the irish connection -...

Dear Fellow Irish American Society members, Our December gathering will be our annual

Christmas Ceili, and it will take place on Thursday, December 6th this year. The ceili will be a potluck as in years past, so please plan to bring something yummy to share. This will be a fun event for all ages, so encourage your extended family to attend. And people definitely don’t need to be IAS members or even Irish to attend, so bring friends! The more the merrier.

Just like last year, please note that the holiday decoration contest at our Christmas Ceili will have 3 categories:

(1) table centerpiece, (2) wreath/door hanging, and (3) ornament. I will be calling on some of you to help with the

judging. There will be actual score sheets, and each entry will be judged on beauty, creativity, and artisanship. Prizes and bragging rights are at stake!

Please consider arriving early to help us with décor and set up. Please note that we will not start going through the buffet until 7:00 pm in order to get everything set up properly. If your dinnertime is earlier, then please eat a snack in the afternoon that will tide you over until 7 pm.

I hope our current and many of our past IAS Teen and Adult Princesses who are dancers will be there to help partner up with people for some ceili dancing; we’d love to get tons of you out on the floor like we always did in years gone past. Those of you willing to take a turn on the mic in between dances, please feel free to give us your rendition of a carol, a joke, or an

appropriate holiday story. Or bring an instrument and give us a tune! We are blessed with so many talented members – we hope to have live Irish and seasonal music for everyone’s enjoyment.

It’s sure to be a lovely night of fun and fellowship – don’t miss out! And BYOC! (Bring your own cooler!)

I also wanted to mention that those of you interested in some holiday shopping to support the Irish might want to be aware of the following wonderful gifts and stocking stuffers.

(1) The gift of an IAS membership for 2013 to friends or family members who are not already members. [$25 for a family membership, $20 for an individual membership]

(2) We still have a few more of the Celtic dog training bell sets left, but they are going fast! [$15/set for IAS members]

(3) The NYC Dempsey Pub Seisiuns “Beautiful People” dvd/cd combo – You get the documentary DVD and the soundtrack CD both for one low price! [$25/each]

(4) Embroidered IAS logo shirts – order forms available at meetings! [$30/each with personalization, $25/each without personalization]

Beannachtaí na Nollag duit (The blessings of

Christmas be with you!)

Lynnette Fitch Brash m

The Irish American Society of Tidewater News December 2012

The Irish Connection

The Irish American Society of

Tidewater, Virginia, was established in 1980 to promoteand preserve Irish

culture, and all things distinctly Irish.

Membership is opento persons of Irish

birth or ancestry, aswell as those

persons who havean interest in Irish history and culture.

Meetings are heldthe first Thursday

of every month at theChurch of the

Ascension Community Center

4853 PrincessAnne Rd

Virginia Beach, VA.Doors open at

6:30 p.m.,the meeting usually gets underway at

7:00 p.m.,ending at 9:00 p.m.

Our next meeting:December 6, 2012

President's Corner

CHRISTMAS CEILI

& POTLUCK

At the December

Meeting!

December 6, 2011

Page -2 December 2012

The Irish American Society of Tidewater

P.O. Box 9614Virginia Beach, VA

23450

OFFICERS

President Lynnette Fitch Brash

Sr. Vice President Joseph Brady

Jr. Vice President John 'JJ' Johnson

Treasurer Mike Bromley

Recording Secretary MaryAnn Bromley Financial Secretary

Kerry SinclairMembership

Betsy Kennedy

SUNSHINE COMMITTEE

Maureen Honore757-721-2863

Mary Ann Bromley471-2007

HOSPITALITYGeorge & Eileen Collins

NEWSLETTERLori Shea, [email protected]

INTERNET NEWSVera Dotson

WEBMASTERMichael Lawler

WEB SITEIRLUSA.org

look for us on Facebook!

♣Meeting called to order by Lynnette Brash 7pm.♣Tonight’s presentation will be “Irish Whiskey” demo.

by Skip Hunter, President of Scottish Society of Tidewater & Vice President of Hurling Club.

♣Floor was open for birthdays, anniversaries, new members.

♣Moment of silence for hurricane victims.♣Lynnette said “Diversity Day” was a huge success.♣ “Richmond games” were fantastic.♣Hurling Club News – Skip Hunter said club

participated in 2 events in October: Richmond Games & Southeastern Regional Games in Ashville, N.C.

♣Lynnette mentioned fund raisers: football pool, dog bells, Aranware pottery, “Beautiful People” DVD’s/CD’s. Raffle tonight, basket of autumn goodies. (won by Jack Kennedy).

