Press Articles About the New York Irish Center

>>Read Executive Director Paul Finnegan's Profile
in the Irish Echo newspaper (Feb 24th 2010).<<

Denis Hamill in the Daily News Oct 6th 2009

Irish Echo - "Call us! Senior Help Line goes live in NY", May 2009

The Irish Times - "Growing old far from home", January 2009

The Irish Echo - "Echo Profile: An Unbelievable Gift", July 2005

The Irish Voice - "Irish Center Saves Seniors", April 2005

The Irish Echo - "A Center Sprouts in Queens", March 2005

Call us! Senior Help Line goes live in NY (by Ray O'Hanlon)
(This article was published in the issue of May 13th, 2009. (c) 2009 Irish Echo Newspaper Corp.)

Minister Micheál Martin and Speaker Christine Quinn are joined by volunteers at the Senior Help Line USA launch last week.

May 13, 2009 Seniors in the New York area who need advice, help, or just a comforting word, now have their very own phone number to call. And it's toll-free.

The Senior Help Line USA was formally launched last week at the New York Irish Center in Long Island City.

The help line, which will be manned by seniors who have been trained specifically for the service, will be partly run out of the center which is run by Belfast native Fr. Colm Campbell.

And the center itself was the recipient of a surprise check at the opening, $50,000 from New York City, personally delivered to Fr. Campbell by City Council Speaker Christine Quinn who joined Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin in unveiling the new connection for the elder Irish.

Also attending the opening was Irish Ambassador to the United States, Michael Collins, and Irish Consul General in New York, Niall Burgess.

The project, which received an Irish government grant of $15,000, is a collaboration between the Irish Center, the Aisling Irish Center and the Emerald Isle Immigration Center.

"What we do here is absolutely needed," said Fr. Campbell.

Campbell said that Irish people who came to the U.S. in the 1950s and 60s used be able to depend on a system of parishes but this was now changing. The phone line was a response to this in New York, a city where over half the Irish-born residents are now over 65 years of age.

Minister Martin said that the seniors who would benefit from the help line had made a contribution both to Ireland and the building of America.

"The Senior Help Line aims to help our older people who have become isolated as their social networks splinter and sometimes disappear altogether. These are the very people who over the years would have sent substantial amounts in financial remittances back to Ireland and it is important that their contribution not be forgotten.

"Our support for this project is the Irish government's way of giving something back," Martin said.

In formally declaring the phone line open for business, Speaker Quinn said the service would be a boon to seniors, particularly in the context of harder times caused by the recession.

Quinn said that the service would have an even more profoundly positive effect because of the senior volunteers running it. Consul General Burgess said the service would empower the older generation of immigrants to address issues such as loneliness and isolation in the community, and to reach beyond the existing areas covered by the main Irish centers to identify and begin addressing needs in the wider Irish community.

The phone service is modeled on a success story in Ireland where 13 senior help lines are now operating.

Mary Nally, ceo of the Irish venture, said at the launch that the idea behind Senior Help Line was "a unique peer approach," a "web of older people listening to older people."

Fifty or so senior volunteers have received training to date at the Emerald Isle Immigration Center and are now ready and prepared to answer phones during operating hours.

The toll free number, 1-877-997-5777, connects to both the Emerald Isle's Bronx office and the New York Irish Center. For the time being, it will be active from 10 a.m. to 12 noon, Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Click here for more information on the Senior Helpline USA.

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Growing old far from home (by Conn Corrigan)

(This article was published in the issue of January 31, 2009. (c) Irish Times Limited)

The lonely death of an elderly Irish immigrant in New York illustrates the often sad fate of a generation of Irish who moved to the US in the 1950s and 1960s, and who now need support

‘He died alone” was the sad headline in the Irish Voice newspaper. Tony Gallagher, a 72-year-old Irish immigrant from Bellacorick, Co Mayo, was found dead in his apartment in Sunnyside, Queens in New York in late December. It is thought his body was lying there for a week before it was discovered by firefighters after they were alerted by the apartment superintendent who had not seen him for several days.

