Tag: Club

Irish History | Stair Na Héireann

THERE ISN’T ANYTHING MORE THE SEA CAN DO TO ME”
A MARITIME HISTORY OF MODERN IRISH LITERATURE”

Our May 5, 2024 Irish History Lecture will be presented by  Nels Pearson, Ph.D., Professor and Chair of English at Fairfield University. (Carolan Room, 2-4 pm)

The topic of the talk will be the role of the sea in modern Irish literature, and it will be drawn from his book manuscript (in process): Dissolving Britain: Water, Coasts and Islands in the Modernist Literature of “the British Isles” .

Professor Brendan Kane will be our guest lecturer on February 4, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. in the Carolan Room. Dr. Kane is from Reading, Pennsylvania, received a B.A. in history from the University of Rochester, an M.Phil in Irish Studies from the National University of Ireland, Galway, and a PhD from Princeton. Prior to coming to UCONN in 2005, he spent a year as the NEH/Keough Fellow at the University of Notre Dame’s Keough Institute of Irish Studies. He serves as Vice-President/President-elect of the Celtic Studies Association of North America, elected Council Member of the North American Conference on British Studies, and co-director of the digital humanities project Léamh.org.

He will lecture on Irish Bardic Poets and the Wider World, c. 1500-1650 considering the place of the Irish bardic poet in European context during the age of the Renaissance and Reformation. His talk will address some of the latest research on the Irish bardic poet in Continental context and will draw upon both Irish-language poetry and prose. It will aim to suggest some ways in which early modern Ireland might look a bit more European than expected and, conversely, how Europe might look a bit more Irish!

Tickets $5.00 (Students with ID $2.00) No scrip or credit cards
Register online: gaclectures@gmail.com.
Subject: Irish History. Please provide name, address, phone

 

GO RAIBH MILE MAITH AGAT

The Fréamh Éireann Genealogy Group would like to thank Féile and the Irish Language Group for their continued sponsorship of our Irish History Lectures. In May, we will be presenting our 33rd Lecture! Our February lecture, presented by Brendan Kane, Ph.D, was on Irish Bardic Poets.

25 Card Game

JOIN US SUNDAY MAY 21ST  AROUND NOON (IRISH TIME).

How 25 is played:

The game of 25 can be played with any number of players, preferably from 5 to 10, not to exceed 10 players. The object of the game is to see who gets 25 first. Each trick is considered 5 points. To begin the game, any player can deal out the cards. The first player to receive an ace is the player who actually gets the first deal. Each player receives five cards. When the dealer is finished dealing the cards, he turns up the next card. This card is called the head trump. Then each player looks at his hand to see how many trump cards he has. The more trump cards a player has, the better his chances are of reaching 25.

The leadoff man to start the game is to the player’s left. If he leads off with a trump, then all players have to play a trump if they have one. Otherwise, they can play any card. If a player has trump, and does not play it, he is guilty of reneging A simple thought to remember is, “the more of the red, and the less of the black.” Another thought is to watch who is getting close to 25. This is called keeping the game “IN.” It is okay to play a trump card anytime a player wishes. The Ace of Hearts is always a trump regardless of what is played. The 5 card is the best card when trumps are up, followed by the Jack of Trumps, followed by the Ace of Hearts.

A complete description of the game would take several pages. The game of 25 is best explained by sitting down and playing an actual game with people who have been playing the game for years. In short, hopefully in some way, this has helped to bring the basics of the game to you.

The late Tom McInerney, a long-standing member of the club, donated this article.

Trivia Night

Join us on 06.07.2024 for another fun filled night of trivia. Oh and don’t forget to wear  TIE DYE.

Trivia Night takes place on the first Friday of the month – and hands down one of the highlights of the GAC’s monthly activities so don’t miss out – you could win some cool stuff!

 

Clan na Gael News

Catch up on all Clan na Gael Players Events and maybe even come play with us!

