Nassau County Pipes and Drum Visit 5th Avenue
The grand daddy of all New York City parades kicked off at 11am for the well over 1 million visitors flocking to 5th Ave. to celebrate Irish culture and tradition. Since 1762, the parade has been a call for all the Irish to come out and stand tall. The parade route passes right by St. Patrick’s Cathedral where Cardinal Dolan greeted VIPs including NYS Governor Andrew Cuomo and Ireland’s Prime Minister Leo Varadkar. This is one of the grandest parades in the city and the only parade where everyone walks…there are no floats or trucks or cars. Ok there was one horse drawn carriage that carried this years Grand Marshall Loretta Brennan Glucksman. The excitement for the parade to kick off was building when the mounted police let everyone know things were about to get started. Since the 1850s, the original “Fighting Irish”, the 69th Regiment of NY National Guard led the parade as a reminder of the contribution the Irish have given to the fabric of the country and the City. Their mascots, a pair of Irish wolfhounds led the way for the 69th and Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
NYS Governor Andrew Cuomo
Grand Marshall Loretta Brennan Glucksman
Ireland Prime Minister Leo Varadkar
The parade is a display of some of the best marching bands in the country and kicking things off were the Virginia Military Institute from Lexington, VA. They had great uniforms but looked a little angry. Guess I would be too if their top ranked basketball team got bounced from the NCAA Basketball tournament in the first round the night before the parade. One group that turned that frown upside down was a familiar group that always gets much love from the NY crowd. The Friends and Family of Detective Steven D McDonald proudly carried a banner with an image of the fallen hero. The Detective passed on last year but his spirit of compassion and forgiveness still lives on. One of the most anticipated bagpipe bands were the NYPD Emerald Society Pipes and Drum Band. They always set the bar high for the rest of the bands to follow. Local counties from the surrounding areas send their pipes and drum bands to get the crowd worked up.
Honoring a Hero
NYPD Emerald Society
Irish and NY Police Unite
One of the best things about the parade is a bond between the Irish from Ireland and the Irish in the US. The Irish send their Garda Siochana to meet with their counterparts at the NYPD. The Irish Firefighters also send their counterparts to have a pint and show some comradery. The FDNY Emerald Society Pipes and Drum Band always take the lead for their group and make the City proud. Right behind them were a crowd favorite…the 343 group carrying US flags in honor of the fallen firefighters from 9/11. We Will Never Forget. Banners were carried in honor of two recently fallen firefighters, Raguso and Zanetis, while serving with the Air National Guard near the border of Syria and Iraq.
These Ladies Know How to Enjoy a Parade
We Will Never Forget
Honoring Heroes
Many counties in Ireland send their representatives to the parade carrying tall banners with the name of their county. The one county that gets a lot of love from the crowd is the Donegal group. The McLaughlins from Brooklyn have been coming to the parade for many years and have a great time especially when they see folks from their county proudly displaying their banner. This year we were all treated to some marching bands from Donegal including the Dungloe Band with their accordions. They had a nice American song tribute. Then a flood of marching bands from the local area and across the country made the parade a grand tribute to the Irish. It’s tough to say which ones were the best and this year’s judges had a tough time deciding which band was the most outstanding. A few newbies to the parade were the group from Arab, Alabama with their flashing shamrocks and the Clark County HS MB from Missouri were pretty good. They had some stiff competition from Lyman HS MB from Florida, Dobyns-Bennett HS MB from Tennessee and Preble HS MB from Wisconsin. Local perennial favorite, the Highlanders from West Milford, NJ always bring their A game to the parade.
The parade is being more inclusive as in previous years with banners displayed of Gay and Lesbian groups marching with pride. Heck, if the Prime Minister of Ireland, Leo Varadkar, and the NYC Council Chairman, Corey Johnson, both openly gay can march, so can others. All in all, it was a grand parade with a fine display of Irish culture and pride. But of course, it wouldn’t be appropriate without a limerick from Stephanie Porter from Winterport to close out the blog.
At Geaghans today I’ll be drinkin’,
and all will know what I am thinkin’.
On St. Patrick’s day,
I’ll give a toast and say
Lord, please stop my wallet from shrinkin’.
NYC Parade Life 