Gallagher, a carpenter, arrived in the US in 1970. His wife, Josephine, now suffers from Alzheimer’s and has been living in a nursing home for the past three years in Kingston, New York. The couple had no children. Gallagher’s brother Eddie, lives in Holyoke, Massachusetts, and last saw him at Thanksgiving.

Ambrose Gurhy, the owner of an Irish bar in Queens, says Gallagher came in every so often. “You might see him two times a month and you might not see him again for four or five months. He wasn’t a bar person really. It was more for the company rather than a big session.”

The case of Gallagher’s lonely death has focused attention on the plight of elderly Irish immigrants in New York, and the problems of isolation that many of them face.

Ciarán Staunton, a well-known figure in the Irish community and vice-chairman of the Irish Lobby of Immigration Reform, says the death of Tony Gallagher underlines the need for a census of elderly Irish to identify those living in isolated conditions. The census could be done through a volunteer network run with the help of the Church, he says, noting that many elderly Irish in New York attend Mass daily.

According to Staunton, there are probably “a couple of thousand” Irish over the age of 65 living in the city, and many have little contact with each other.

“We need to know where are they? Who are they? We need to get the names, get their numbers and get co-ordinated.”

The New York Irish Center on Jackson Avenue in Queens has become a hugely important social centre for elderly Irish in the borough. The founder of the centre, 73-year-old Fr Colm Campbell, chaplain to the Irish community in the US, points out that the Irish in Queens are more dispersed than they are in the Bronx.

“The Irish who moved to the Bronx mainly tend to live all closely together in a tight little area in Woodlawn,” says Fr Campbell, originally from Belfast and who came to the US in 1992. “In Queens, there is no Irish neighbourhood any more. There was Woodside and Sunnyside, but they have gone.”

Because Fr Campbell lives alone and suffers from ill health, he wears a bracelet on his wrist which will sound an alarm should anything happen to him. At a Mass last weekend at the New York Irish Center in Queens he stressed to the elderly congregation the importance of looking out for each other.

Returning to Ireland is simply not an option for most seniors, says Fr Campbell, because “the Ireland they left is not the Ireland they would return to”. Indeed, one of the regulars at the centre, Pat Sheehy from Woodlawn, who left Glasnevin in Dublin in 1956, tried to relocate to Ireland three times. “It just never worked out,” she explains.

Fr Campbell says there is a great deal of loneliness. “One woman in Woodside, Queens, said to me, ‘My daughter rings me every day. But that’s just 20 minutes.’ The apartment block she lives in used to be entirely Irish but now it’s almost entirely Polish. She says they are lovely people – but she can’t understand a word that they are saying.

Fr Campbell says one of the problems with elderly Irish immigrants is their reluctance to ask for help. “There’s a thing in the Irish that just doesn’t want to admit to being in need.”

CIARÁN STAUNTON AGREES, saying that the generation that came to America in the 1940s and 1950s are “a proud people”. “No one is going to say, ‘I have spent 20 years sending back money and parcels when things were tight and now no one calls me.’”

Every Wednesday the New York Irish Center holds a lunch which is attended by 40 to 50 senior citizens. As they tuck in to their meals donated by a local Irish restaurant, Sidetracks, accordion music plays in the background. When people introduce themselves, they follow their name with the part of Ireland they came from. When I tell them I come from Nenagh, Co Tipperary, they ask if I know various Nenagh families, despite the fact that they had left Ireland in the 1950s. Many have less of an American accent than you would find in the average teenager in south Co Dublin.

Peggy Cooney, 78, originally from Dunshaughlin, Co Meath, and now living in Astoria in Queens, has been coming to the weekly lunch for four years. “I have made a lot of friends here,” she explains. “But it’s only one day a week.” Cooney came to the US in 1960, sponsored by a Jewish family in Riverdale, the Bronx to take care of their children. Later she worked for a nursing agency. She was “very happy living here” in the 1960s and 1970s. There was a lot of dancing in those days, she says and she was also active in Northern Ireland Aid. She retired at the age of 70. She never married and has a brother in Missouri.

“I’m not lacking for a social life,” she says. However, in her apartment block, no one talks to each other. “Everyone goes to work apart from me and an elderly couple. There’s no communication in the block.”