“Marrying Mike”

Clan na Gael’s Spring Production “Marrying Mike” Written by James Keary Directed by Erin Williams Produced by Marie Stehle and Jillian Plomin Performances are Thursday 04/25, Friday 04/26 & Saturday 04/27 at 8pm and Sunday 04/28 Matinee at 2:30pm Featuring: Byrne White, Eileen Fickes, Eamon Speer, Jillian Plomin, Dan O’Callaghan, Patrick Baldwin, Laura Haynes Elderly … Continue reading “Marrying Mike”

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CLAN NA GAEL’S SPRING PRODUCTION

Auditions for the Clan na Gael spring production of Jimmy Keary’s comedy “Marrying Mike” will be held at the club on March 2nd from 2-4 p.m. and March 3rd from 1-3 p.m.

You may prepare a monologue or read from the sides that will be provided at the audition. Roles available for four men and three women ages 40-60ish.  Performance dates will be April 25, 26, 27 and 28th.  No experiences necessary-newcomers welcome!  We are also looking for people interested in helping with the production crew.

History

The Clan na Gael Players had a humble beginning in 1987. Cardboard sets, lights in tin cans, folks dragged in from the bar to play a part! Ahh, but the audience enthusiasm towards this raggle-taggle group—that’s what made the Clan na Gael Players!

In addition to performing live theatre at the Gaelic-American Club, Clan na Gael has gone on the road to perform elsewhere – civic groups, fundraisers, pubs, schools and libraries. We have toured plays in Ireland twice, in Counties Kerry and Clare, in 2009 and 2016.

From the pens of such well-known playwrights as O’Casey, Gregory, and Keane have come several CnG productions. Equally, we point with pride to the premier productions where we have been privileged to work with playwrights in the creation of their work. Comedy, drama, music, song, dance, well-known and unknown, are all parts of Clan na Gael.

To all, thank you for supporting Clan na Gael! We look forward to continuing our stated purpose of presenting plays by or about the Irish. We hope you will continue to enjoy them as much as we enjoy presenting them to you. Break-a-Leg!

For more information, please contact Peggy O’Leary at opeggyo812@gmail.com.

 

Fairfield Gaelic Pipe Band

The group practices Mondays at 6:30pm in the Carolan Room of the GAC. Lessons also available for all ages and ability levels.

For more information, please call Fairfield Gaelic Pipe Band (475)329-0202 or visit fairfieldgaelicpipeband.org.

Family Fun Night

Family Fun Night is BACK!

Friday March 29th from 6-9pm with a $5 kids buffet

Family Fun Night

Family Fun Night is an opportunity for our young families to come down to the club and have some fun and a meal together.  Family Fun Night takes place the last Friday of the month from 6-9pm. (except for February)   Corky and his staff will provide a ‘kid-friendly’ delicious $5 buffet.

Just a reminder,  The buffet is strictly for the kids, parents are asked to order from regular GAC menu  – so kids please remember there’s no sharing with the parents!  We try to keep the buffet price to a minimum and don’t want to increase the price. Ice cream is $1 and is served at 8PM.

PLEASE watch your children. Kids are NOT to leave the room without a parent. Toys are NOT to be brought into the Carolan Room from the Reidy (children’s) Room. NO toys or running on the dance floor. Please pick up food spills and help clear your table.

Buffet is served from 6-7:30pm only and Ice cream is at 8pm. Thank you for your help and consideration in these matters.

Any questions call Bette Leary at 203-767-0117.

Lets also keep in mind the GUIDELINES for use of the children’s room

Welcome to the GAC’s Children’s Room  dedicated in memory of Richard & Vivian Reidy

#1   Room Monitor is NOT a BABYSITTER!  Room Monitor is responsible for the contents of the room and safety of the children while in the room.  Parents are responsible for their children and guests behavior, whereabouts and use of items in this room.  Parents will be notified if any misbehavior or disrespect for the room or others is shown. The parent’s membership may be in jeopardy if behavior is not corrected or use of room is abused.  

#2 No Food or Drinks are allowed in this room by children.  If an adult chooses to bring in a beverage while watching their children, please make sure it is not left in the room.  The monitor is not there to clean up after adults.

#3 If you’d get in trouble at home for doing something, you’ll get in trouble here.  This room is a privilege for all children to enjoy and feel at home within the club, but just like any privilege it can be revoked.  

Just like on the pitch:

1st =  Warning – Parent is notified and child’s name is put in the book.

2nd = Yellow Card – Access to the room is suspended for a period of time.

