious CEO, generous and loving couple (always with an open door for anyone from Ireland), and the gifted television exec.
Attracta O’Malley, Michael Bradley Jr., Michael O’Neill, Daniel and Philomena Browne, and Michael Colleran. The first four are 2007 inductees into the Delaware Valley Irish Hall of Fame; Colleran earned this year’s honorable recognition. All of them different, as noted, but all of them the same in the ways that count: generosity of spirit and tireless dedication to the Irish community.
All were honored Sunday night at the Philadelphia Irish Center, the ballroom filled nearly to bursting with more than 500 guests. (And it seemed like half of them had ties to Mayo, perhaps in honor of Attracta O’Malley, who came to the Philly area from Charlestown in 1961.)
And maybe the other half of the audience consisted of members of the Browne family. (There are a whole lot of them.) Philomena and Daniel Browne who died in 2006, but they are well remembered and loved in the Philadelphia Irish community. Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH) Division 80, of which Danny Browne was a member, is now named after him. Daughters Carmel and Annette offered a lovely tribute.
We’ve captured many of the most memorable moments of the event. You can see them all in our photo essay.
