Irish-American Heritage Month is celebrated by proclamation of the President and Congress in the United States to honor the achievements and contributions of Irish immigrants and their descendants living in the United States. It was first celebrated in 1991. The heritage month is in March to coincide with Saint Patrick’s Day, the Irish national holiday on March 17. Heritage Months are usually proclaimed by nations to celebrate centuries of contributions by a group to a country.
Saint Patrick’s Day is a Roman Catholic religious holiday that honors the saint, who introduced Christianity to Ireland in the early fifth century. It has developed in the United States as a celebration of all things Irish. With large ethnic Irish populations, Boston and New York City both claim the world’s first Saint Patrick’s Day parade, while Philadelphia claims to be the second oldest behind New York City. In New York City, it occurred on March 17, 1762, featuring Irish soldiers serving in the British military protecting the Colonies during the French and Indian War. In 1948, President Harry S. Truman, of Scottish descent, attended the New York Saint Patrick’s Day parade and gave a speech to attendees. This was a proud moment for the many Irish whose ancestors had to fight stereotypes and prejudice to find acceptance in the United States. In 1960 John F. Kennedy was elected as the first Irish American Catholic President; in 1961 he was in New York to review the Saint Patrick’s Day Parade.
In tribute to all Irish Americans, the US Congress, by Public Law 101-418, designated March 1991 as “Irish-American Heritage Month”[1] Congress again proclaimed March as Irish-American Heritage Month for 1995 and 1996.[2]
Within the authority of the Executive Branch, the President of the United States has also issued a proclamation each year since 1991.[3][4]
Each year in March, the Irish Taoiseach visits the United States for Saint Patrick’s Day. A Shamrock Ceremony takes place in the morning at the White House where a crystal bowl containing shamrock, a traditional symbol of Ireland, is presented to the President in the Oval Office. This is followed by a Friends of Ireland luncheon hosted by the House Speaker in the U.S. Capitol or the Rayburn House Office Building.[5][6] The luncheon is attended by the President, Vice President, the Taoiseach, the Speaker, and other officials.[7] In the evening, a Saint Patrick’s Day Reception takes place at the White House.[8]
An essay originally written by Bobby Sands in the H-Blocks of Long Kesh
in 1979.
When one spends each day naked and crouched in the corner of a cell
resembling a pigsty, staring at such eye-sores as piles of putrifying
rubbish infested with maggots and flies, a disease-ridden chamber pot,
or a black, disgustingly-scarred wall, it is to the rescue of one’s
sanity to be able to rise and gaze out of a window at the world.
My cell window, fortified by thick concrete slabs which serve as bars,
affords me with a view of nothingness, unless a barbed wire jungle and
rows of blank faceless tin timbers offer an artistical appreciation
unknown to me. It’s what passes by, lingers, or materialises, in front
of my humble little window that saves me, that can dampen depression,
allow me to contemplate, serve as an enjoyable distraction from my
surroundings, and provide me with a once unknown pleasure.
On a dreary, dull, wet, morale-attacking November afternoon, when one’s
stomach is empty, and when the monotony begins to depress and
demoralise, it is soothing in many respects to spend a half-an-hour with
one’s head pressed against the concrete slabs, gazing in wonder, and
taking in the antics of a dozen or so young starlings bickering over a
few stale crusts of bread. Circling, swooping, sizing up and daring an
extra nibble, continually on their guard, and all their tiny nerves on
end, the young starlings feud among themselves, the greedy one continually trying to dominate and always wanting the whole haul to
himself, fighting with his comrades whilst the sparrow sneaks in to
nibble at the spoils.
But the ruler of the kingdom of my little twenty-yard arched view of the
outside world, is the seagull, who dominates, steals, pecks, and denies
the smaller birds their share. The seagull takes it all. In fact, his
appetite seems insatiable. He goes to any length to gorge himself. Thus
I dislike the seagull, and I often wonder why the starlings do not
direct their attention to the predator, rather than each other. Perhaps
this applies to more than birds.
During the summer months, finches were abundant, and the music of the
lark a constant symphony of sound and a reminder of life. The various
crows, the odd magpie, and the little wagtails are still to be seen and
heard from dawn to dusk.