3rd = Red Card –  Parent is required to go before the Executive Committee to explain, suspension or loss of family membership is possible.

Don’t be THAT kid or don’t be THAT parent that feels above the rules!  

#4 Common Sense Parenting is expected.  Intended for children 13 years and younger.  Parents may use discretion as to what age they feel their children are able to be in the room without parent supervision however, under 5 years of age supervision is required.
“Is leathan doras an teachín bhig”

“Wide is the door of the little cottage”  – Irish proverb

For more information, please email Bette Leary (203)767-0117

GAA Games from Ireland

GAA at the gac

 

Gaelic Football

Gaelic Football can be described as a mixture of soccer and rugby, although it predates both of those games. It is a field game which has developed as a distinct game similar to the progression of Australian Rules. Indeed it is thought that Australian Rules evolved from Gaelic Football through the many thousands who were either deported or immigrated to Australia from the middle of the nineteenth century. Gaelic Football is normally played on a pitch (playing field) approximately 137m long (150 yards) and 82m wide (90 yards).

The goalposts are the same shape as on a rugby pitch, with the crossbar lower than a rugby one and slightly higher than a soccer one. The ball used in Gaelic Football is round, slightly smaller than a soccer ball. It can be carried in the hand for a distance of four steps and can be kicked or “hand-passed”, a striking motion with the hand or fist (similar to serving in volleyball). After every four steps the ball must be either bounced or “solo-ed”, an action of dropping the ball onto the foot and kicking it back into the hand. You may not bounce the ball twice in a row. To score, you put the ball over the crossbar by foot or hand / fist for one point or under the crossbar and into the net by foot or hand / fist in certain circumstances for a goal, the latter being the equivalent of three points. Each team consists of fifteen players, lining out as follows: One goalkeeper, three full-backs, three half-backs, two midfielders, three half-forwards and three full-forwards.

Goalkeepers may not be physically challenged while inside their own small parallelogram, but players may harass them into playing a bad pass, or block an attempted pass. Teams are allowed a maximum of five substitutes in a game. Players may switch positions on the field of play as much as they wish but this is usually on the instructions of team officials. Officials for a game comprise of a referee, two linesmen (to indicate when the ball leaves the field of play at the side and to mark ’45” free kicks and 4 umpires (to signal scores, assist the referee in controlling the games, and to assist linesmen in positioning ’45’ frees). A goal is signaled by raising a green flag, placed to the left of the goal. A point is signaled by raising a white flag, placed to the right of goal. A ’45’/’65’ is signaled by the umpire raising his/her outside arm. A ‘square ball’, when a player scores having arrived in the ‘square’ prior to receiving the ball, is signaled by pointing at the small parallelogram.

Hurling

Hurling is a game similar to hockey, in that it is played with a small ball and a curved wooden stick. It is Europe’s oldest field game. When the Celts came to Ireland, as the last ice age was receding, they brought with them a unique culture, their own language, music, script and unique pastimes. One of these pastimes was a game now called hurling. It features in Irish folklore to illustrate the deeds of heroic mystical figures and it is chronicled as a distinct Irish pastime for at least 2,000 years.

The stick, or “hurley” (called camán in Irish) is curved outwards at the end, to provide the striking surface. The ball or “sliothar” is similar in size to a hockey ball but has raised ridges. Hurling is played on a pitch approximately 137m long and 82m wide. The goalposts are the same shape as on a rugby pitch, with the crossbar lower than a rugby one and slightly higher than a soccer one.

You may strike the ball on the ground, or in the air. Unlike hockey, you may pick up the ball with your hurley and carry it for not more than four steps in the hand. After those steps you may bounce the ball on the hurley and back to the hand, but you are forbidden to catch the ball more than twice. To get around this, one of the skills is running with the ball balanced on the hurley To score, you put the ball over the crossbar with the hurley or under the crossbar and into the net by the hurley for a goal, the latter being the equivalent of three points. Each team consists of fifteen players, lining out as follows: 1 goalkeeper, three full-backs, three half-backs, two midfielders, three half-forwards and three full-forwards.

