Fáilte Roimh, Sarah agus Matthew!

January 1st, 2015 begins the long and we're sure distinguished board of directors careers of our two newest leaders, and both are long-time Irish Fest veterans: Sarah Walsh and Matthew O'Callaghan.

Sarah first joined Irish Fest when she and her husband Barney, himself a former director and president, founded and ran the erstwhile Site Host committee. In recent years, Sarah has co-chaired our Volunteer committee. She is, it goes without saying, a hard working and dedicated festie. She is also a bright, sunshiney beam of light that makes Irish Fest a more fun place to be for anybody lucky to come in contact with her. That is nothing but good news for you, fest -goer. Please welcome Sarah to a well-deserved place at the board table.

Did you or someone you know get murdered or otherwise crimed-upon at Irish Fest? If your answer is no, you may want to thank our other new director, Matt O'Callaghan. Matt comes to the board from leading the Public Safety committee and he has been stellar at that job for years. After training his replacement and taking a year as a civilian, the call of the festie life was too strong to ignore and he returns to join the board of directors. Matthew is also a Marine, a Husker, and an all-around great guy. He's going to be a huge asset to the leadership team of the fest.

Welcome to both!

Slán Go Fóill, a Chara

There's a search feature on this blog that I used today. I searched the word "Barney" and as I read through the dozens of posts that came up it occurred to me that over the years I gave my old friend a lot of shit here on the blog, including but certainly not limited to the portraits below.

Now he's left us, but if he was here now, I'd tell him this:

I'd do it all over again.

Goodbye, Dr. Walsh. I'll miss you.

From The Younger SIde Of The Fest

Here's a  lovely tribute to Barney from Shawn Sullivan Warner, our Children's Area boss.

BFW

My best friend Barney Walsh died yesterday. He was a few weeks shy of his 49th birthday. It was sudden, unexpected, and has broken the hearts of all of us at Irish Fest who knew and loved Barney and were lucky enough to call him a friend.

Barney has been with Irish Fest since the early days, founding and heading up the late Site Host committee with his beautiful wife Sarah before joining the board of directors and eventually rising to the presidency in 2012. He did everything at Irish Fest, and I mean everything. And he did it all well, passionately and tirelessly. I'll be honest with you, I can't come close to imagining how we do this without him. Right now, I'm not sure I even want to try.

But of course it isn't his Irish Fest resume, impeccable as it was, that makes this loss so devastating for those of us left behind. It's the man Barney was. The warmest, kindest, most caring, most selfless and giving man I've ever known. We sat together, the two of us, just last Thursday night, as we had on many, many other Thursday nights, drinking beer, talking about work, kids, wives, the Royals and of course Irish Fest. He made me laugh, as he always did. He made me think, as he always did. And when we called it a night, I thought, as I always did, that we had hundreds of Thursday nights and thousands of great conversations still to come. And then just like that, on a sunny Sunday morning, Barney was taken from us. From Sarah, his wonderful son Seamus, his brothers and sisters, his family, his friends. The brilliantly bright and always steady light that was Barney Walsh went out, just like that.

And our hearts are broken.

Presidents Day

Happy President's Day! I know this day is the result of the mashing together of George Washington's and Abe Lincoln's birthdays but who cares about those guys? Over here at KCIF HQ it's a day we honor our own presidents. and most especially our current Chief Executive, Craig Duke.

Craig is the ninth president Irish Fest has had in our 12 years, and the first who hails from Ulster, bringing that special "Norn Iron" touch to this year's event. When he's not putting out metaphorical fires here at Irish Fest, he's over across the state line putting out actual fires as Deputy Chief at Kansas City Kansas Fire Department. He's also been known to make an appearance or two (here with one of our past presidents, Davey Colgan) as one of our "Irish Fest Insiders." Craig keeps promising to show up here at Tir na Blog and give you some presidential proclamations or some such, so keep an eye out for that. In the mean time, please join me in wishing him and all our past presidents* a very happy President's Day.

