Events in 2017 

Imbolc and New Year's Party - January 22, 2017 with entertainment by the McCarthy Family. 

Irish Film Series hosted by Dr. James MacKIllop - February 6: 1916: The Irish Rebellion;  February 13: December Bride;  February 20: The Story of Ireland, Part II. 

Marching in the Syracuse St. Patrick's Parade March 11. 

Hosting  a "Songs and Stories of Ireland" program by Helena Byrne - March 29. 

Participation as a vendor in the Bob Gabor Irish Feis April 29. 

Annual picnic and meeting with board elections June 20. 

Participation in Erie Canal Towpath Day August 11, 2017. 

Participation in the Greater Syracuse Arts and Culture Festival sponsored by Believe in Syracuse, on August 18. 

Participation in the Syracuse Irish Festival on September 8 and 9, selling Irish items and offering miniworkshops in Irish language, tin whistle, and Celtic knotwork, as well as offering Irish language name tags. 

Samhain celebration party on October 30 at the CNY Philanthropy Center. 

 

Events in 2018 

Imbolc/New Year's party January 28.  Entertainment by members, including our Lucht Ceoil music group and guests. 

Irish Film Series with Dr. James MacKillop - Feb 13:  Odd Man Out;  Feb 20: Dancing in Lughnasa;  Feb. 27: The Story of Ireland (Medieval Period). 

 

Marching in the Syracuse St. Patrick's Parade March 17. 

 

Participation in LaFayette High School's Shared Heritage Day, April 20.  Our participation included storytelling, workshops on making St. Brigid's crosses and playing the spoons, a demonstration of playing the harp and other traditional instruments, a céilí dance lesson, Irish name tags, and many display items including models of a high cross, a book with reproductions of the Book of Kells, and other items relating to traditional Celtic artwork. 

 

We will participate in the Bob Gabor Feis again on April 28. 

 

 

Ongoing activities:   

We have acted as the sponsoring organization for Young Artist grants to fiddler/violinist Joanna Maressa totaling $5000 in 2018.  We anticipate supporting this gifted musician for another grant this year. 

We continue to have a (small) Irish language class which meets weekly.  For the first time this year we continued through the whole winter instead of having just spring and fall 10-week courses.  Last year we also had monthly Irish language conversation meetings but these have been discontinued.  Although it is not directly a CNY-IACI program, we are pleased that our language teacher has begun teaching Irish through the Oasis program as well, with classes open to ages 55 and up. 

We volunteer at the Samaritan Center, serving dinner once monthly.   

We have a monthly "Irish Saturday" open to members, with a Lucht Ceoil session at 10 AM, storytelling at noon, and an Irish language study group meeting at 1:30.  Attendance is small but persistent. 

We discontinued our website in October of 2017 for technical reasons, but have a new website which is 

Events in 2017 

Imbolc and New Year's Party - January 22, 2017 with entertainment by the McCarthy Family. 

Irish Film Series hosted by Dr. James MacKIllop - February 6: 1916: The Irish Rebellion;  February 13: December Bride;  February 20: The Story of Ireland, Part II. 

Marching in the Syracuse St. Patrick's Parade March 11. 

Hosting  a "Songs and Stories of Ireland" program by Helena Byrne - March 29. 

Participation as a vendor in the Bob Gabor Irish Feis April 29. 

Annual picnic and meeting with board elections June 20. 

Participation in Erie Canal Towpath Day August 11, 2017. 

Participation in the Greater Syracuse Arts and Culture Festival sponsored by Believe in Syracuse, on August 18. 

Participation in the Syracuse Irish Festival on September 8 and 9, selling Irish items and offering miniworkshops in Irish language, tin whistle, and Celtic knotwork, as well as offering Irish language name tags. 

Samhain celebration party on October 30 at the CNY Philanthropy Center. 

 

Events in 2018 

Imbolc/New Year's party January 28.  Entertainment by members, including our Lucht Ceoil music group and guests. 

Irish Film Series with Dr. James MacKillop - Feb 13:  Odd Man Out;  Feb 20: Dancing in Lughnasa;  Feb. 27: The Story of Ireland (Medieval Period). 

 

Marching in the Syracuse St. Patrick's Parade March 17. 

 

Participation in LaFayette High School's Shared Heritage Day, April 20.  Our participation included storytelling, workshops on making St. Brigid's crosses and playing the spoons, a demonstration of playing the harp and other traditional instruments, a céilí dance lesson, Irish name tags, and many display items including models of a high cross, a book with reproductions of the Book of Kells, and other items relating to traditional Celtic artwork. 