Irish Language ~ Foghlaim Gaeilge

The Group meets Thursday Evenings via Zoom
6:45 beginners | 7:30 intermediate

For more information: Cait Thopsey – 203-459-9686

 

UPCOMING EVENTS

New Irish Language Beginners Class

10 Week Beginners Irish Course  beginning Tuesday Sept 12th 6:45 PM . Classes can be taken in person at the Gaelic-American Club in Fairfield and/or via Zoom. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: The class will start with three themes: 1) 20 Minutes – Speaking Irish: Taught using the communicative method and based on the European Framework for teaching … Continue reading New Irish Language Beginners Class

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LÁ GAEILGE

LÁ GAEILGE: THE ANNUAL DAY OF IRISH LANGUAGE & CULTURE EVENT Saturday, October 7 FROM 8:30AM – 4:30PM One-day Irish language immersion course for all levels of speakers, presented by the GAC Irish Language group and Féile, Inc.   The day features classes taught by Fulbright Scholars, cultural workshops, door prizes, “coffee & tea” all … Continue reading LÁ GAEILGE

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LA GAEILGE DAY OF IRISH LANGUAGE AND CULTURE

The Irish Language class will once again be presenting a La Gaeilge day of Irish Language and Culture on Saturday, Oct. 2, from 9 am – 1 pm.

Our format will be different, as we plan to have a hybrid style event: Zoom availability as well as in person.

Our day will include the flag raising and National Anthem, a bi-lingual lecture by Patrick Mahoney, Gaeilgoir, historian and author, some break out classes and music. For those attending in person, we will have lunch at 1 pm followed by a sesiun.

Bigi Linn! Join us! For further details
Cait Thopsey 203-459-9686
Robin Griskus 203-233-4979

Irish Literature Group

Everyone is always welcome to attend even if you didn’t have time to read or finish the book it’s fun to hear other’s thoughts.

We meet in the room at the top of the stairs and all are welcome.

For contact: Mary Ellen Keresey maryellenkeresey@gmail.com

 

The Irish Literature Group will meet on Thursday, June 20th at 7pm. We will be discussing A Week in Winter by Maeve Binchy. At this meeting we will make a list of books for next fall.

 

Previous titles read by the Irish Literature Group.

 

The Group will meet on on Thursday May 16th at 7pm. We will be discussing Maeve in America by Maeve Higgins. The book is described as a hilarious collection of essays about a young woman from Ireland finding her way in NYC.

 

The Group will meet on on Thursday April 18th at 7pm. We will be discussing the book,  A Thread of Violence by Mark O’Connell. This book is a true crime story set in Dublin in the early 1980’s. We meet in the room at the top of the stairs and all are welcome.

 


The Group will meet on Thursday, March  21st at 7pm to discuss the book ‘Surrender’ by Bono. The book is a memoir written by Bono where he describes how he and his band evolved from a high school band to world fame. He also talks about his personal growth from musician to activist.

 

This month the  group will meet Thursday, February 15th at 7pm to discuss Trespassers by Louise Kennedy. The book is historical fiction with a little romance. It is set in Belfast during the height of the troubles.

 

The Irish Literature Group will meet January 18th to discuss My Fathers House by Joseph O’Connor. During this meeting we will hold our annual book exchange. Bring any wrapped book that you have enjoyed. A list of the books we have read is available at the sign in desk. Mary Ellen Keresey maryellenkeresey@gmail.com.

No Meeting in December

We meet on Thursday, November 16th at 7pm. We will be discussing the book Strumpet City by James Plunkett. The story takes place in Dublin in the years leading up to World War 1 and is about a strike that occurred in Dublin. Thanks to one of our members, Mary Coe the book is available on Libby. All are welcome. For Info Contact: Mary Ellen Keresey maryellenkeresey@gmail.com

The Group will meet on Thursday, October 19th at 7 pm. We will  discuss The Great Unexpected by Dan Mooney. The book is described as being both funny and emotional.

Contact: Mary Ellen Keresey maryellenkeresey@gmail.com

The Group will Thursday 9/21 at 7 pm to discuss Queen of Dirt Island by Donal Ryan. The story is set in Tipperary and follows four generations of women.