Kansas City Irish Fest presidents, in chronological order: Bob Sullivan, Dan Regan, Ed Scanlon, Ed Follis, Rory O'Connor, Barney Walsh, Laren Mahoney, Davey Colgan, Craig Duke.

Mea Culpa

Okay, yes, I still owe you two band announcements. You'll get them. Soon. We're just having a little technical difficulty with them at the moment. It's complicated. And yes, it's been 4 whole days since St. Patrick's Day and I haven't posted anything until now. I'm only human. A guy's gotta rest some time. That was a big weekend after all.

Anyway, to catch you up, we finished second in "Organizations" in the parade. Which sucks. Second to The Harp and Shamrock Club though, and if you have to finish second I guess you might as well lose to people who buy hearing aids for deaf children. It's not like we lost to those pretend Confederate soldiers with the "I'd Rather Be Shooting Yankees" bumper sticker on their truck, which I am not making up. Although to be fair, I guess the Confederacy finished second, too.

This is funny. You know who finished third in our division? Some group called "I Am Second." To which I say "No, You're Not."

So we didn't win and we froze our arses off. But our float looked great, our marchers looked great, our dancers were lovely, our music was loud and we had a ball. So thank you to the all of you crazy people who braved the cold and snow and drizzle to come out to watch. Thank you to all our float builders, most especially Matthew O'Callaghan, Dan O'Boyle, Pat Delaney and Barney Walsh who put in the lion's share of time on the thing. Thanks to Shawn at SECT for the loan of the sound system. Thanks to O'Neill Event Management for hosting the after party.

And now, with just 162 days–the average gestation period for a rhesus monkey–to go, we resume building you an Irish Fest.

Happy President's Day

Over our 11 year history the Kansas City Irish Fest has had a long line of distinguished men and women serve as president in the Shamrock-shaped office here at the Green House.

Okay, maybe "distinguished" isn't exactly the word I'm looking forward. When I look back at the roster of current and past presidents, giants in the Irish community like Bob Sullivan, Ed Follis, Ed Scanlon, Barney Walsh, Rory O'Connor, Laren Mahoney and myself...no, "distinguished" isn't quite right.

Let's go with "knucklehead."

At any rate, however you describe them, today we honor all our presidents but mostly the incumbent knucklehead, the architect of the corrupt and failed Colgan administration, President Davey Colgan himself.

Please join me in wishing our own chief executive a very happy President's Day.

Transitions, Part 2

Irish Fest says slán go fóill to a second board member after a final meeting today and her loss will be felt as keenly as Barney's. She's our first woman president and a dear friend, Laren Mahoney.

Laren was making a huge impact on Irish Fest even before you joined the family when she worked for the Kansas City Convention and Visitors Association. In that capacity she was a tireless champion and promoter of Irish Fest. It was through Laren's hard work and passion that we became a national travel destination and not just a local event. Our anchor hotels should send her a thank you card every labor Day for all those filled rooms.

So she hit the ground running with us when she joined the board of directors five years ago and she only accelerated from there. She pushed us kicking and screaming into the world of social media, something all the old timers who founded the fest were only slightly aware of. She took on the Herculean task of redesigning and rebuilding our formerly crappy website and has managed its content since. She became a key member of the PR team at Irish Fest, understanding more than anyone that the first step in having a party is making sure people know about it. And more than anyone, she knew how to get the word out. Laren made us the place to be Labor Day weekend, whether you were from Kansas City, Kankakee or Kilkenny. 

Of course if you wanted to be someplace else, she could help you with that too, as the founder and driving force behind the Irish Fest travel area. Laren and I have attended many other Irish festivals together over the years and she has become a trusted ear for scouting on-stage talent, too. She has never shied away from a challenge, and usually goes looking for them. She is also a never-fail beam of sunshine whenever you run into her at the fest...even when it rains.

Laren joins us all in the retirees club, but the impact her tenure on the fest has had will echo for years. Thank you for 5 incredible years, Madam President.

