A Message from Our President

Submitted by Patricia A. O'Connell on May 26 2010

Caed Mile Failte—A Hundred Thousand Welcomes—to you as you read this message. This 2010 Year, the St. Patrick Society of Peoria is celebrating its 30th Annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade followed by the family-focused or as we Irish say, clan-focused party and its 30th Annual Erin Feis.

You, our members and friends, have been sporting the green in a special way on March 17th come sunshine, warm temperatures or cloudy, cool, rainy, windy, and even snowy conditions over the last 30 years as well as enduring cloudy, cool, rainy, windy, and hot steamy, humid conditions in late August as you join us at Erin Feis.

Today our focus remains as it started with our Founders 30 years ago “to perpetuate the heritage and history of the Irish people and to promote their ideals, traditions, and culture.” The two major events that were started 30 years ago continue to be our two main events—St Patrick’s Day Parade on March 17 and Erin Feis in late summer, typically scheduled for the 4th weekend in August.

For the St. Patrick Society of Peoria to continue to be true to its mission, we need you to get involved in the events sponsored by the St. Patrick Society. We need you to be an active volunteer to assist with the St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Party and the 3-Day Erin Feis event on the Peoria RiverFront. You can keep in touch with the events of the St. Patrick Society by going to the Society’s website: www.stpatpeoria.com or the Erin Feis website: www.erinfeispeoria.com.

Let me, on behalf of the St. Patrick Society Board of Directors, invite you to renew your membership or join the St. Patrick Society for the first time. Our membership includes both annual membership and life-time membership categories. Our membership year is January 1 through December 31. Please go to the Become a Member Page for the details of joining the St. Patrick Society.

As a member you can access the following benefits: Advanced notice of all society events, Special admission rates to some selected events, 10% discount on Society merchandise if you present your membership card, 10% discount at the Harp & Thistle Import Shop in Peoria Heights if you present your membership card, Society Newsletters as they are published, and the Central Illinois Irish news magazine published in March each year.

The St. Patrick Society of Peoria is a 501(c) (3) organization with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Please consider making a contribution in honor of or in memory of a loved one who cherished his/her Irish heritage. Your check should be made payable to the St. Patrick Society and mailed to the St. Patrick Society President, P O Box 117, Peoria, IL 61650. Your gift is tax deductible according to the extent of the IRS laws. The St. Patrick Society of Peoria does not get involved in attempting to influence legislation or intervene in political campaigns on behalf of any candidate for public office.