 

The Irish Literature Group will meet on Thursday May 18that 7pm. we will be discussing the novel The Coroner’s Daughter by Andrew Hughes

 

 

The Irish Literature Group will meet on Thursday, April 20th at 7p.m. We will be discussing The Drowning Sea by Sarah Stewart Taylor. All are welcome. contact: Mary Ellen Keresey maryellenkeresey@gmail.com.

 

 

The Literature Group meets on Thursday, March 23rd at 7pm to discuss the book, Did Ye Hear Mammy Died? By Seamus O Reilly. The book is a memoir about a boy whose mother died and his life growing up with ten siblings in Northern Ireland during the troubles. The reviews say that it is very funny and only a little sad. All are welcome. contact: Mary Ellen Keresey maryellenkeresey@gmail.com.

 

The Literature Group meets on Thursday, February 16 at 7 pm. We will be discussing The Witch Elm by Tana French. All are welcome even if you haven’t had time to read the book its often fun to hear about a new book. contact: Mary Ellen Keresey maryellenkeresey@gmail.com.

 

 

 

The group will  meet on Thursday, January 19th at 7 pm to discuss Holding by Graham Norton. All are welcome.

 

 

 

 

 

The Literature Group will meet on Thursday, December 15th at 7 p.m.. We will be getting into the Christmas Spirit by discussing  An Irish Country Christmas by Patrick Taylor. All are welcome to join even if you haven’t had time to read the book it often fun to hear about a new book.

 

 

 

The Irish Literature Group will meet on Thursday, November 17th. Please note that this month we will meet on Thursday instead of Wednesday.
We will be discussing Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan.
We will be meeting in the library.

 

 

The Literature Group will meet on Wednesday, October 19, at 7pm in the GAC library to discuss The Irish Assassins: Conspiracy, Revenge by Julie Kavanagh. Come and enjoy a discussion even if you haven’t read the book

 

 

 

The Literature Group will meet on September 21 at 7pm. We will be discussing ‘The Lost Girls of Ireland‘ by Susanne O’Leary. All are welcome to attend. For more information please contact Mary Ellen Keresey @ maryellenkeresey@gmail.com.

 

 

 

The Literature Group will meet at 7 pm on Monday, Feb 28th, via Zoom, we will discuss This Side Of Brightness by Colum McCann. Hailed as a “haunting novel,” it follows the story of Nathan Walker, a black man who comes to New York City at the turn of the century to become a sandhog -a person who digs the tunnels that carry trains from Brooklyn to Manhattan. A parallel plotline follows Treefrog, a homeless man who in the 1980’s makes his home in the rafters of one of those tunnels. The book forms a tale of family, race and redemption that is as old and fabulous as New York City itself. All are welcome to attend. For Zoom link contact ClareBurnett@optonline.net.

October 20th at 6pm to discuss Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell. The novel is a New York Times Notable Book and National Book Critics Circle Award winner. Drawing on O’Farrell’s long-term fascination with the little known story behind Shakespeare’s play, Hamnet is a luminous portrait of a marriage, at its heart the loss of a beloved child. We will meet outside in the back yard of the club, weather permitting All are welcome! For questions, please contact Clare Burnett at clareburnett@optonline.net

 

The Literature Group will meet on Wednesday, September 22nd at 7 p.m. to discuss Donal Ryan’s Strange Flowers. Five years after she went missing, a beloved daughter, Moll Gladney, returns to rural Tipperary with a secret in a novel that explores all forms of love. The New York Times says it is written with a quiet lyricism that puts Ryan at the top-most branch of the flourishing tree of contemporary Irish fiction. We will meet in the backyard of the Club, weather permitting. All are welcome! For questions, please contact Clare Burnett @optonline.net.

 

The Group meets Monday, Nov 18th at 7:30 to discuss acclaimed novelist Maggie O’Farrell’s memoir “I AM, I AM, I AM”. It is an unforgettable account of a life in near-death experiences. In taut prose, O’Farrell captures the perils running just beneath the surface, and illuminated the preciousness, beauty, and mysteries of life itself. For more information contact clareburnett@optonline.net

 

 


On Monday, October 21st at 7:30, we will meet to discuss When All Is Said by Anne Griffin. The impressively, confident debut novel revolves around five monologues from an elderly man at a bar in Rainsford, County Meath who is looking back on his life. The monologues are linked by the presence of a stolen coin. For more information, contact Clare Burnett@optonline.net.

