Household-friendly St. Patrick’s enjoyable on the Commodore Barry Center

by Jeff Meade

If you have been in search of a spot to rejoice the start of St. Patrick’s week in Philadelphia, the Commodore John Barry Arts and Cultural Center in Mt. Airy – recognized to many merely as “the Irish Center” – was the place to be on Sunday afternoon.

Billed as a post-parade get together, drawing contributors from the annual spectacle on Market Street, it was actually extra of a family-friendly open home for all comers. Being Irish was non-compulsory.

Every room was jammed, a tidal wave of inexperienced. Folks sporting the sashes of the Donegal Association rubbed shoulders with of us who couldn’t discover County Donegal on a map. A band referred to as the Birmingham Six banged out tunes within the ballroom. Here and there, a pint of Guinness might need been raised.

“We were surprised. We generally start at 3, but the parade downtown seemed to have gone quickly, so people started showing up at 2,” stated Lisa Maloney, board chair and president of the middle. “I’d say we had about 250 to 300 people there, coming and going. The ballroom was filled. The Fireside Room was filled with dancers, and we had a separate contingent of Ireland’s County Mayo Council and the Mayo Association in the dining room.”

In what proved to be a giant day for Philadelphia’s Irish, Taoiseach Micheál Martin – Ireland’s prime minister – was on the town for the parade however didn’t make it again for the get together. Something a couple of prior engagement with the President.

In his place was Deputy Consul General Katie Daughen, who isn’t any stranger to the middle. She’s visited a couple of occasions, however this was her first post-parade get together in Philadelphia. Asked about her parade day, she laughed, “I don’t want to even call it a day. Call it a season.”

On a extra critical notice, Daughen famous the significance of the Barry Center to the Philadelphia Irish diaspora. “The center was one of the first places I came to visit when I took my post in New York in April. It’s a really important channel for us to know what’s going on, but to be able to reach out to the community and connect as well.”

In that sense, the get together additionally had a critical function. The get together, Maloney says, “is absolutely vital. This event brings in people who don’t normally come to other events. Kids run around; everybody enjoys the music. We try to engage the crowd so that they do come back for our other events throughout the year, and we are going to try and focus on trying to have even more family-friendly events so that we draw these people, not just on St. Patrick’s Day, but throughout the year.”