♣ Senior V.P. Joe Brady reminded members Christmas (meeting) Ceili Dec. 6th...pot luck, decorating contest, live music. Will raffle a replica of Irish cottage at Dec. meeting. Joe reminded us DUES are $20.00 single/$25.00 family & due January, 2013.

♣ Junior V.P. J.J. Johnson....still has DVD’s/CD’s available from “Beautiful People”.

♣Recording Secretary Mary Ann Bromley gave Sunshine Committee report: Sarah Morgan still in hospital being treated for Leukemia. Mollie Carr undergoing Chemo. treatments for cancer. Joe Brady had cataract removed. Several IAS members & Mary Ann, attended Maureen Schumann’s funeral Mass at Star of the Sea parish 10/26/12.

♣Mary Ann explained Super Bowl pool as fund raiser.♣Treasurer Mike Bromley explained International

Ancestry, $10.00 a month for IAS members,

different password monthly.Savings: $245.32Checking: $1,284.03

♣Financial Secretary Kerry Sinclair working on Irish breakfast at Murphy’s for January, 2013. Winner of Murphy’s gift certificate...Rose Orlando.

♣ Jack Kennedy said library books available.♣Program started 7:50pm♣ Skip really educated us on “Whiskey”......Irish

invented distillation around 600 B.C. Explained different “malts”, said in 1779 there were about 1200 distilleries, by 1800 about 29 & today, only 4! There are about 70 brands of Irish whiskey. Skip brought all kinds of samples, Potcheen (aka moon shine), Red Breast, Tyrconnell, Connemara (smokey-peat taste), Middleton, Skip made Tullamore Dew (1 part red breast single malt, 4 parts 190 proof grain alcohol & water).

♣Bushmills...oldest in Northern Ireland dating back to 1608.

♣ Skip said: Whiskey will keep for years, won’t go bad & doesn’t get better with age! Scottish Society will have a “whiskey tasting” at monthly meeting 11/7. Program ended 8:45. Thanks to all who brought desserts....greatly appreciated!

Submitted by: Mary Ann Bromley

Meeting Minutes - November 2012

Flowers of the Forest

DENNIS C. SULLIVAN . . . lived in Virginia Beach for 40 years and was a member of the Irish American Society. He died on Aug. 27, in Scottsdale at the age of 93. Dennis was a WWII veteran and spent 28 years serving his country in the US Air Force. He was interned at Arlington National Cemetery on Nov. 2.

from his daughter - Michelle Shellnutt

MAUREEN SCHUMANN . . .was born in New York in 1928. She was a longtime member of The Irish American Society and attended our many socials. She passed away September 27, 2012 after a battle with cancer. Maureen worked for Respite Care up until she got sick. She is survived by 2 sisters, 2 daughters, 9 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren. Maureen was a member of Star of the Sea Catholic Church, V.B. Rest in peace friend!

from - Mary Ann Bromley

THE IRISH CONNECTION Page -3

From Leabharlann(the Library)

How did the name, Isle of Man, originate?

From the “Islands 0f Ireland” by Thomas H. Mason - “The victors at the battle of Moytura were the ‘De Danaan’, an early race who have left their imprint on modern times”. Their chief was a magical person who had three legs - a form of the Triskelion which shares with the swastika an immense antiquity and wide distribution as a symbol. It is found on Etruscan coins, was embodied during the Middle Ages on the arms of Syracuse, and it is still the arms of The Isle of Man. The name of this chief was Manaanan. The ancient Irich called the island that was dimly visible from their eastern shores, The Isle of Manaanan, which has been corrupted to the present title, “Isle of Man.”

triskelion - tris kel i on, n., a design, usually symbolic, consisting of three curved branches or three bent legs or arms radiating from a centerYou see it all over Wales in many forms. Apparently there is no standard design. However it is almost always bent legs, there; never arms or branches.

Submitted by Jack Kennedy

IAS Christmas Ceili Raffle Prize

IAS member Gene Graeff has built a beautiful Irish cottage for us to raffle off at the December Christmas Ceili!

The cottage is 32'' wide, 18'' deep, and 14.5" high. Because of the materials it is made from, it needs to be kept in a place where it will not get wet.

Many thanks to Gene for his efforts on our behalf!


Best wishes to IAS Teen Princess 2011 Caitlyn Taylor who has been having some foot issues preventing her from competing. There’s an extra bit of

bone that is scraping internally every time she is up on her toes, which, for Irish dance, is mandatory. We hope everything is good to go for her to compete in the Oireachtas in December.

Congratulations to IAS Teen Princess 2010 Sarah Brash who was chosen by audition for a part in the Christopher Newport University spring 2013 production of the opera Poppea. Properly titled L'Incoronazione di Poppea (The Coronation of Poppea), it was Claudio Monteverdi's final opera.