 

 

 

Monday, May 20th at 7:30 to discuss Edna O’Brien’s The Lonely Girl, part of The Country Girls Trilogy And Epilogue. The Washington Post Book World said, “There is no writer alive who sounds quite like Edna O’Brien. Her prose has a unique mixture of darkness and light that makes it immediately identifiable.”

 

 

 

We meet on Monday, April 22 at 7:30 to discuss ‘The Way We Were’ by Sinead Moriarty. The novel is a heartbreaking family drama about love, loss and new beginnings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This month we’ll meet in March 18th at 7:30, to discuss Mink River by Brian Doyle. This stunning debut novel brings to life the fictional town of Neawanaka on the wet coast of Oregon through the jumbled lives and braided stories of its people.

 

We’ll meet on Monday, February 18th @ 7:30pm in the library to discuss Bernard MacLaverty’s Midwinter Break. The novel tells the story of Stella and Gerry Gilmore and contemplates the mysteries that lie at the heart of every marriage. It is a profound examination of human love and how we live together. MacLaverty is known for his effortlessly elegant writing and tender, intimate heartrending stories. New members are most welcome! it is a short book of only 240 pages. Give it a try!

 

We will meet at 7:30 on Monday, January 21st in the library to discuss The Library At The Edge Of The World by Felicity Hayes-McCoy. Good Reads calls it a warm, feel-good novel about the importance of finding a place where you belong. The novel follows Hanna Casey as she drives her mobile library van between the villages of Ireland’s west coast. All welcome! If you have any questions, contact Clare Burnett at email ClareBurnett@optonline.net or phone 203-255-3848.

 

On Monday October 22nd @ 7:30 the group will discuss Saints For All Occasions by J. Courtney Sullivan.  A New York Times Critic’s Top Book of 2017 and the Washington Post called it the year’s best book about family. The novel chronicles the Rafferty family in Boston. It draws the reader into the lives of the Rafferty clan, and, in the rare miracle of fiction, makes us care about them as if they were our own family. Sullivan writes “this family has a way of forgetting what it doesn’t want to know.”   If you have any questions, contact Clare Burnett at email ClareBurnett@optonline.net or phone 203-255-3848.

 

 

On Monday, September 17th at 7:30 in the library to discuss William Trevor’s Last Stories. If you have any questions, contact Clare Burnett at email ClareBurnett@optonline.net or phone 203-255-3848.

 

On Monday, April 16th at 7:30, we will meet to discuss Emma Donoghue’s The Wonder. The novel concerns an English nurse brought to a small Irish village to observe what appears to be a miracle-a girl said to have survived without food for months. The nurse soon finds herself fighting to save the girl’s life. If you have any questions, please call Clare Burnett at 203-255-3848 or email ClareBurnett@optonline.net. Everyone is welcome!

 

On Monday, March 19th at 7:30 in the library to discuss In The Woods by Tana French. It is her first in a series of novels about The Dublin Murder Squad. The Washington Post calls her “the most interesting and most important crime novelist to emerge in the past 10 years.” The New York Times calls the novel “required reading for anyone who appreciates tough, unflinching intelligence and ingenious plotting. New and returning members are most welcome! For questions, please call Clare Burnett at email ClareBurnett@optonline.net  or call 203-255-3848.

 

Monday, February 26th at 7:30 we will meet to discuss the play Translations by Brian Friel. The three-act play, written in 1980 is set in Baile Beag, a Donegal village in 19th century agricultural Ireland. Friel has said that it is “a play about language and only about language” but it deals with Add Newa wide range of issues, stretching from language and communication to Irish history and cultural imperialism.

 

Monday, January 22 at 7:30 to discuss The Ninth Hour by Alice McDermott. The novel is listed among the New York Times’s 100 Notable Books of 2017. Beginning with a suicide and ending with a murder, it is a powerfully affecting story spanning the 20th century of a widow and her daughter and the nuns who serve the Irish-American community in Brooklyn. New members are most welcome and former members too! Contact Clare Burnett at 203-255-3848 or ClareBurnett@optonline.net with any questions.