Transitions, Part 1

Early next week two members of the Kansas City Irish Fest board of directors will complete their 5 year terms and join the other retirees in the whiskey lounge to whine about how much better we did things in our day. Today we'll say good bye and thanks to the first of those two fest stalwarts, my good friend Barney Walsh.

If there is a festival leader past or present who's had a greater impact on Irish Fest and who we are than Barney, I don't know who it is. He began his Irish Fest career as a pioneer, launching with his lovely wife Sarah, the venerable Site Host Committee. In our first years at Crown Center with Barney's guidance these gold-clad ambassadors quickly became the face of Irish Fest. Carrying countless strollers in the pre-ramp days, giving directions, reuniting lost children with lost parents, fielding questions and sometimes taking abuse with endless patience and cool–endless patience and cool being Barney Walsh trademarks.

Barney's many talents were noticed quickly by those of us serving on the board at the time and he was appointed to the board himself 5 years ago. As the longest serving board member in fest history myself, I can tell you that there are basically three kinds of festival leaders: those that take a sort of long view and direct the festival as overseer, dealing with broad issues as they arise. They tend toward the reactive rather than the active. There are those that concentrate their energies and interests in developing and improving one specific area of the event. Both can be effective and impactful leaders in their own ways. And then there those rare few who don't step into their board position, they leap in. They have the vision, the passion, the drive and the commitment to seek to shape and improve every aspect of the festival, from the ticket at the gate to the band on the stage. That's Barney.

From engineering front gate signage to structuring the drink token sales system to building beer bottle chandeliers for the Snug to improving crowd control, to herding kids, Barney has truly and quite literally done it all. He's always among the last to leave the grounds at night and the first to arrive in the morning. And yet he never lost sight of what we were really all about: having a good time. As a committee chair, a board member and president, he has set a standard and a work ethic that future fest leaders would be wise to emulate...and good luck with that.

Barney usually ended his emails about fest business with the line "relentless pursuit of perfection." And that kind of sums up his term at the helm. While he has certainly earned a break and some quality time relaxing in the Jameson whiskey lounge next Labor Day weekend, his presence and leadership and relentless pursuit of perfection will be sorely missed.

Thanks for everything, Dr. Walsh.

Weston?

I wasn't able to make it up to the Weston Irish Fest this past weekend because after my recent birthday, I'm now way too old to have any fun. By the way, thank you to Barney Walsh of the Irish Fest board for highjacking the blog long enough to post the birthday wish. And thanks too to Lola the howler monkey, seen sitting on my shoulder.

But Weston. I assume that Saturday was drowned. Did you go? Anybody care to make a report? See any bands you'd like to see back at KCIF? How were the Screaming Orphans? Time for a KC encore?

Home Again

It's a terrible thing getting old, though as the saying goes it beats the alternative. It's taken me this long to only partially recover from the Milwaukee Fest, at least to recover enough to form a coherent sentence of two.

It was a fantastic weekend as it always is and I'm grateful to Barry, Ed, Donna, Jenn, Colleen, Stuart, Mark, Joe and all our friends up in the Brew City for the great hospitality. I could write all day about the music we saw, but neither of us have time for that. If I had to pick one performance that was sticks with me, one that I hope we can bring to KC in the very near future, it would have to be the band in my headphones as I write this: We Banjo 3.

It's a godawful name, first of all. It's a 4 piece band and though the tenor banjo is featured they also play fiddle, guitar, mandolin and bodhran. But sweet fancy Moses, can these boys play. Here's a taste from the weekend.
Thanks also to Barney, Sarah, Laren, Anto, Brandi, Liz, Harold, Ann and Tommy for being such a joy to travel, laugh and imbibe with. On to KCIF! Ten Days!