Most of the senior citizens say that the New York Irish Center is a very important part of their social life. There are other activities such as plays and Irish language classes, and the lunches on Wednesday are followed by a game of cards in the basement. One of the women advises that if I want to talk to the men, I should do so before the card game begins, “because there’ll be no talking to them after that”.

Seán Finn (73) from Ballyhaunis, Co Mayo, says the centre, along with the Irish centre in Mineola on Long Island, forms the basis of his social life. He lives alone and says that on some days, when the weather is very cold, he doesn’t leave his apartment at all.

IN WOODLAWN IN THE Bronx, the main organisation caring for the elderly Irish is the Aisling Irish Community Center. Orla Kelleher, its executive director, agrees that the Tony Gallagher case, although an extreme example, does prove that in a city of more than eight million people, “loneliness and isolation do exist, particularly for seniors.

“We have a very active group of over 80 seniors at the centre. However, they are the lucky ones who are physically able to come to the centre for the weekly meetings and events. We have attempted to expand our senior outreach programme over the past three to four years by contacting churches, hospitals, nursing homes, and so on to ensure that the older Irish are being looked after. However, our efforts have been thwarted by a serious lack of financial and human resources.”

The Tony Gallagher case would be unlikely to happen in Woodlawn because it is such a close-knit community, says Martin O’Malley, a retired bus driver from Ballycastle, Co Mayo. He lives in Woodlawn and is active in the Aisling Center and was speaking at the centre on a Saturday as Irish dancing classes took place. “I had heard he was a bit of loner,” he adds.

Hugh McMorrow (72), from Dromahair, Co Leitrim, says “Woodlawn is an area where everyone knows everyone. The people in good shape look out for the people in bad shape.”

The Irish consulate in New York says that dealing with problems of an ageing Irish community in New York is a top priority. It is unable to say how many Irish over the age of 60 are in New York, which underlines the need for a census of Irish seniors, according to Ciarán Staunton.

The consulate agrees there is a need for more information but says the most practicable way to quantify and assess needs of elderly Irish immigrants is through the establishment of a well-resourced outreach programme for seniors and points out that a new service – to include a senior helpline – will be up and running in March and training for volunteers has already begun.

Immigrant voices: lives lived abroad

TOM and MARGARET BEGLEY

Tom was born in Brooklyn to Irish parents from Roscommon and Mayo, who returned to Ireland during the Great Depression. They came back to the US in the late 1940s. Tom’s wife Margaret is from Co Down. She says they have returned to Down regularly over the years, even during the Troubles. Tom worked in the circulation department in The New York Times. The Brooklyn neighbourhood they live in, Midwood, used to be mainly Irish and Italian; today it is largely Jewish and Pakistani.

The Begley’s have three sons: one who lives in Rockland County, New York, and two who live on Staten Island. They come to the New York Irish Center regularly. “You get to hear the news and the craic,” says Tom, with a strong Brooklyn accent.

MARTIN OMALLEY

“I wouldn't leave Woodlawn for the world,” says Martin O’Malley, speaking about the Bronx neighborhood. Originally from Ballycastle, Co Mayo, he left for the US on January 27th, 1957. He had previously worked in London. “It was tough being Irish back in those days in England. ‘There goes Pat,’ they used to say to you as you walked by.”

He fell in love with the US as soon as he came out here. There was dancing “seven times a week.” He met a Galway girl, they married and had six children. He drove a bus for a living and says he would never want one of his sons “doing that crap.” One of his children is a medical doctor, while two others have PhDs. An active member of the Aisling Center, he volunteers each week making sandwiches which are given to the homeless around Manhattan.

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Echo Profile: An unbelievable gift (by Ailbhe Jordan)
(This article was published in the issue of July 6th, 2005. (c) 2005 Irish Echo Newspaper Corp.)

Fr. Colm Campbell finds his work is hardly done.