 

The group will meet on Monday, November 20th at 7:30pm. We’ll be reading a novella by Claire Keegan called Foster which describes a small girl being sent to live with foster parents on a farm in rural Ireland, without knowing when she will return home. The novella can be read online for free here: www.newyorker.com/magazine/2010/02/15/foster. If you have any questions, please email me at clareburnett@optonline.net or call me at 203-255-3848. New members are welcome!

 

The group will meet on Monday, September 18th at 7:30 in the library to discuss Edna O’Brien’s The Little Red Chairs. The New York Times says it is a “Boldly imagined and harrowing new novel that is both an exploration of the theme of Irish provincial life from the perspective of girls and women and a work of alternate history in which the devastation of a war-torn Central European country intrudes upon the primal innocence of rural Ireland.” New members are most welcome!

Do you like to read and  discuss a book written by or about the Irish, be it a mystery, a thriller or just some romance? Then join the Irish Literature Group, we meet on the 3rd Monday of the month. For more information phone Clare Burnett 203-255-3848 or email her at clareburnett@optonline.net.

 

 

Shamrock Traditional Irish Music Society (STIMS)

Shamrock Traditional Irish Music Society (STIMS), a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and promotion of traditional Irish music and culture.

STIMS’s all-volunteer performance group The Shamrogues  play traditional Irish reels, jigs, hornpipes, and airs on a variety of traditional and modern instruments and song,  The meet on  Wednesday  for Trad Music Seisiún (7-9pm) and they welcome new musicians join in, if you don’t play, come listen and tap your feet to this amazing group of musicians.

In addition STIMS host’s the First Friday Trad Musicians and  The Traditional Irish Music Concert Series.

The East Coasters (Madeline Dierauf, Richard Osban, Calum Bell)

Saturday,  May 18, 7:30 pm Sponsored by the Shamrock Traditional Irish Music Society and Gaelic-American Club. The East Coasters are a group of young Irish musicians from the east coast of the United States whose sound and arrangements are a rich blend of the music in their local communities. Their innovative approach to the music … Continue reading The East Coasters (Madeline Dierauf, Richard Osban, Calum Bell)

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Seniors Activities

Senior Lunch ~

Thursday June 27th @ noon

Please make reservations by Sunday 06/23 Lunch price is $9 members. non-members $11 Shirley McMenamy 203-268-5083;Sally Savage 203-366-4826.

Lunch price is $9 members. non-members $11 Please make Reservations by phoning: Shirley McMenamy 203-268-5083; or Sally Savage 203-366-4826.
Senior Lunch is generally the last Thursday, of the month  at 12 noon.  But please do call for reservations by the Sunday prior to the Lunch.  Cost for lunch $7 for members and $9 for non-members.   Shirley McMenamy 203-268-5083; Sally Savage 203-366-4826.

Are you retired with some free time? Why not get active with the GAC Seniors? Join us for Senior Lunch on the last Thursday of the month.

PAST Senior Activities include:

Day Trips
Bingo & 50/50 raffle
Movie viewings
Musical entertainment

The Senior group also participates in charity activities for organizations like Operation Hope, Turkey Drive, Under the Bridge, Salvation Army, and the Merton House.

Set Dancing

Set dancing HAPPENS eVERY tHURSDAY @ 7PM

Have you ever sat and watched a group on Set Dancers circling around and round. They all seem like they are having a grand old time. Then why not join them. Well here’s your chance…Lace up your dance shoes because Set dancing resumes on Thursday Sept. 16th at 7:30pm. All are welcome! Brian Reynolds 203-214-2921.

Trad Music Session

Enjoy live trad music led by the Shamrogues on  Wednesdays  from 7-9pm. All musicians are welcomed to sit in on the session. So dust off those instruments, warm up your voice and get energized with Traditional Irish Music.

 

 

St. Patrick’s Hurling & Football Club

St. Patrick’s GFC is the fastest growing Gaelic football club in the tri-state area. The club, headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, was created in 2003 to provide training, instruction, and athletic competition in Ireland’s favorite sport, Gaelic football. Prior to the Club’s inception, children and adults interested in learning or competing in Gaelic football had to travel to clubs located in New Haven or New York. In just a few short years, the Club has grown dramatically from four founding members to over 150 members and five teams in youth (Under 8 through U-14) and adult levels.

 

 

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