Best wishes for a speedy recovery to IAS Adult Princess 2007 Erin Morrissey, who has been feeling under the weather.

Just got word from our IAS Adult Princess 2003 Tamara Cervi that she has settled in to her new home in Florida and wants to pass along her new postal addy. You can also still reach her at her usual e-mail addy ([email protected]). Tamara Cervi 15307 Plantation Lakes Circle Sanford, FL 32771

Congratulations to all of our IAS Princesses who competed in late October at the ROI Feis in Williamsburg, VA! Best of luck to those going to New Orleans in late November/early December to compete in the Southern Region Oireachtas in the hopes of qualifying for the World Championships of Irish Dancing taking place spring 2013 in Boston! See elsewhere in this issue an Irish Dance Update from local dance teachers Lisa Hunt Burgess of An Cor Rud and Meghan Comaskey of the Cumascaigh School of Irish Dance!

The Princess Diaries, continued . . .December 2012

IRISH DANCING UPDATE

The Cumascaigh School of Irish Dance participated in the HRC Cultural Day on 7 October in Virginia Beach. Reels, Jigs, Treble JIgs and Slip Jigs were performed and a good time was had by all! It was so nice to represent our Irish culture at such a fun and worthwhile event!

Some of our students participated in their first feis in October and they danced spectacularly! The feis was a wonderful celebration of Irish music and dance and the Cumascaigh School came away with six first places and a third place.

We are looking forward to our school Christmas Party and enjoying the spirit of the season!

I am starting a performance troupe after the holiday to cover public and private events in the area. This will be a professional, hand picked team `made up of Cumascaigh School students of all levels and ages. We are available for bookings after the first of the year so look for us at events in Hampton Roads.

Submitted by Meghan Comaskey

Feis News

Dancers from An Cor Rud, The Reel Thing, attended The Rhythm of Ireland Feis October 21-22 in Williamsburg, Virginia. This feis (competition) is one of the closest in proximity to Virginia Beach throughout our whole Southern Region and so there are many attendees from the school. Our dancers had some great results on both days. “Good job” to everyone!

An Cor Rud will have 21 dancers attending the upcoming Oireachtas in New Orleans, Lousiana, November 30-December 2, ranging in age categories from ‘Under 8’ to ‘Over 21’.

Good luck to all. Hopefully, we will have some great results to report in next month’s newsletter!

Submitted by Lisa Hunt Burgess


An introduction to: Full SetSo, many of you know that I have been missing Hampton Roads

so very much and especially the Irish Community. I haven’t found my “local” yet, but I’ve been trying desperately to do so. Luckily,

being in Orlando, there are many opportunities to hear great music and having Disney’s Raglan Road Pub so close offers an even greater opportunity to see and hear authentic Irish groups.

Raglan Road had The Great Irish Hooley on Labour Day Weekend. Dance groups and bands from Ireland performed at various times throughout the weekend. One particular group, Full Set, was making their American debut. Full Set is a group of young people that met at Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (http://comhaltas.ie/). Comhaltas is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting Irish music, dance, culture, and language of Ireland. They got together after that and started playing together as a group. Speaking of the group, let me introduce them…we have Sean McCarthy, from Co. Cork, who plays the uilleann pipes; Michael Harrison, from Co. Tipp, who plays the fiddle; Janine Redmond, from Dublin, who plays the accordion; Andy Meaney, from Dublin, who plays the guitar; Eamon Maloney, from Co.

Tipp, who plays the Bodhran; and Teresa Horgan, from Co. Cork, who plays the Flute.

This past year, the band released their CD, Notes At Liberty. They were sweet enough to pass along their CD on to me for a listen. They sound just as good on the CD as they did live! At this time, they are on a tour of the U.S. (out West) and then heading home for a short visit before heading off to Austria for a tour.

The band will be back in the U.S. in 2013. At this time, the closest visit the band is making to Hampton Roads is March 17th, 2013. They are performing at National Geographic Live, in Washington, D.C. or in Raleigh, NC right before D.C. If any of you happen to be in Florida, the band will be performing back at Raglan Road, Downtown Disney, from March 18th-26th, 2013.After the band quit playing for the evening, Sean McCarthy sat at the table for a bit, having a pint and a chat. Sean has a tie to our little corner of the world in Hampton Roads! He played the uilleann pipes, 3 years ago, at the Ireland main show, in Busch Gardens

Williamsburg. Surprise! Full Set has just been awarded “New Group of the Year” in the

well respected Live Ireland Music Awards 2012 and “Best New Band” in the Irish American New Music Awards!