The Fr. Colm Campbell File:

Born: Belfast, June 6, 1935 Education: Queens University Belfast, St. Patrick's College Maynooth. Achieved a Master of Arts with a certificate of academic excellence in 1994 at St. John's University, New York. Job: Retired parish priest, chaplain and former director of the National office of the Irish Apostolate, USA. Founded New York's first Irish Center last March. Quote: "My role is just to listen. When you're counseling people, you're there to help them find their own way, not your way. The worst thing you can do is a counselor is say: "If I was you I'd..."
"Come on in, come in, please excuse the mess," Fr Colm Campbell said, opening the door to the New York Irish Center. Behind him, a pile of black refuse sacks lay stacked in the hallway from his 70th birthday party, which took place in the Center last Monday. In testament to Campbell's popularity amongst the Irish Community in New York, over 150 people turned up to help him celebrate.

"I couldn't believe it," he said, chuckling. "I didn't know what was happening, I just knew I had to be there. There were children there that I'd baptized and there were people there who were 90. I told them: 'you'll have me spoiled, I'll be expecting this every 70 years.'"

Campbell moved slowly as we walked around the Center's ground level, which still smells of fresh paint. Heart problems forced him into retirement as head of the U.S. office of the Irish Apostolate in January of last year. Since then, he has lost 63 lbs and been hospitalized 12 times. But illness hasn't dampened his enthusiasm.

"Its just out of this world, it really is," he said later, when we were sitting down.
"When I retired I thought, that's the end, I'm going to be sitting around doing nothing and just to have this opportunity as a last fling to do something so worthwhile -- its an unbelievable gift."

Campbell was born in Belfast in 1935. Living in a mainly Protestant area, he and his five younger siblings knew how difficult life could be as part of a minority group. One of Campbell's earliest memories was fleeing to Dublin with his family after his father wrote a book criticizing the political treatment of Catholics in Stormont.

After his ordination in 1960, Campbell spent 32 years working as a parish priest in Andersonstown, where he established 10 youth centers. In his role, Campbell advised numerous young people who were emigrating to England and the U.S.. This led him to unexpected career change in 1992.

"I'd just opened a new youth information center in Belfast City Center and I'd heard that the Irish Catholic bishops had an emigration office in Dublin with a computer base of information and advice for people who were emigrating," he said. "I went down to get a copy for our center and they told me they were looking for a chaplain for New York. I'd been thinking about taking a break and I thought this would be ideal."

Life was tough initially for the unknown Campbell, who tried to establish himself by handing out business cards in Irish bars around New York City. However, his masses in Old St. Patrick's Cathedral, which featured Irish music and prayers, soon became a focal point for the immigrant Irish community. Before long, he was in constant demand to perform baptisms, marriages and house blessings.

"In Ireland, I hadn't blessed houses in years, I think it just went out of fashion but here, big numbers of people here want their houses blessed," he laughed. "I can remember a couple of beautiful experiences where they used the speaker phone and the family at home were connected up. I remember one grandmother, praying for each of her grandchildren, and the one she hadn't seen yet."

Campbell's name began to spread, as did his reputation for being a sympathetic counselor. Over time, demand for his services became so great that he had to employ a social worker to share the workload. "It can be difficult, but the joy of being able to help someone even just to be there for them, is unbelievable," he said.

In 1999, Campbell was appointed National director of the Irish US apostolate. He spent the remainder of his career traveling around the U.S., helping new and returning Irish immigrants and finding out what issues affected them. During this time, he conducted extensive research, interviewing Irish people and compiling statistics.

"I kept in contact with a lot of people who went back. One family asked to seem me the next time I was in Dublin," he recalled. "I contacted them, told them I was staying at the Skylon Hotel. She rang me two days later and said there were over 80 people who wanted to meet me. It was overwhelming. Actually 43 turned up but I interviewed them all about what it was like trying to settle back again. Basically they told me it was like emigrating again, even worse."

Campbell submitted his findings to Department of Foreign affairs in Ireland in the hope they will use it to set up programs to deal specifically with the problems affecting returning emigrants. "The Minister was very positive, he took it on board," he said.

Amongst the highlights of his 45-year career, Campbell counts preaching at a funeral mass for John F Kennedy Junior. The service was broadcast all over the world and led to his being interviewed by Dan Rather. "It was a massive experience, nerve wracking," he said. "Then the following day then to be on for three hours with Dan Rather -- that was unbelievable. Actually it could have been worse; I really didn't know who Dan Rather was, I'd sort of seen him on TV but it was only afterwards I thought, "oh boy!"