In the late evening, when most of the prisoners of war are sleeping,
when a hush descends, amplifying the gentle sound of a breeze, one can
gaze upon the ocean of sky arid the multitude of stars that seem
embedded and ablaze. In that black root of nothingness that not even the
moon in all her beaming regalia can penetrate, and one can dream a
thousand dreams of yesterday, of childhood and happiness, of love and
joy, and escape through make-believe and fantasy. The evils that engulf
each day, forgotten about, and tomorrow as far away as the unreachable
stars.
On many a summer evening and cold winter night I stand with only my old
shabby blanket wrapped tightly around me, my breath pouring out into the
blackness, in ghost-like clouds, just dreaming. Many a day in the
eternal hours, I stand watching the birds and listening to the lark,
trying to discover its whereabouts in that stagnant blue ocean above me
that represents the outside world, and I long for the liberty of the
lark.
I suppose, to many, a few birds, the sound of a lark, a blue sky, or
full moon, are there, but unnoticed most of the time. But, to me, they
mean existence, peacefulness, comfort, entertainment, and something to
view, to help forget the tortures, brutalities, indignities and evils
that surround and attack my everyday life.
Today, the screws began blocking up all the windows with sheets of
steel. To me this represents and signifies the further torture of the
tortured, blocking out the very essence of life: nature!
A few words I once read came echoing back to me today: ‘No-one can take
away from a person his or her ability to contemplate. Throw them into
prison, give them hard labour, unimaginative work to do, but you can
never take away from them the ability to find the poetry and music in
life: And I also realised that, here, my torturers have long ago
started, and still endeavour, to block up the window of my mind.
BAYSIDE ST. PATRICK’S DAY PARADE
The 3rd Annual Bayside St. Patrick’s Day Parade will be held Saturday, March 28, on Bell Blvd at 11:00 AM. Formation will meet on 35th Ave and Bell Blvd at 10:45 AM. All members participating are requested to wear Class A Uniform. Children are welcome to join the formation to march. Post parade lunch will be held at One Station Plaza, located at 213th St. and 41st Ave. For any further information, contact Lt. Gerard Walsh, BN 51, at (347) 525-4108.
UFA RETIREMENT SEMINAR
The UFA will host a Retirement Seminar for delegates and members who are beginning the retirement process on Thursday, February 27, at 12:00 PM, in the 4th Floor Conference Room of the UFA office. Topics will cover SBF Benefits in retirement, Social Security options and Pension options. Space is limited, so we are only able to accommodate 50 members. Members must RSVP beforehand to reserve their place. For more information, or to RSVP, contact UFA Retiree Liaison Marty Tighe at mtighe@ufanyc.org or call (646) 899-6416.
FDNY BASEBALL
FDNY Baseball’s One Pitch Softball Tournament will be held April 20, 2020, at Eisenhower Park. Registration is $300 per team. Call or text Scott Miller at 917-225-7872 for more information.
FDNY MEMORIAL QUILT
The Office of Diversity and Inclusion is designing a quilt to celebrate the contributions FDNY has made to the City of New York. Each firehouse may submit a piece of fabric that best represents where you work, the spirit of your team, the neighborhood that you serve, or your contribution to FDNY. Please also provide a brief narrative of the significance of the fabric. The narratives will be consolidated in a booklet to accompany the quilt. The quilt will be a beautiful longstanding work of art showcasing all of FDNY and will travel throughout the boroughs. The most outstanding submissions will be awarded. Submissions for the “We are FDNY Quilt and Stories” are due March 6, 2020. To participate, please send or bring your fabric and accompanying narrative to the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, located at 9 MetroTech Center, Room 8S-09, Brooklyn, NY. Questions should be directed to diversity.inclusion@fdny.nyc.gov.
Columbus Council #126 Saint Patrick’s Party – Saturday March 7th 8:00 PM, Please send in payments for your tables or individual seats. Please refer to the attached poster for all the details.
Contact Robert “Cardinal” Murphy at 718-258-0588
“May the friendships you make, be those which endure; and all of your grey clouds, be small ones for sure. As you slide down the banister of life, may the splinters never point in the wrong direction. May you have warm words on a cold evening, a full moon on a dark night, and the road downhill all the way to your door”.🇨🇮🍀☘💚,,,,
Side note; Congratulations
to Robert “The Cardinal” Murphy who was Ordained as a Eucharistic Minister of
Our Lady Help of Christians Church on Sunday February 9, 2020.
Slainte!🍀 Eddie Velinskie Grand Knight/Grand High Exalted Mystic Ruler Columbus Council #126
