The ‘Collar’ and the ‘Badge’ in Bowdoin/Geneva Rev. (Doc) Conway, BPD Deputy Baston push safety on streets

By Tom Mulvoy, Associate Editor
August 1, 2014

Tom Mulvoy, Associate Editor

The young guys were finished with their warm-ups on the basketball court at Ronan Park in Dorchester and getting ready to choose sides for a game. Small problem: They only had nine players on hand. “Hey, Pops, how about making it ten?” one of the players said to an older man who was standing nearby looking on. “Not me,’ said the observer, whose thin, lanky frame suggested that he might be able to do a few runs up and down the court. “But thanks; you’re just going to have to make do with what you have.”

OF CASSOCKS, ROBES, AND KNOW NOTHINGS

By Peter F. Stevens
August 1, 2014

Peter F. Stevens

“They” might have wondered whether five male judges sitting on the United States Supreme Court of 2014 are wearing black robes or cassocks. “They” were the Know-Nothing Party of the 1840s-1850s America, the driving force of a Nativist movement that loathed not only the Irish and other immigrants, but also, and especially, all things Roman Catholic. They feared that if too many Catholics flooded “Anglo America,” the pope would soon be calling the shots in the United States on political, religious, cultural, and social matters.

Evolution surely is making us smarter; but what about what makes us human?

By BostonIrish.com... (not verified)
August 1, 2014

Will evolution keep pace with the challenges we face, or will inequality, global warming, population, and pollution overwhelm us? Right now it seems we are losing the battle.

There is ample evidence that evolution is an ongoing process. The advances in science, technology, and production over the last century are obvious. Some progress is also evident in civil rights, tolerance, and social justice. We are getting smarter, but are we getting better?

Introducing the Irish Legacy Society, a way to keep on giving back to Ireland

By Joe Leary, Special to the BIR
August 1, 2014

Joe Leary, Special to the BIR

After 27 years in existence, the Irish American Partnership is announcing a new opportunity for men and women of Irish heritage to give something back to the small island their ancestors left to come to America. The creation of an Irish American Partnership endowment fund named The Irish Legacy Society will help preserve and strengthen the Partnership and its ability to help Ireland well into the future.

Taking care of Patrick

By Ed Forry
August 1, 2014

An Irish bicyclist who suffered severed head injuries in a collision with a van on Cape Cod last summer has entered a second year of therapy, and his family is hopeful that he will one day resume a measure of independent life.

My walk in the park took a dangerous turn

By Ed Forry
August 1, 2014

It was not my usual walk in the park.

There I was, late on a Sunday afternoon in July, making my way in broad and sunny daylight through the beautiful 27-acre park near my home in Lower Mills.

As usual, my thoughts were off in a quiet reverie – as I approach my 70th birthday, I no longer move swiftly, yet I remain committed to regular walks to forestall some of the downside effects of aging.

An unforgettable trip to Calvary – via Sligo

By Peter Stevens, BIR Staff
August 1, 2014

Peter Stevens, BIR Staff

“Calvary” is a darkly brilliant film that tackles emotional, cultural, and religious, and regional issues on a cinematic canvas both broad and insular. That may read oxymoronic, but writer-director John Michael McDonagh and a splendid cast pull off exactly that. Among that cast, as Sligo priest “Father James,” Brendan Gleeson delivers one of the finest performances of his stellar career. So, too, do Chris O’Dowd, Kelly Reilly, Dylan Moran, Aidan Gillen, and the rest of the troupe.

Walsh set for first official visit to Ireland

By Bill Forry
August 1, 2014

Confirming plans first reported last spring, Boston Mayor Martin Walsh says he will make a ten-day visit to his parents’ homeland in September – his first visit to Ireland since his electoral victory last November made him the city’s first Irish-American mayor in two decades. Walsh’s visit will have a heavy Galway accent, including a side trip to Connemara to see cousins, with stops in Donegal, Derry, Belfast, and Dublin also on the schedule. He is tentatively scheduled to leave Boston on Sept. 19.

IFest Boston will showcase the ‘Best of Ireland’ at Seaport venue Sept. 26-28

By Bill Forry
August 1, 2014

Mayor Martin Walsh, IFest Boston founder Rachel Kelly and chef Barabara Lynch are key players in bringing September’s three-day festival to the Seaport/World Trade Center on Boston’s waterfront. Photo by Dan Watkins

IFest Boston — a three-day festival that will gather the “Best of Ireland” in the heart of the city’s Seaport district —will take place at Boston’s Seaport World Trade Center from Sept. 26 to Sept. 28. The first-of-its-kind event is expected to draw big crowds to the waterfront venue to showcase the best of Irish food and drink, top musicians, and entertainers— all in an effort to draw more tourists back to Ireland and re-energize cultural and business ties between Boston and Ireland.

Canton to host GAA championships over Labor Day Weekend

By Sophie Gayter, Special to the Reporter
July 30, 2014

Sophie Gayter, Special to the Reporter

GAA North American Championships come to Canton this monthBoston’s Northeast Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) has been a focal point for the Irish community in the area for years. Offering locals the opportunity to play a variety of Gaelic sports including Gaelic Football and Hurling, the GAA has numerous teams in the Boston area in addition to teams who come from as far as Maine, New Hampshire, and Connecticut to participate in the Boston Northeast division.

The Northeast GAA season runs from April to Labor Day weekend, with between 140 to 170 games played each year. All games are played live on the grounds of the Irish Cultural Center in Canton and are very well attended by folks looking to connect with a piece of Ireland here in Massachusetts.

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