The highly anticipated unveiling of the newly restored map of Ireland at the Friendly Sons of the Shillelagh took place on Sunday, October 12, 2008.  The map which originally went on display at the 1964 New York World's Fair, as acquired by the Friendly Sons in 1985 and has been on display since its arrival and installation.  It had fallen into disrepair when Charlie Donnelly chaired a committee to have the map restored  and reinstalled in the main hall.  Many people were involved with the restoration and all were honored to see it unveiled to the public on Sunday Oct 12, 2008.
 
The ceremony started off with the FSOS Pipes and Drums kicking off the event with several tunes  It was then followed up by club members Chris Finnegan and Ron Keaveney singing the American and Irish national anthems.  
 
Guest speaker, Al Meredith, author and club member, gave a delightful talk on Irish history and his book, Inishannon.  The public was then invited to view the map and trace their Irish roots back to their respective counties and provinces.  Many people stepped up to take advantage of the opportunity.
 
The evening continued on with a seisiun of Traditional Irish music which was broadcast live on The Voice Of Ireland show on WRSU-FM.  A grand time was had by all.

Photos and Article courtsey of Mike Callaghan

A message from Tom Esser.

Thank you to all brother members and their families for their gracious gifts.  So far over 250 kids have recieved a piece of sports equipment that they would not have been able to otherwise pay for themselves.  Lets pass on the good graces and keep the donations coming.
 
Brother- Tom Esser

You missed it. 20 miles up hills and down, along quiet country roads, busy streets and expressways and finally back to FSOS Hall. Wish I’d bought a gel seat… maybe next time. What a great time. We are most grateful to the Old Bridge Police Department who provided 5 cars that stopped traffic at every intersection in order to guarantee safety and indeed at all times shadowed the cyclists so that no car could even get close to us.

Of the 47 riders that started out every one finished. We had all ages from Senior to kids on all manner of bike. It wasn’t always pretty… but we all finished. And though an Ark could have floated in the parking lot the previous day, the rain held off this day until the last rider crossed the finish line.

The Ride raised $3,364 for the two charities. So both SERF and the Food Bank will each receive a check for $1,682. Much thanks to all the participants, riders, helpers and of course the sponsors. A very special thank-you to Don Bruchez, because without his boundless energy, hard work and dedication this event would not come to pass.

Don't forget to check out the photos of which there are many. You'll see we even got a glimpse of Sasquatch in the woods... though I can't imagine what he was doing.

Photos provided courtsey of Alan Purcell

The generosity of friends and members was clearly evident at the event arranged by Jack McCarthy and Marty Cameron to honor the memory of the late Walter Siecinski. 63 pints of blood were donated to the blood bank and all of it alcohol free. Hard to believe, I know.Though afterwards it was just as extraordinary that though weaked, almost delirious it was truly a miracle that some of our weaker donors had enough fortitude and clarity of mind to be even able to focus on restoring their sagging iron count let alone seek out the help of our own Arthur Guinness. This was the first in what will become an annual drive to honor Walter’s memory.

The Backbeat provided the entertainment to the first dance of the fall season, Half Way to St. Patricks Day. The feast was provided courtsey of the Dinner Dance Committee who spent most of the day hard at work in the kitchen. Ladies don't believe them when they tell you that don't like aprons... They were positively fighting over them. I agree with Scott by the way, The pinstripe really set of Georges eyes!. The men of the kitchen provided a treat for all and never has jello tasted so good.

The band rocked until the wee hours launching from original music to covers of the Beatles, Eagles, REM and more. For those of you looking at your photos in the gallery and wondering who the heck the guy in the white golf shirt is?

Our very own photo imposer, Wayne Miller. Everytime it seemed the coast was clear, like the lucky charm he was just magically there and just as suddenly gone until the next time the shutter clicked. One of the great moments of the night came when Wayne, Will and two mops danced (at least I think it was dancing) uninhibited to the sounds of Meatloaf. Paradise by the dashboard baby, paradise by the dashboard!

More Photos

1964, The Worlds Fair is hosted in New York and the Irish Pavillion is the centerpiece for all things Ireland. Prominently displayed in the entrance hall of the Pavillion is a 10 by 12 foot Map of Ireland commissioned just for the occasion. The map consists of 4 handcrafted panels representing the four provinces of Ireland. Each province is detailed with county and family names. That very same year The Friendly Sons of the Shillelagh is formed and becomes the center for all things Irish in Old Bridge.
After the World's Fair the map finds a home in the New York pub, Molly Blooms. There it stays for 18 years until one evening in 1982 members Bob Arthur & Dennis Murphy approach the owner regarding a new home for the map. The owner agrees and the Map is moved to it's present location at FSOS Hall where it has been displayed proudly every since.
Nearly 5 decades have passed since it hung in the Irish Pavillion and as with the rest of us the map had acquired it's own wrinkles. In 2007 a restoration committee was formed & led by Charlie Donnelly who with the help of Jaime O'Kane obtained a grant from the Middlesex Cultural and Heritage Commission. The job or restoring the map fell to Bob Miller, the owner of Bobs Signs, and what a job he did in returning this beautiful piece work to it's former glory.
The FSOS extend a warm invitation to all to come join in the celebration of the World's Fair Map of Ireland and see it as if for the first time in 1964. The celebration begins on Saturday, October 12 from 3-7pm. We'll have traditional Irish Music and a special broadcast over WRSU, Rutgers Radio. All are welcome.

What a day. The weather was stunning... okay it was cloudly all day. But if the weather didn't look good at least we did. A regular fashion parade... okay a lot of plaid. But at least the golf play was, how can I put this, something to behold. Try to imagine an epileptic cat swinging a golf club. Well if you'd been here that exercise would so much easier. Balls were flying everywhere, at one point it looked like all groundskeepers were called in for safety reasons and air traffic was being rerouted to Phili until the event was over.

According to Charlie Donnelly, "I'm sure they had to close down the course for repairs after we played." 

On June 1, 2008 Tom Ryan and his happy group of travelers departed from The Friendly Sons and headed south for Nashville, Tennessee. Upon arrival many of us were rewarded with sightings of Minnie-Pearl, Roy Acoff and of course Elvis.

The Grand Ole Opry Museum offered us a trip down memory lane with three floors of memorabilia. The Old Opry Hotel fascinated us with it’s lobby, a fully enclosed landscape that included waterfalls, a riverboat ride, lush gardens and restaurant after restaurant. Not to be left out was Loretta Lynn’s ranch, The Wild Horse Saloon, The Oak Ridge Boys, Tom giving lessons in Line Dancing and much more. He was so good that he and Lorraine were asked to pose for Nashville’s latest monument.

So Tom, Thanks for all the work you put into making this a great trip… where are we going next year? 

Photos and Article by Lorraine Schuld

The FSOS Seisiun of June 22, 2008 was another in a series of seisiun broadcast live from the Great Hall of FSOS to both a live audience as well as a radio and web listeners. The evening was kicked off by Mr Tommy Burns, of Burns & Cashman, and The Moonshiners, with his version of Brian Boru's March, the signature tune of the Voice Of Ireland, heard on 88.7 FM Sunday evenings 5:30 - 7:00 PM.  The music continued with Chris Finnegan on Uileann Pipes, tin whistle, guitar, accompanied by a host fine musicians.  There a plethora of reels, jigs, slip jigs, waltzes and few songs sung in Gaelige and English.

Photos and Article by Mike Callaghan