For Campbell, however, seeing the New York Irish Center open has been his greatest achievement. "I'm delighted that the media and people in general have seen it as such a positive thing," he said.  "One of my fears was that all the begrudgers would be saying it was a waste of money. But the response has been extremely positive."

In the meantime, the pace of life has slowed down considerably for Campbell, but he is anxious to remain active.  "I was told to exercise every other day I'm doing that. I go on the treadmill for 15 minutes and lift weights. I walk a lot. I'm very careful with my diet," he said. "But staying out of work; that would kill me. I don't know how I would have survived retirement if I didn't have this center."
 

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Suicide Support Group Set Up (by Georgina Brennan)

(This article was published in the issue of June 1st, 2005. (c) 2005 Irish Voice Newspaper Corp.)

Because of rising concerns about suicide in the Irish community, a new support system will soon be set up based in the New York Irish Centre in Long Island City.

“The growing incidence of suicide amongst Irish people  both in America and in Ireland has become a major concern,” said Father Colm Campbell of the centre, who will lead the new outreach. “We are determined to do all  we can to help prevent even a single suicide.”

While there are no specific numbers for Irish people in America, over the last 10 years there has been a 26 percent increase in suicides among Irish people in Ireland. In 2003-2004 there were 577 reported suicides in Ireland. Anecdotal evidence suggests the numbers are high here also.

Campbell and other volunteers at the Irish Centre are looking to reach anyone contemplating suicide and provide them with the tools to get help.
“We are interested in starting a suicide support group and are currently looking into getting the expertise to help someone who may be thinking they have nowhere to turn,” he told the Irish Voice.

Campbell stated that a recent spate of suicides has meant that people have already contacted the centre to ask about services for family members who lost someone to suicide, friends who want to help someone they think has withdrawn, and people who are contemplating suicide.

“We see a real need for some kind of support system. I think that this would need expert help and that expertise costs money. So, we have to find the money to get that help so we can pay experts to talk either one on one or in a group situation to these people,” Campbell said.

“Then we have to find people willing to ask for help. In a lot of ways it is a challenge and many people may be feeling that they need this kind of service but are afraid to reach out.”

The Belfast native says one of the ways he is trying to reach out to people is via a new helpline 1-877-ERIN-HELP. “This is a confidential helpline that we are in the stages of staffing at the moment,” Campbell said.

“We would like to welcome any volunteers interested in learning how to listen and help someone in need to contact the centre and we will schedule a training session at the end of the summer.” Volunteers would work on a rotational system of answering the phone and reaching out to someone who might otherwise be afraid to talk.

“We are here to provide the help people need and give them what they want. Part of fulfilling that requires volunteers,” says Campbell.

As part of the planning process, as well as fundraising and staffing the support system, Campbell says he is planning to meet Irish experts when he visits Ireland later this summer. He says new research will be talked about when setting up the group.

Anyone in need of help, or interested in volunteering for the helpline or in helping out with fundraising can contact the centre in confidence at 718-482-0909 at info@newyorkirishcenter.org or by mail to 1040 Jackson Avenue, Long Island City, New York 11101.

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Irish Center Saves Seniors (by Georgina Brennan)

(This article was published in the issue of April 20, 2005. (c) 2005 Irish Voice Newspaper Corp.)

The New York Irish Center in Long Island City, already open a month, launched one of its key programs - a seniors afternoon club - last week. GEORGINA BRENNAN went along.

The New Irish Center in Long Island City couldn’t have come at a better time. Not if you ask Virginia Sheehan. “I used to go to the other senior centers, but I never felt like I fit in. I never felt like I had a voice. They were always doing things for the other people. Now I have a voice, now I have somewhere to go. This center, at least it’s all Irish, so we know it will cater to our needs,” said Sheehan who came in from Greenpoint last Wednesday for the opening of the senior’s afternoon club.

Sheehan was joined by over fifty over fifty-year olds to launch a club that, everyone said was sorely needed. “There really was never anything like this before, there were other clubs, but none just for us,” said Patricia Riordan as she started a to-do list for the club.

