Division 2’s Organizing Team (led by Brothers Kevin Vaughn, Frank Collins, Mark Tynan and John Faust) are planning another Shamrock Degree in the early Autumn of 2024.

LINDENHURST, N.Y. – On Wednesday, February 28th , Town of Babylon proclaimed March as “Irish American Heritage Month”.

Town of Babylon officials stood alongside President Jim McGrath and Past Presidents of St. Patrick’s Division 2 on Wednesday, February 28th at Babylon Town Hall to proclaim March 2024 as Irish American Heritage Month in the Town of Babylon, Long Island.

The proclamation was made by Town of Babylon Councilman, Terrence McSweeney (who is also an AOH Division 2 member) and supported by TOB Supervisor Rich Schaffer. The proclamation was presented to President McGrath.

Councilman McSweeney in his presentation told the many great works and contributions of the Irish American community and asked all to celebrate the achievements that Irish Americans have done over the years. The Town of Babylon has a rich history of Irish Americans settling in the area during the 19th and 20th centuries and continuing to make their mark in various fields such as law enforcement, firefighters, politics, hospitality, restauranteurs to name a few.

President McGrath was humbled by this proclamation and asked all Town of Babylon citizens to honor and recognize the significant contributions of Irish Americans in the town and welcomed all to join us in celebrating Irish American Heritage Month.

Register at https://aoh.com/2024AOHLAOHconvention

Registration for the 102nd Biennial AOH-LAOH Convention which will take place in Orlando FL Aug 7th – 11th 2024 has opened.

On Tuesday, around 100 volunteers packed the Cottleville Knights of Columbus to help the non-profit No Hunger Holiday assemble each box, which includes a turkey and fixings for a Thanksgiving meal at home. The turkeys are the result of donation drives held at several area high schools.

The 40 partner organizations help cover seven counties (St. Charles, St. Louis, Warren, Montgomery, Lincoln, Pike and Franklin), along with the City of St. Louis. This is the 33rd year for No Hunger Holiday and it’s just incredible to see everyone come together, from high school students to firefighters to people in the community.

DESALES UNIVERSITY
ALLENTOWN, PA

Host: Tir na Og Lehigh County Division 1

Contact: Ken Walsh

ROSEN CENTRE HOTEL
9840 International Drive

Host: Florida State Board / Florida State Convention

Contact: Greg Sean Canning

ARCHBISHOP HUGHES CENTER
32 Prince Street, Manhattan, NY 10012

Host: New York City County Board

Contact: Bill Lee

AOH HALL

Host: New Jersey State Board

Contact: Jeff Nisler

BAYSHORE CATHOLIC CENTER
12 Hwy 36, Middletown, NJ 07748

Host: New Jersey State Board

Contact: Leo Mcguire

EMBASSY SUITES HOTEL
204 Centreport Drive Greensboro, NC 27409

Host: North Carolina State Convention

Contact: Brian Kiernan

The Fr. Sean O’Shea Hibernians of Reno County Kansas Hosted a Golf Tournament on Friday August 4th of 2023 at Crazy Horse Golf Club. The inaugural “Tom’s Tournament” was held to remember a friend of the Hibernians Tom Hammersmith, and to support his surviving wife and children. 128 friends of Tom’s showed up to remember a friend and to raise money for his family. All proceeds from the event were given to Tom’s family.

The Hartford Irish Road Bowling Tournament was held on Saturday, July 29 by the Hartford AOH Division 2, in conjunction with Riverfront Recapture. The event marked the third-straight year that Irish road bowling tournament returned to the area and attracted approximately 30 teams from Connecticut and Massachusetts. All proceeds from the event benefit Hartford AOH’s fight against hunger in the area.

On May 28th, members of the AOH in America participated in the “Annual Walk to the Stone” memorial ceremony that is organized by the Ancient Order of Hibernians in Canada. The Black Rock Memorial is currently located in between two highway roads near the Victoria Bridge in the Point Saint Charles section of Montreal and is the site of a 6,000 person mass grave of coffin ship victims from 1847-1848.

Since the 1860s the AOH Canada has sought to protect the Irish immigrants that perished from typhoid (many of whom were children) from further desecration of their resting place as they fled The Great Hunger. The Black Rock Monument was created after Irish construction workers who were completing the Victoria Bridge in 1859-60 discovered several bodies from the mass grave. The workers refused to work and complete the bridge until there was a memorial on this site. The workers negotiated for a 40 ton granite rock to be placed in the cemetery with the inscription, “To Preserve from Descratation the remains of 6000 Immigrants Who died of Ship Fever A.D. 1847-48” They were not allowed to mention Irish in the inscription.

Over the years the AOH Canada has fought to fulfill the promise inscribed on the Black Rock Memorial by fighting development and encroachment on the site. In 2017, Hydro-Quebec purchased the land the Black Rock Memorial is on with plans to donate 3.65 acres to create a memorial park that is scheduled to be completed in 2028.

The 2023 Walk to the Stone started with a beautiful Mass on Pentecost at Saint Charles Church. After Mass, members of the parish, AOH, representatives from the City of Montreal and other Irish organizations; led by a piper, walked the mile to the Black Rock Memorial. Once at the memorial site, AOH Canada National President started the ceremony. The Irish, Canadian and United States National Anthems were performed beautifully by Esmé Cavanaugh and Lily MacLean of the band Gráinne. President Boyle went over the history of the Black Rock Memorial and the 6000 people that rest uneasily below. Memorial wreaths were placed on Black Rock by many organizations including the AOH in America National Board, the AOH NYS Board and Schenectady AOH JFK 1 (who hosted President Boyle at their Communion Breakfast the month prior). After the ceremony participants went back to the parish center at Saint Charles and shared some delicious Irish Stew and samosas along with some traditional Irish music.

This year’s event also coincided with the 25th Anniversary of the signing of the Good Friday Agreement. MP John Finnucane of Sinn Féin (Belfast North) participated in the ceremony and gave his remarks and paid his respects to the victims of The Great Hunger at that site. The day prior the Friends of Sinn Féin Canada hosted a 25th GFA Anniversary at Hurley’s Irish Pub where members of the U.S. AOH were able to meet MP Finnucane, Kevin Callahan from Friends of Sinn Féin Canada, Marion Mulvenna from Concordia University’s Irish Studies Program and AOH Canada National President Victor Boyle.

Overall the weekend was tremendously moving, and the people, especially President Boyle, were welcoming and gracious hosts. Walk to the Stone will take place in 2024 on May 26th, and members of the AOH and LAOH are most welcome to participate.

Brother Hibernians and Brother Paratroopers. LTC (Ret) Cole Slattery, past President of the Col. Thomas J. Cunningham Jr. Div., Loudoun County, VA (Left) and MAJ (Ret) Keith Kettell, current President of the Herbert /Cady Div. Alexandria. VA (Right), stand proudly before the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Old Town Alexandria in early March and meet up again in late March in Palatka, FL to close out Irish American Heritage month by jumping from the 80-year-old C-47, Tico Bell. The storied aircraft dropped Paratroopers into Normandy on D-Day June 6^th, 1944, and again during Operation Market Garden into Holland September 17, 1944. After the war, the Tico Bell flew missions of relief in support of the Berlin Airlift.  Presidents Slattery and Kettell served several tours of duty in the 82^nd Airborne Division in addition to other Airborne units throughout their military careers.