Ireland's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Micháel Martin launched the Senior Help Line USA on May 7^th at the Center. This very successful confidential Senior listening service has been in existence in Ireland for the last 10 years and we are very proud to be able to host the first of its kind here in NY this year. Senior Help Line USA is a joint-partnership with the Emerald Isle Immigration Center, the Aisling Irish Center and the New York Irish Center.

If you are a Senior (Irish or Irish American) and want to chat with your peers, please call 1-877-997-5777 to speak with a trained volunteer who would love to hear your voice. You can call with a happy story or a sad story on any Monday, Wednesday or Friday to speak with another Senior, who has the time and is enriched with life experience to offer a sympathetic and caring response to your needs.

So far, we have had very diverse calls from people seeking assistance for their family and friends wondering where they can re-connect with their heritage, join groups and re-vamp their social life, both in NY and much farther afield. We are happy to report that we have referred people to Irish Centers throughout the US, and have gained a few more guests ourselves. The three Centers, Aisling Center, Emerald Isle and the New York Irish Center have a great synergy going with this new program, and although the volunteers are not swamped with calls yet, we expect that this trend will pick up and they are happy to assist any Senior who calls for a chat. 

Please pass the word that the Senior’s Help Line is available Monday, Wednesday & Friday from 10am to 12noon Eastern Time. As the calls increase we will be extending the hours to accommodate the callers.
1-877-997-5777. For more information, visit http://www.nyirish.org/helpline.htm.

North American Association for Celtic Language Teachers Conference:

Much to our delight, we hosted a wonderful three day conference of Celtic Language speaking Teachers and Students from all over the US, Canada, Scotland, & Ireland. We also had people speaking Cornish, Breton and Manx in the mix. It was very interesting to hear the different dialects speaking together and to hear of the various styles of teaching that works in various settings. We had a great write-up in the Irish Voice by the organizer who wrote a lovely letter to the Editor in the May 27^th issue. Each year the conference is held in a different country, mostly alternating between the US and Canada, but the fifth year the Association goes over to Europe. We believe next year it may be held in Scotland. More information can be found at http://www.naaclt.org/.

Annual Dinner Dance:

In fact it was a great opportunity for Rory’s family to come over from Ireland to share in his honor and pay tribute to the wonderful man that he is. Rory’s contribution to the Center includes the architect of what we call the Main Floor, and we are blessed to have his continued support and assistance as our Board Member ever since! It’s a privilege to have such a dedicated contributor and staunch supporter to many of our events here at the Center. We also have to pay tribute to his brother, Mickey, and his assistant Dinah Coolbeth, who did enormous work on bringing so many people and tables together! We appreciate all your support, and hope you all enjoyed the night. 

 

St. Patrick’s Day Breakfast:

What a turnout to our first annual St. Patrick’s Breakfast! We had a packed house including visitors from Ireland; Minister Martin McGuinness, and Belfast Assemblywoman Marge Markey, Actress, Geraldine Hughes, as well as Deirdre Feerick and our Senior Lunch & Social Group and many of our Board Members. We have to thank Ciaran Staunton did a great job of bringing it all together and including everyone in this joyous St. Patrick’s Breakfast – sausages, puddings, soda bread and all the trimmings!

Friday Afternoon Club:

We are happy to report that our Friday Afternoon Club is taking off really nicely. Some people have the opportunity to learn new Arts & Crafts skills while creating a very worthwhile Banner for the back of our stage which is looking wonderful! We now will always know that the pictures taken are at the New York Irish Center with the help of their creative efforts, and for this we are very thankful. The next project will be a collage of pictures from our past events which we plan on keeping current.

The New York Irish Center is now on Facebook!

Victorian Tea Party:      July 19^th @ 2pm           Reservations necessary-seating limited.

Join us for a lovely afternoon of entertainment while sampling some home-made goodies, tasty treats, costumed entertainment and an afternoon sipping various flavors of tea, while chatting with friends old and new. Please bring your favorite cup and saucer to the event, and any of your friends you think would enjoy an afternoon with a difference. Donation: $20, $15 for Senior’s and under 12’s.

End of Summer Barbecue:       End of August ‘09

Let’s end the summer with a Center feast Barbecue style. Our very first Summer Barbecue is a day to mix and mingle with your friends and family. We have lots of space indoors (and are working on out-doors) where you can bring your kids for an enjoyable afternoon. Please mark your calendar for the end of August, and stay tuned for further details on date and times.

Bachelor Auction:        September 11^th

Care-giver & Toddler Group

This group meets every Monday from 2pm to 5pm, and every Thursday from 10:30am to 2pm.  We provide a large space for your child to run around and play with toys.  A nice reprieve from the cold of the nearest park!  Come for mutual support and fun for the children.  There are fun music 7 movement classes you and your child can join on other days as well.  Please call for details…..

Senior Lunch and Social Club

We provide a weekly social life for our senior group every Wednesday from 12:30pm to 3:30’ish!  While meeting old friends, playing cards, chatting and making new friends, and generally feeling welcome, we provide a free lunch to all who attend.  If you are the computer geek type, you can while away the afternoon catching up on e-mails and corresponding with relatives miles away, or enjoy your ‘soaps’ on TV in our café area. 

Friday Afternoon Club

In January, we started a Friday Afternoon Club for young and old alike, with classes to enjoy working with your hands from Art/Painting, to Quilt Making, to Board Games & Creative Writing.  Please come and join us for a cup of tea and an afternoon of conversation while learning some new skills if you wish to join in some activities, or just read the papers and watch some sports or a movie…

Classes

We also have other regular events such as: a ‘25’ Card night on the last Friday of every month. This group meets all year long – no summer break here for these enthusiastic players! All ‘25’ Card Players are welcome.  On the fourth Saturday of every month we have a Céili & Set Dancing night.  Anyone interested in this event and details of Céili’s in the region should call Liz at the Center to be put on that particular mailing list which goes out weekly. For a complete listing of classes and events taking place at the Center, please click here.