The New York Irish center at 1040 Jackson Avenue in Long Island City, just one stop from Grand Central Station on the 7 train, is a community center for everyone in the Irish community. “We did not want to replicate anything that was already here,” said one of the champions of the center, Father Colm Campbell, the former immigrant chaplain who is a beloved figure in the Irish community.

“The proposal for this was simple. The Irish community needed a resource, which served as the cultural and social hub of the New York Irish American community. This center will be an entity that brings together the many hard-working existing community organizations to more effectively serve the entire community. It will be a true community center that is planned, organized and owned by the community in a highly cooperative effort,” he told the Irish Voice. “Besides, there’s too much talk going on here for it to be limited to one or two gatherings a week,” he laughed.

The seniors who had come to the first club had come to be a part of the organization. “We really had nothing before. I would say that 90 per cent of the women here are widows. We had the Irish American dances and associations as well as our coffee evenings, but look at my face, don’t I look bored, ” said Lilly Osobo, a mature woman who admitted the only thing the senior club was lacking was a few eligible young bachelors. “Seriously, around age 28,” she winked.

With fun the name of the game, the group began bargaining about the activities they should include as part of their club. “ I would like to have yoga for seniors,” said Patty at the Greenpoint Girls table. “ We are the golden girls from under the golden bridge and we need to keep in shape,” she laughed. “Yeah, aerobics for seniors,” shouted another. “And old time dancing,” said Jim Flynn who is offering his teaching skills. Flynn who is a counselor and therapist in Manhattan who learned kitchen dancing from his parents who hail from County Cork. “We are trying to organize one night a week to have as an old time dancing night, where anybody could come, not just the seniors, but they seem to be interested in coming already,” he told the Irish Voice.

With shouts of movie nights, outings to landmarks and even casinos, poker classics, sing-a-longs, book readings, diet classes from a nutritionist, free health screenings and health and fitness discussions, the room was erupting. “Cunas, le do thóil,” said one woman calling for quiet in Gaelic. Everyone laughed. I think we should pass around a piece of paper with our suggestions,” she said. And the deal was done. Campbell promised to take all suggestions on board and try to keep everyone happy. “We really would like to see this take off,” said Terry O Hanlon. “ Maybe we could have bingo for prizes and learn Irish arts and crafts,” offered a woman called Peggy. “I would love to learn about ways to make some money, You know like bringing in things from our houses to sell or get valued, like those shows on television,” said Nora Gillen.

Already organized is a card night on April 29 said Jim Higgins who hails from Kiltimagh in Mayo. “It’s a 25 drive that we will hold on the last Friday of every month from 7:00 p.m. to midnight. If anyone needs more info they can call 718 426 3941,” he told the Irish Voice. “Come early,” said Maureen Devaney. “It will be moving tables and there will be three sets of partners. We will have all the equipment and there will be someone to teach beginners. So all are welcome,” she added.

They were already at home buzzing about the things they could do over the course of their afternoons. “When I started here I realized there was a real need for one organization to coordinate everything,” Campbell said drawing the room’s attention. “But we don’t want to replicate anything that is here already or overshadow any services already here. We are not trying to reinvent the wheel,” he says. “There are numerous successful and experienced Irish community and general public agencies in existence. The center will act as a referral agency to tie all of those together. We will make available information about existing services and resources and direct people to the appropriate agency or place for their needs. If a needed resource is not there we will provide it from our own resources. The center will operate on basic community work principles. It will facilitate groups and individuals who will provide services for themselves.”

The building where New York’s only Irish center is located was donated to the Irish community by four businessmen. But already they are seeing their investment realized as the community comes together under the roof of the building. “We are currently renovating the basement where we will soon have an Internet café and an alcohol free bar. Our large multi-purpose first floor areas will host the senior afternoons, the mother and children club and is available for baby showers, christenings, anniversaries and other events. We may even have plays and shows here,” Campbell told the group. “We invite you all to use the center and if you would like to have an event here, we are not allowed to sell you alcohol but you can bring your own. We are offering space for meetings here and we are currently trying to rent the top floor.” Campbell says the center is long overdue in a community that is spread across the New York metro area.