Jiggled

So different and yet so the same. I spent the weekend at Jiggle Jam where I served on Saturday as the beverage guy, running cases of drinks and bags of ice to all the various places where one might get a drink. Sunday I served as Daddy, taking wee Kathleen around to hear the bands, ride the train, eat the treats and most thrilling for her, meet Jiggle Jam mascot JJ in person. Being at Crown Center, badge around my neck, radio on my hip, hanging banners above white tents, working alongside Keli, Barney, Shawn, Kathy, John, Erin, Jessica, Dan, Sean, Ed and assorted other Irish Festers who do double duty at Jiggle Jam...it all seemed very familiar, only with way fewer green shirts, much more water sold than beer, and mercifully, 100% kilt free (though I did see at least one favorite Scot there).

Anyway, it put me in the fest mood, that's for sure. And with Irish Fest only 94 days away I won't have to wait long.

RIP Barney McKenna

DUBLIN (AP) — "Banjo" Barney McKenna, the last original member of the Irish folk band The Dubliners, died Thursday while having a morning cup of tea with a friend. He was 72 and had just marked his 50th year with the troupe.

Irish classical guitarist Michael Howard, who was with McKenna when he died, said he was talking with his longtime friend at his kitchen table, when "all of a sudden Barney's head dropped down to his chest. It looked as if he'd nodded off." Howard said paramedics over the phone talked him through emergency revival procedures, but McKenna "was pretty much gone."

"The comfort that I take from it is, he passed away very peacefully sitting at his own breakfast table having a quiet cup of tea and a chat," Howard said.

"What a lovely way to go," said McKenna's Dubliners bandmate for a quarter-century, guitarist and singer Eamonn Campbell.

McKenna was considered the most influential banjo player in Irish folk music. He spent a half-century performing, recording and touring with the band ever since its 1962 creation in the Dublin pub O'Donoghue's. The other three founders — Ronnie Drew, Ciaran Bourke and Luke Kelly — died in 2008, 1988 and 1984, respectively.

McKenna completed a United Kingdom tour with The Dubliners last month and performed Wednesday night at a Dublin funeral. Howard, who also performed there and drove McKenna home afterward, said his friend performed "absolutely beautifully. When he finished there was a spontaneous, thunderous round of applause in the church."

Born in Dublin in 1939, McKenna tried to join the Irish army band but was rejected because of bad eyesight. He busked in the streets and pubs of the capital and developed a reputation as an innovative performer on a specially tuned, four-stringed tenor banjo, then a virtually unknown instrument in Ireland that he made an Irish folk favorite.

The gravel-voiced Drew recruited him to Friday night "sessions" — impromptu barside concerts — at O'Donoghue's, a diminutive pub near the Irish parliament so famously packed that its barmen had to stand on stepstools to take orders. It soon gained a reputation as the country's top venue for live folk music, with The Dubliners performing alongside such other rising folk stars as The Chieftains and the Fureys.

Many noted how McKenna always made time to help younger musicians learn the art of the tenor banjo, particularly the intricacies of his own strumming and tuning techniques.

"His influence on and generosity to other instrumentalists was immense," said Irish President Michael D. Higgins, who saw McKenna perform last month in a Dublin cathedral at one of The Dubliners' many 50th anniversary performances.

Friends and bandmates told anecdote upon anecdote Thursday of the many off-the-wall, comically illogical comments made by McKenna over the years.

"He was like a brother to me," recalled fiddler John Sheahan, who joined The Dubliners in 1964 and remains in the band today. His favorite Barneyism: calling an optical illusion an "obstacle confusion."

"He was very droll man and great company. You'd never know what he'd come out with next," Campbell said. "My favorite song that he sang was 'I'm a Man You Don't Meet Every Day.' And that was true about Barney."

His Dutch wife, Joka, died 28 years ago and the couple had no children. He lived alone in the upscale fishing port of Howth and spent spare time tinkering with his boat and fishing on the Irish Sea. He continued to perform, despite suffering from diabetes and a mild stroke.

McKenna is survived by his partner Tina, sister Marie and brother Sean, who is also a top Irish banjo player. Funeral arrangements were not immediately announced.

