Bay Ridge

St. Patrick’s Parade Committee to host meet & greet

January 21, 2015 By Paula Katinas Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Organizers of the Bay Ridge St. Patrick’s Parade are planning a series of events to get the community excited about the big parade coming up in March. Last year’s parade was a major success, committee members said. Eagle file photo by Paula Katinas
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The committee organizing the Bay Ridge Saint Patrick Parade isn’t waiting until the day of the parade to stir up excitement over the big march.

There is a whole host of pre-parade activities planned between now and March 22, when the parade takes place on Third Avenue.

First up is a meet and greet cocktail reception hosted by Parade President Frankie Marra and the committee on Sunday, Jan. 25, at the Greenhouse Café, 7717 Third Ave., starting at 4 p.m.

Among those who have been invited to the reception is Col. Joseph Davidson, the commanding officer of the U.S. Army Garrison at Fort Hamilton, who has been chosen by the committee to serve as the grand marshal.

The deputy grand marshals are: Colleen Golden, Eileen Brett, Marie Moloney, Jenny Nielsen, Michael Butler, Tom McCarthy, Mick Dorgan and Mark Langton.

The parade committee will be hosting a dinner dance on Saturday, March 7, at the Dyker Beach Golf Course, 86th Street and Seventh Avenue, at 7 p.m. Tickets are $125 per person.

The 22nd Annual Bay Ridge St. Patrick’s Parade will take place on Sunday, March 22, on Third Avenue, starting at 1 p.m. The parade will begin at Marine Avenues and end at 67th St.

By tradition, the day always begins with a mass at St. Patrick Catholic Church at 9511 Fourth Ave. at 9 a.m. Following the mass, the honorees, committee members and elected officials will gather at Hunter’s Steak & Ale House at 9404 Fourth Ave. for a pre-parade brunch.

Last year’s parade had a special feature that proved to be enormously popular, according to Marra, who said the committee honored an Irish Family of the Year for the first time and plans to do so again this year.

Local residents were invited to submit essays nominating families to receive the honor. The deadline for essays was Jan. 19. The winning family chosen by the committee will get the chance to ride the parade route aboard a float.

“Last year, the Maloney Family was our Irish Family of the Year,” Marra told the Brooklyn Eagle. “The essays have to have information about how a family honors its Irish heritage and stays true to its Catholic faith,” he said.

There are also plans in the works for the committee to award scholarships to students, Marra said.

For more information on the parade, visit www.bayridgestpatricksday.com.

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