People
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Local Irish Musician’s Daughter Spurs Effort to Raise Funds–and Awareness–for Autism
Philadelphia area musician Raymond Coleman remembers when he and his wife Jaclyn first started worrying about their daughter Céilí. Céilí was a year and a half, and she didn’t respond when they called her name or rolled a ball back to her. At first, they thought she might have a hearing problem. Then, Coleman says, he wondered whether Céilí might be developmentally delayed. They consulted with Céilí’s pediatrician, who recommended testing. “We were calling her […] Read More
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Saving the Irish language, One Student at a Time
Growing up in Gweedore, the heart of Donegal’s Irish speaking region known as The Gaeltacht, Sorcha Ní Ghallachóir’s first encounter with the English language was a children’s television program about a red-haired, red-cheeked puppet named Bosco. She watched, mystified. He was speaking a foreign language. “To me it was double Dutch,” recalls Ní Ghallachóir. “I had no idea what he was saying except for the word or two he said in Irish.” Though Irish is the […] Read More
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John Byrne’s Songwriting Skills Take Center Stage
Standing in front of the noontime crowd at WXPN’s Free at Noon concert on this St. Patrick’s Day, John Byrne sounded almost giddy. “How are ye all?” he called to the crowd as he and his eponymous band launched into their version of the Dubliners’ “The Twang Man,” the story of a man who kills his lover’s new partner, then rolled right into “The Well Below the Valley,” an ancient tale of incest and infanticide, with […] Read More
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My Life with Uncle Jake
The late, legendary Villanova University Athletic Director John “Jake” Nevin wasn’t my uncle by blood, but he was closer to me and my family than any blood relative could be. As the Irish like to say, we’ll begin at the beginning. Jake lived near my maternal grandparents’ humble Bryn Mawr apartment near Lancaster Avenue, in which my mother, Doris, and my aunt, Joanie, grew up. Sadly, their father (my grandfather), Buck, had a stroke in […] Read More
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Friendly Sons & Daughters of Saint Patrick Celebrate at 252nd Gala
Members of the Friendly Sons & Daughters of Saint Patrick celebrated in black-tie—and often kilted—style Saturday night, packing the banquet room of the Philadelphia Country Club in Gladwyne. The organization, founded in 1771, promotes Irish culture and education, and has a philanthropic mission. Among the invitees were special guest speaker John Crowley, executive chairman of Amicus Therapeutics. Crowley is the subject of a book by Geeta Anand, “The Cure: How a Father Raised $100 Million […] Read More
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Meet Dan Harrell, Philly’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade Grand Marshal
Dan Harrell is one of my favorite people in the Irish community and this year I and thousands of others will get to watch him lead one of the oldest parades in the United States, the Philadelphia’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Dan is a big, burly man, possessing many amazing talents yet always quick to laugh at himself. Born in Philadelphia’s Presbyterian Hospital on December 4, 1943, to Agnes Bridget McDaid (Drimarone, County Donegal) and James Oliver […] Read More
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Villanova Senior Named 2023 Philadelphia Mary from Dungloe
AnneMarie Caffrey Mentei, a 21-year-old Villanova University senior was crowned the 2023 Mary from Dungloe at the Donegal Ball in early December at The Irish Center in Philadelphia. She accepted her crown from Olivia Lisowski, who wore it for several years because she was unable to travel to Ireland for the international event because of the Covid pandemic. AnneMarie is an Irish Studies major, and is minoring in Peace and Justice and Spanish. At Villanova […] Read More
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Larry Kirwan’s IABCN Acceptance Speech
On Friday February 24, musician, writer, and playwright Larry Kirwan received the Irish American Business Chamber & Network (IABCN) 2023 Uachtarán (President) Award in Philadelphia from Irish Ambassador to the USA, Geraldine Byrne Nason at a Union League luncheon. (Photo Tom Keenan) Kirwan, a Wexford native who emigrated to New York at the age of 21, may be best known for being the front man of the rock band Black 47 and a political activist. […] Read More