“Cead mile failte, 100,000 welcomes. Ireland and the Irish are famous for that sentiment, for the sincerity of their welcome and I want you to feel that uniquely Irish sentiment here today. I want you to feel like you’ve been welcomed home.

This past year, Ireland has felt much further away than any time is our life time and we appreciate even more our heritage, our culture and our home. We appreciate even more what’s it like to have a club like this, where we can feel that welcome, where we can meet a friend, enjoy their company, truly like a home away from home.

We pray that in this coming year, we can reflect NOT on what we’ve lost this past year, but what we’ve gained. An appreciation of what is truly precious in this life, the connection to those we love, and a deeper appreciation of what home and family really means.

We, as a community have learned that we must never take for granted what it means to have a home like this to come to. We must always remember the work the previous generations of Irish men and women have invested, and we must endeavor to continue their work so that our children can feel the same connection to our heritage that brought you all here today.

So today I wish you, with all my heart, Cead mile failte. Welcome home, and a very Happy St Patrick’s Day.”

Gerry Forde
GAC Executive Committee President