Smiles All Around

It will be mighty hard for the coming weekend to top the last one. It started with great music and craic with Colin Grant and Darren McMullen of Sprag Session. There are no two better musicians who've played Irish Fest in my opinion and it was great to have the opportunity to see them play in the cozy confines of the Irish Center. More work Saturday morning on our float for the big parade on the 17th, and it's looking great. Still have some issues to work out with the pyrotechnics and the lasers, and one of the trained tigers won't behave but we'll get there. And of course we had a fantastic time marching floatless in the Brookside St. Patrick's Day Warm Up parade on Saturday under bright blue skies and temps in the 70's. A glorious day and nice to see some familiar faces in the crowd.

But we're not done yet. It's going to be a beautiful St. Patrick's Day week. Have some chocolate.

Photo of my beautiful daughter Kate at the Brookside parade by Barney Walsh, also beautiful.

Happy President's Day, Madam President!

This 10th anniversary year of the Kansas City Irish Fest is ably headed by president Laren Mahoney and in honor of President's Day I'm going to postpone my plans to begin referring to her tenure as "the failed Mahoney administration" until tomorrow. You're welcome, Laren.

Seriously though, we're excited to have Laren at the helm and know that she'll lead us well and successfully. Happy President's Day to her and to all our past presidents: Barney Walsh, Rory O'Connor, Ed Follis, Ed Scanlon, Bob Sullivan and that other guy whose name always escapes me.

The Big Cheese

In case you've been living in a sound-proof igloo the past 6 months or so, you know that the fledgling new year is one in which a presidential election will be held here in the U.S. In Iowa first and now New Hampshire, White House wanna-be's are slugging it out like boozy bridesmaids after a bounced bouquet.

They should learn from the Kansas City Irish Fest. We changed presidents this week with nary a whimper. Barney Walsh sidled up to a high stool at the Old President Pub where a silky black pint and the thanks of his staff awaited. And a brand new festival president moved into the shamrock-shaped office at Irish Fest HQ. And it is a great honor for me to introduce her to you. Ladies and gents, Laren Mahoney:

Hello!
Danny asked that I write a few words to introduce myself now that I’ve officially taken office as president. I went back to see what past presidents Barney Walsh, Rory O’Connor, Ed Follis, Danny Regan, Bob Sullivan and Ed Scanlon wrote when they were in my position, only to find out that I’m the first to do this. Though, I do know these fine gentlemen would even dance for you if Danny asked them to. So I’ve taken the liberty to record their last retirement club party. You’re welcome.


So me in a paragraph: By day, for more than a decade, I’ve worked in public relations, been editor of magazines, helped plan big events, among other things. For KCIF, I’ve managed our public relations and social media efforts (Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Flickr) for the past six years. In addition, I manage our website, and helped get our streaming video, surveying and the Travel Area up and running. It was pointed out to me once that I tend to find things that we aren’t doing and implement them. I think that’s because the things we are doing, are being done so incredibly well. And that’s thanks to our dedicated and talented staff and hordes of volunteers that it takes to make this festival happen.


I’m talking with a lot of people about the role of KCIF president. Lot’s of big ideas and plans have come out of these talks. But the common theme I’m finding is: Everyone should have fun. Which, don’t we always? It’s the city’s best party, after all. But, over the next nine months, we have a big job ahead of us as a board and staff… create an epic celebration of music, culture and craic for more than 100,000 people for our 10-year anniversary. And, I’ll do my best to make sure we have a fun time along the way.


Please never forget that this is your festival – no matter if you’re an attendee, volunteer, staff, etc. I encourage you to be vocal. If you have great ideas or concerns, let us know. Our Irish Fest Answer Dude can forward emails to the correct parties. Or, email me.


We have a BIG party to throw this year. And I am humbled and honored to be by your side throughout everything.


Laren Mahoney

Thank you Madam President. We're looking forward to a great year under your leadership. Still don't know how you snuck into our retirement party, but I rock that little black dress.

A Presidential Farewell

Barney Walsh ends his successful stint as KCIF President at midnight tonight. His parting thoughts:

As my time at the helm of the USS KC Irish Fest comes down to the last few hours, it’s time to clear out the office and reflect on the year it was.