“This space is really for the Irish community, it is about them,” said center president Matt Forde at the opening of the center. “We all have at one point or another contributed to the parish centers across Ireland, and now it is time for our own. This could be a place where Irish women could form their own organizations, children could learn, men could find a sanctuary and the community could club together,” Forde added.

Campbell said ultimately the center is an opportunity for the Irish community to connect on a level never seen before. “We need a center of gravity, so that better communication within the community can be fostered and many disparate needs can be addressed. That a building was donated to us is incredibly generous, and we can repay that generosity by making that work,” he said. “This is really to be at the service of the community,” said Campbell. “This is a center for them, they can shape what it will become and how it will serve their needs best.”

For the seniors the one need they had, company, was already addressed. “ I think I’ll stay here all day, we have so much to talk about,” said Sheehan.

The New York Irish Center can be contacted at 718 482 0909 or info@newyorkirishcenter.org The senior afternoons take place on Wednesday’s at 1:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m.

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A Center Sprouts in Queens (by Ailbhe Jordan)

(This article was published in the issue of March 23-29, 2005. (c) 2005 Irish Echo Newspaper Corp.)

The aroma of brown scones mingled with the scent of fresh paint inside 10-40 Jackson Ave. in Long Island City, Queens, last Friday, heralding the beginning of something new and Irish. A big crowd gathered to witness the opening of New York's newest Irish center, and those who had seen the building in its derelict state nine months ago could not believe their eyes.

"I've seen it every step of the way," volunteer Regina Robinson said of the New York Irish Center site. "Nine months ago this building was not really in working order. This time last week there were 10 workmen in here. It's fabulous."

Dr. Arthur Weisenseel kicked off the opening with an emotional performance of "Fields of Athenry." "It's very meaningful for me to come here," said Weisenseel, a cardiologist and former president of the Irish-American Medical Association of New York. "My granny left Ireland aged 12 and never returned."

Ireland's minister for education, Mary Hanafin, was guest of honor at the event. "This is one of the more special events during my stay here," she said. "It's the people and the activities that will make this center a real success."

"This is extreme makeover, Irish style," said Matt Forde, chairman of the center. "We're grateful for the work everyone has done and for their energy, which is contagious and will bring us even further."

With a haon, a dó, a trí, it was time to cut the green ribbon before handing over the stage to Donegal duo Dave Harper on guitar and Tony De Marco on fiddle.

Funded partly by an anonymous consortium of businessmen, the Irish center will run a host of community services, including a social club for the elderly. "We're very happy that the center is opening; I'm looking forward to the senior center lunches and bus rides," said Lorretta Markunas, who plans to make regular trips to the senior citizen's club from her home in Green Point.

The center will also run Irish dance and céili classes, with rehearsal space available for dance and theater groups. "Any Irish artists that are in town, hopefully we'll be able to twist a few arms and get them over here to play," said artistic consultant Alice Farrell, who is keen to make use of the center's fully functional sound system.

At basement level, guests will find an Internet café and a pub, though this one is strictly non-alcoholic.

"New York doesn't have a proper center for Irish people like there is in Boston in Chicago, and I think that's disgraceful," one woman said. "We need a place for young Irish people, like a hostel to encourage them to come here. The whole Irish culture over here is so well respected, we should keep it that way."

"It's going to be great for all the Irish people in the area," said Fine Gael Councilor John O'Malley, who was in New York with members of Mayo County Council for St. Patrick's celebrations. "I came here in 1972 and lived for a couple of years, but I found it hard to meet Irish people. I'm delighted to see something like this on my return."

For one man, the opening represented the fulfillment of both a personal vision and an acute need for Irish people in New York. "I feel this was absolutely necessary for Irish people over here," said Fr. Colm Campbell, founder of the Irish Center. "We want to direct people toward, as well as providing, services. We're doing our best to get the word out; word of mouth is very strong in the Irish community. But it's not just for the Irish community. The very fact that this place says 'Irish' on the door means its open to anyone."

The New York Irish Center is in Long Island City, one stop from Grand Central Terminal. For information or advice about the center, call 1 (800) IRISH HELP.  To write a letter to the editor, click here. Please include your name, address and a day-time phone number for verification.

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