Healthy Living Newsletter
CelticFest ‘08 Events Provide Support & Help Raise Awareness
 Celebrating “Irish Heritage and Culture” across St. Clair County, CelticFest 2008 will begin Friday, February 29 and culminate with St. Patrick’s Day on March 17. This unique celebration lasting more than two weeks began in 2000 and has become one of the area’s most anticipated series of community activities and programs.
This year, Mercy Hospital is proud to be the recipient of funds raised at two of the 15 planned events.
An authentic “Irish Tea” is planned in honor of Mercy Hospital’s Foundress Sister Catherine McAuley (pictured) and in memory of Sister Mary Jarlath Madigan, RSM, one of the initial Sisters of Mercy, providing care at Mercy Hospital. Your comfortable cup of Irish Tea will be served by The Daughters of Isabella.
This unique event is designed to benefit the Peoples’ Clinic for Better Health. The event will take place Wednesday, March 5, from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m., in the Mercy Hospital Baggot Street Café. Tickets are available in advance at the Irish Rose in Port Huron, and the Mercy Hospital Gift Shoppe. You can also purchase tickets at the door. The cost is $10. The event will be presented as an Irish Tea shop, and participants can attend at any time during the three-hour program.
All proceeds from the event will be used to benefit the Peoples’ Clinic for Better Health. The clinic is a collaborative project of the St. Clair County Medical Society and Mercy Hospital. It is funded in part by the United Way of St. Clair County. It provides free medical care to those in our community who are uninsured and lack the resources to pay for their care.
“The goal of CelticFest is to promote Irish culture through the community,” explains Terry Nolan, owner of the Irish Rose and originator of the event. “On a recent excursion, I had the opportunity to visit the original House of Mercy on Baggot Street in Dublin, Ireland. Catherine McAuley is an Irish heroine who exemplified a deep dedication to the poor, especially women and children. Coupling an Irish Tea in her honor with the works of charitable organizations during CelticFest is the perfect way to celebrate Irish heritage.”
The Daughters of Isabella have been outstanding supporters of Mercy Hospital and the Peoples’ Clinic. The Daughters of Isabella includes members of Holy Cross Catholic Church in Marine City; and Mt. Carmel Catholic Church in Emmett.
In addition to the Irish Tea, Mercy Regional Cancer Center will be a beneficiary of the Betty Kearns second annual “Little Black Dress Cocktail Party,” planned for Friday, March 7.
Mark your calendar for this fun and outstanding CelticFest event. In addition to raising funds for local breast cancer programs, the event, held at Port Huron Golf Club, is designed to raise breast cancer awareness. Tickets are available for $20 by calling the Kearns Agency at (810) 987-3330; or the Irish Rose at (810) 982-5487.
Last year, hundreds of area women attended, helping to raise awareness in honor of Betty Kearns, a longtime community member who suffered and passed away from breast cancer. In addition to wearing a “little black dress” participants are also encouraged to wear something pink to promote breast cancer awareness.
For more information regarding these and other CelticFest events, visit the Irish American Club of St. Clair County online at: www.theirishamericanclub.org. |