Give a listen and read more about the group at www. Fullsetmusic.com

FRESH EIREKeeping up with Irish Events!

by Tamara Cerviour ‘roving’ Irish music reporter


IN THE SPOTLIGHT

by Mary Ann Bromley

Let’s meet.....

It’s hard to believe I have been interviewing members of The Irish American Society for 6 years! They say: “Time flies when you’re having fun” and I sure have had tons of fun meeting, talking to, getting to know many wonderful people.

It all started when I mentioned to then President Mike Bromley that I’d like to know more about the members and suggested an article in the newsletter for this reason. Mike told me, “Great idea, you do it!” GULP! I really wasn’t expecting this reaction and didn’t know if I could do this, since my only writing experience was as a reporter for my High School newspaper MANY years ago! But, I thought I would give it a try!

My first interview was with Jack Kennedy in December, 2006. I was nervous! Jack was such a delight to interview, I truly enjoyed talking to this interesting man and I was hooked on this assignment! I had the pleasure of interviewing:

Ray Grinnell, Maura Ilich, the late Dennis Sullivan, the late Eileen Hunt, Addie & the late Bernie Holker, Lois Barnish, Mike Bromley, Ray Marion, Katie Morse, the late Vinnie Brady, Eileen Collins, Maria Toneatto, Vera Dotson, Sandy McGregor, Betsy Kennedy, Anne Devereux, Judy Gallagher, Joe Brady, Mary Ryan, Dermot Hudson, Lynette Crouch, Clyde McCook, Cecilia Davitt-Thomas, the late Peggy Lukens, Kathleen Myrick, Dr. Edward Brash, Catherine Twomey, Donna Looney, ME, Rose Orlando, Tim O’Neill, Lynnette Brash, Joan Rothrauff, Michael Lawler, Mary Ann Brady, Mollie Carr, Maureen Honore, Jim Ramsey, Kerry Sinclair, Erin Morrissey, John Ryan, Bridget Lukeman,

Tom Crouch, Eileen Seely, Linda Batten, Nora Donnelly, Tamari Cervi, Nancy Latham, Mary Jane McCarthy, Bob Lukeman, Daniel Fahey, Pat Marion, Hollie George, Lisa Burgess, Scott MacGregor, Tom Mooney, Mary Grinnell, John Johnson, Jim Hagerty, Jim Dyer.

There were some very fascinating stories from everyone! But, “All good things must come to an end” and “In the Spotlight” will retire in 2013.

I thank all of you for the great interviews over the years! May you have a very Merry Christmas and Happy Healthy New Year.


If you missed the November IAS meeting, you missed a really fun one! Josiah "Skip" Hunter gave a fantastic

presentation on Irish Whiskeys.Edward Brash took the "Whiskey Challenge" and only

played tunes that specifically referenced whiskey in them. Gene Graeff brought in the gorgeous Irish cottage he

made to show everyone - we will be raffling it at the IAS Christmas Ceili on December 6th as a fundraiser.

We even had some new people come out for the festivities.

NOVEMBER MEETING

SPECIAL EVENT


Ok, IAS Paddy Pack owners and other dog-

friendly owners - have we ever got a fundraiser going for YOU! We happened

across a Celtic dog training system! Perhaps you have used one of these systems before; they consist of a ribbon that hangs over the door handle, and there are large jingle bells attached to the ribbon.

When the dog wants to go

outside, you hit the bells with his paw, say "Potty!",

and then open the door to let him out. Dogs learn in days if not hours that the way to

be let outside is to ring the bells with their noses or paws!

The thing that is extra special about this particular bell potty training

system is that the ribbon is a beautiful CELTIC knotwork pattern in

red, gold, and teal. These would make fantastic Christmas presents for the Celtic dog owner on your list! The list price is $17.99 PLUS tax

and shipping, but if the IAS orders in bulk, we can get them for less. Our plan is to sell them for $15 to IAS members. At this great price, get one for yourself and another for a friend!

CU CORNER!

(Note: Cu is Gaelic for dog!)

Our December gathering will be our annual Christmas Ceili, and it will take

place on December 6th. The ceili will be a potluck as in years past, so please plan to bring

something yummy to share. This will be a fun event for all ages, so encourage your extended family to attend.

And people definitely don’t need to be IAS members or even Irish to attend, so bring friends! The more the merrier.

For all our artists and crafty types, please note that this year the holiday decoration contest at our Christmas Ceili will have 3 categories: (1) table centerpiece, (2) wreath/

door hanging, and (3) ornament. I will be calling on some of you to help with the

judging. This year there will be actual score sheets, and each entry will be judged on

beauty, creativity, and artisanship.

Please note that we will not start going through the buffet until 7:00 pm

CHRISTMAS CEILI & POTLUCK

At the December Meeting!

the irish connection -...

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