IPC offers its help in Magdalene Laundries restitution processes

By BIR News Room
November 3, 2016

An archival photo of of a Magdalene Laundries setting.An archival photo of of a Magdalene Laundries setting.
The Irish Pastoral Centre, located at St. Brendan Parish in Dorchester, is offering its services in connection with the Irish government’s reconciliation process in the matter of the Magdalene Laundries scandal.

The laundries - often described as “prisons” by the women who worked in them - were established in the 18th century for Ireland’s “fallen” women and remained in operation until 1996, when the last laundry closed. An estimated 30,000 women and girls are thought to have been institutionalized for a myriad of reasons, from “being bold” to having a child out of wedlock. They were forced to work long hours in poor conditions for no pay.

Presenting the 2016 Boston Irish Honorees: Leary, Judge families, Sen. Kirk feted at luncheon

By BIR News Room
November 3, 2016

The 2016 Boston Irish Honors Awards luncheon drew more than 400 attendees to the Plaza Ballroom of the Seaport Hotel in Boston on Oct. 28 for a celebration and public recognition of two Boston families and a distinguished public servant by the Boston Irish Reporter. The honorees are:

• Jim Judge, CEO of Eversource Energy, and Mary Cahill Judge, a husband and wife team noted for their generosity of spirit and extensive philanthrophy.

HONORING THEIR SGT. DETECTIVE

By Ed Forry
September 30, 2016

HONORING THEIR SGT. DETECTIVEHONORING THEIR SGT. DETECTIVE

The extended family of the late Sgt. Det. Richard Clancy gathered in front of a new memorial wall inside the Boston Police Department’s Area C-11 stationhouse on Gibson Street at a ceremony on Sept. 17 where the police held a family day celebration that featured the dedication of a memorial wall presenting Dorchester officers who have died over the last three decades. The display includes an array of seven plaques featuring portraits of the officers memorialized, including Det. Sherman Griffiths, Det. Edwin Kenneally, Det. Jay Greene, Officer Patrick Donovan, Officer Joseph Zanoli, Officer Michael Baker, and Sgt. Det. Richard Clancy. Mayor Martin Walsh, Police Commissioner William Evans and Chief William Gross attended the dedication event, which included individual unveilings of each plaque and remarks from family members. Bill Brett photo

Less-crowded October is always a fun time in Ireland

By BostonIrish.com... (not verified)
September 30, 2016


By Judy Enright
Special to the BIR

There’s a lot to love about Ireland in October – and every other month, too, of course.

By October, most tourists have been and gone, their vacations often dictated by children’s school schedules. But don’t worry: There is still plenty to see and do in Ireland in the autumn and the many attractions open to visitors will not be nearly as crowded as they are in the summer.

FAIRS

October's Arts Calendar

By Sean Smith
September 30, 2016
Sean Smith

October will be busy for The Burren Backroom series, with six events scheduled, including performances by John Doyle, Celtic Fiddle Festival and Boston-area native Katie McNally. Other Irish/Celtic happenings this month include appearances by former Celtic Thunder member Paul Byrom and local fiddler Mari Black.

Gare St Lazare blends Beckett and music in "Here All Night"

By R.J. Donovan
September 30, 2016
R.J. Donovan

Conor Lovett in the Gare St Lazare Ireland production of “Here All Night.” Hugo Glendinning photoConor Lovett in the Gare St Lazare Ireland production of “Here All Night.” Hugo Glendinning photoConor Lovett and Judy Hegarty Lovett share a great deal in life. Aside from being husband and wife, the talented duo are founders and co-artistic directors of the Gare St Lazare Ireland theater company based in Cork. They also rank as the unparalleled interpreters and champions of the Irish playwright, novelist, and poet Samuel Beckett.

From Oct. 5 to Oct. 9, Gare St Lazare will be in Boston to perform “Here All Night,” an immersive blend of spoken word and musical performance based on the writings and compositions of the Nobel Prize-winning Beckett, including “Watt,” “First Love,” “The Unnamable,” “Words and Music” and “Melanie Loves.”

Presented by ArtsEmerson, “Here All Night” will take place at the Emerson Paramount Mainstage. ArtsEmerson previously hosted Gare St Lazare’s compelling productions of “Waiting for Godot” and “Moby Dick.”

For piper Abarta and fiddler Gourley, ‘Copley Street’ means many things

By Sean Smith
September 30, 2016
Sean Smith

“We didn’t want this to be a ‘themed’ record, but we felt ‘Copley Street’ would be a nod to the past generations of musicians,” says Joey Abarta, right, of the album he made with Nathan Gourley. Louise Bichan photo“We didn’t want this to be a ‘themed’ record, but we felt ‘Copley Street’ would be a nod to the past generations of musicians,” says Joey Abarta, right, of the album he made with Nathan Gourley. Louise Bichan photo

Copley Street is a little longer than a block, tucked away in Roxbury’s extreme western flank, and dead-ending at the southwest at the Jamaica Plain border on School Street. But whatever it may lack in relative size or scale, Copley Street has some important connections to the past, present and likely the future of Irish music in Boston.

For one thing, the street is all of about a mile from Dudley Square, the storied hub of Irish dance halls that flourished for decades during the 20th century. That era resounds in the very name “Copley” – the Roxbury-based record label that issued recordings of some of Boston’s most prominent Irish musicians.

IIIC launches US Intern Placement Plan with Belfast

By BIR News Room
September 30, 2016

A new student placement initiative, providing J-1 work visas and support for 40 third-year students seeking quality, relevant, one-year paid internships in the United States was launched last month at Belfast City Hall.
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The program is the result of a partnership between the Irish International Immigrant Center in Boston, Ulster University, and Queen’s University Belfast that was brokered by the Belfast City Council as part of its Sister City Agreement with Boston.  The agreement was signed in May 2014 to explore academic, business, and cultural links between the two cities.

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