 

We will participate in the Bob Gabor Feis again on April 28. 

 

 

Ongoing activities:   

We have acted as the sponsoring organization for Young Artist grants to fiddler/violinist Joanna Maressa totaling $5000 in 2018.  We anticipate supporting this gifted musician for another grant this year. 

We continue to have a (small) Irish language class which meets weekly.  For the first time this year we continued through the whole winter instead of having just spring and fall 10-week courses.  Last year we also had monthly Irish language conversation meetings but these have been discontinued.  Although it is not directly a CNY-IACI program, we are pleased that our language teacher has begun teaching Irish through the Oasis program as well, with classes open to ages 55 and up. 

We volunteer at the Samaritan Center, serving dinner once monthly.   

We have a monthly "Irish Saturday" open to members, with a Lucht Ceoil session at 10 AM, storytelling at noon, and an Irish language study group meeting at 1:30.  Attendance is small but persistent. 

We discontinued our website in October of 2017 for technical reasons, but have a new website which is 

Events in 2018

1. Imbolc/New Year's Party, with entertainment by members, including our Lucht Ceoil music group and guests (28 January 2018).

2. Irish Film Series hosted by Dr. James MacKillop: “Odd Man Out”; “Dancing at Lughnasa”; and “The Story of Ireland (Medieval Period),” (13, 20, and 27 February 2018).

3. Marching in the Syracuse St. Patrick's Day Parade (17 March 2018).

4. Participation in LaFayette High School's Shared Heritage Day, 20 April 2018. Our participation included storytelling, workshops on making St. Brigid's Crosses and playing the spoons, a demonstration of playing the harp and other traditional instruments, a céilí dance lesson, Irish nametags, and many display items, including models of a high cross, a book with reproductions of the Book of Kells, and other items relating to traditional Celtic artwork.

5. We will participate in the Bob Gabor Feis again on 28 April 2018.

This very active chapter conducts a monthly series of lectures at the Sea Girt Lighthouse before enthusiastic audiences of 40 to 50 persons. Recent lecture topics (in 2017) have included the Druids; the 1798 Rebellion; Beyond the “Ninth Wave”; Irish Theatre; Thomas Francis Meagher (1823-67): Irish Patriot, Civil War General, and Montana Frontier Governor; Irish Literature; the Wall Murals of Northern Ireland; and the Irish Brigade in the American Civil War.

 

In addition, the renowned poet Leanne Sullivan from the Beara Peninsula of West Cork gave a reading of her poetry (part of the Irish Perceptions Series). And in September 2017 a symposium was held at St. Catharine’s School in nearby Spring Lake on the topic “Ireland and America: ‘A Whispering Comes over the Sea.’” At this symposium Dr. Dermot Quinn of Seton Hall University gave the keynote address, which was followed by a panel discussion featuring Prof. Marion R. Casey of New York University; Prof. Linda Dowling Almeida of New York University; and Maureen Dunphy Brady.

 

The monthly lecture series for 2018 is featuring the following talks: “J.P. Dunleavy: The Writer and Fighter” (by Bill Dunn); “And Friends, Music, and Song” (by Max Carmichael); the acclaimed musicians and singers Manus McGuire and Dave Curley (part of the Irish Perceptions Series); “Irish Americans” (by Micheál Ó Maille); “Ulysses Uncovered” (by the “Blooms Brothers”); “Women of Ireland” (by Micheál Ó Maille); “Challenges to Irish America in the Twenty-First Century” (by Terry Golway), with a panel discussion and lunch at the Brookdale Country Club; and “The Sinn Féin Election of 1918” (by Henry McNally). The performance of the musicians and singers Manus McGuire and Dave Curley on 16 April 2018 at Spring Lake Manor in Spring Lake Heights, NJ, was followed by a buffet dinner costing $40 per person or $30 for IACI members.

 

In support of local festivals, the Jersey Shore John Walsh Chapter is taking one table at the Central Jersey Irish Festival at Lake Topanemus Pond Park in Freehold, NJ, on 19 May 2018, and another table at the New Jersey Irish Festival at Monmouth Park Racetrack on 10 June 2018. 

This Chapter meets on the second Monday of each month at 7 pm at the Sea Girt Lighthouse, significant Irish History and Culture presentations by noted scholars and musicians will enrich our appreciation for our Irish Heritage, and are suitable for students, who are very welcome so this knowledge and appreciation will continue through generations.

 

If you are interested in being a part of this chapter, please contact us, and be sure to watch for more details on upcoming events and meetings.  Visit our webpage