We had an amazing festival this year. The music lineup, the crowd and the experience were overwhelming. We were blessed with beautiful Midwest weather, mostly. Turns out, we needed the umbrellas left around from the Sullivan era. Two big things we learned this year – Crown Center is the perfect all-weather location for our festival. And you guys are a resilient bunch. While we worked overtime to keep everyone safe, dry and entertained - we also discovered how much you guys really want to stick around for the party. For that dedication we are humbly grateful. It allows us to pay all our bills and return to do it another year.

The all-volunteer KCIF staff continue to surprise me year after year. The amount of individual hours that go into pulling together this party would surprise you. Everyone has a different motivation for giving so much of themselves – for some it’s the free beer, or the chance to hear and maybe meet their favorite Irish band, or others enjoy bringing so much joy to so many people every Labor Day weekend. Regardless the motivation, we are fortunate to have so many gifted individuals to organize the best festival in Kansas City. It’s been an honor to lead such a talented group of people.

Join me in wishing President Mahoney all the best for an outstanding 2012 and an unprecedented Festival experience this year. It will be an epic celebration of Irish music, culture and craic, as we put on our show for the 10th time.

I am fortunate that I still have another year of service on the Board of Directors. Luckily for me, old Presidents never die, they just hang out in the Whiskey Lounge.

Barney Walsh

Welcome to the Whiskey Lounge, Mr. President

Changes At The Top

As the year rolls to a close, there are changes in the leadership of your Kansas City Irish Fest that you should know about. I yield the floor to festival president Barney Walsh:

Please join me in congratulating and welcoming the two newest members of the KCIF Board of Directors: Pete McCluskey and John Hayes
 

You’ll recognize Pete as the recipient (along with his wife Cece) of the 2011 Mr & Mrs Irish Fest Award.  Pete has a long history with KCIF first as a volunteer with the Westport Irish Fest, and has volunteered at our gates every year since we came together down by the river.  Pete has been a past chair of the St. Patrick's Day Parade and continues to volunteer for the parade every year.  Pete's deep knowledge of the KC Irish community, marketing/sales skills and outside perspective will be a great addition to the board.

John you may know as our hard working KCIF Grounds Crew Chair for the past 9 years.  John’s dedication and enthusiasm for KCIF are never ending and his deep knowledge of our site and logistics will serve the board well.

Congratulations to both the new board members! Now get to work!

The Far Flung Diaspora

Last week while you guys were raking leaves and carving pumpkins, a sextet of Irish Festers made up of festival president Barney Walsh, his wife, volunteer coordinator Sarah Walsh, fest executive director Keli O'Neill Wenzel, her husband tech committee chair John Wenzel and Mrs. Bloggy and myself headed for the warm beaches of Roatan Island off the Honduran coast. We went on official Irish Fest business of course, tasked with investigating whether or not we should start serving Honduran beer and rum at our beverage tents. After much intensive research, results, and our heads remain murky.

Photo by Barney Walsh

However we did find a wonderful example of the far flung Irish diaspora on the white sand beaches in the form of Bill Connor, a gregarious islander who befriended us, brought us fresh lobster he'd caught by hand himself and key lime pie baked by his mother, took us snorkeling near a 110 year old ship wreck and sang us American country and western songs on his battered blue boat. He didn't know anything about how he came by his Gaelic surname but judging by his personality and love of a drink and a song, he was a Irishman, sure enough. He left us with great memories and fledgling plans to go back and start the Honduras Irish Fest with him as our headliner.  We left him with some well-earned American dollars and our left over beer, which shockingly there wasn't much of.

If you ever find yourself on the north coast of Roatan, wander the beach and he'll find you. Be sure to ask for a song.

Happy Halloween!

From all of us at the 2012 Kansas City Irish Fest, including president Barney "Count Festula" Walsh, pictured below, a happy and scary All Hallows Eve to you and yours. Beware of things that go bump in the night...