By Paddy McCarthy
Happy Valentine’s Day to you our readers and followers of The Irish Examiner USA as you make every day brighter just by being part of it. I’m so grateful for you, your kindness and support, and all the joy you bring into our life here at one of the biggest Irish outlets in North America that gives you all your up to date news entertainment, sports, interviews and a little bit of gossip. Wishing you a day filled with love, laughter, and all the happiness in the world as that is what we are here for!
Now for a bit gossip, since the year 2006 The Irish Examiner USA is one of the fastest growing digital Irish newspapers and websites in the USA and beyond. The Irish Examiner USA has stood for honesty over politics and people and its loyalties are to Irish and Irish American values, putting front and center the idea of equality for all that will always be there for you as well. We promise that you will never get negative information in The Irish Examiner USA, but you will get a bit of gossip do, ha-ha.
Now I was Out&About last week and I stopped into a few places in Manhattan, the mecca of the world, you like that huh? I stopped in one of my favorite bars and restaurants oh yes I have a lot them, it was McCarthy’s Irish Pub that is an authentic Irish pub and restaurant conveniently located in Times Square on West 46th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues. It is just a short walk from New York City’s famous Broadway Theatre District, Bryant Park and Columbus Circle.
I did not get to meet the owners Kieran Green or Jimmy Lyons as they also have another famous establishment called Gossip Bar & Restaurant, in the famous Hell’s Kitchen located on 9th Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets, I love the name.
So now after I giving that little bit of gossip I have to tell about the service in McCarthy’s and can only say it’s the best of the best with the one and only Amanda Moran from Westport, County Mayo behind the counter, now where would yea get it? I can only say this, she is what we call in the bar and restaurant business a treasure and I am so sure the owners know that as well. Now I have to say this that all the staff are just brilliant and you will always get a great welcome from all of them.
As I am talking about Irish bars and restaurants that I hope to visit quite a lot of them as we say in Irish Céad míle fáilte (100 thousand welcomes), well somebody has to do right? That’s me. I’ve said this many times that no matter where you go all over the world you can’t and will not beat Irish hospitality especially in Irish pubs, bars and restaurants as they are the best, see you all very soon.
Congratulations to Queens County St. Patrick’s Day Parade & Cultural Committee on your 50th Anniversary that was celebrated last Saturday at Antun’s in Queens Village with a capacity audience. I had hoped to be attending, unfortunately I could not make because of my visit to the dentist and the snow that followed. It was, I am told, a great evening as the New York Grand Marshal Michael Benn was there as he is also the Chairman of the Queens County St. Patrick’s Day Parade that will be held on March 10th. The Grand Marshal of the Queens County is Terence Mullin, Vice President Fidelity National. His honorary deputy Grand Marshals are Eileen Flannelly Mackell, whose strong Irish lineage stretches all the way from County Mayo and who is a proven cultural and civic leader along with Dr. James McLaughlin, a physician and proven community leader with Project Children and vice president of the Donegal Association. Wow what an evening I missed, ahh well next time. I did get some nice photos as you can see of the fabulous evening that again I should have been at.
Now here is a notice that I am proud to have Dan Deegan in my Out&About as gentleman who deserves lots of praise in all that he does. I had the privilege of traveling with Congressman Tom Suozzi and others to Ireland a few years ago that was superb trip. Here goes: “Daniel P. Deegan is a partner at the law firm Forchelli Deegan Terrana LLP, where he leads the firm’s Industrial Development Agency (IDA), Municipal Incentives, and Government Relations practices. His work focuses on facilitating responsible real estate development projects, with expertise in Real Estate Development Law, Zoning Law, Municipal Incentives/ IDA Law, and Government Relations/Municipal Law. He has represented some of the largest and most regionally significant real estate development projects on Long Island and is regularly covered and quoted in Newsday and other news media. He is a frequent lecturer to trade groups and others on the law and practice relating to Economic Development Incentives and Industrial Development Agencies.
“His career accomplishments resulted in a selection to the Long Island Business News’ ‘Hall of Fame’ in 2020. Beyond his legal practice, Mr. Deegan has a notable history of public service. In the mid- 1990s, he was appointed City Attorney for the City of Glen Cove by then-Mayor Thomas R. Suozzi, serving in that capacity through 2006.
“Dan’s commitment to the Long Island community is evident through his service on the Board of Directors of both the Long Island Association (LIA) and the Long Island Builders Institute (LIBI), where his experience and insight into development are considered valuable assets.
“He also served on the Board of the New York League of Conservation Voters (NYLCV) as Vice Chairman of the Long Island Chapter. He is an associate member of the Commercial Industrial Brokers Society of Long Island (CIBS), where he was recognized as the ‘Associate Member of the Year.’ His past roles include President of the Glen Cove Rotary and membership on the Board of Directors for the Gift of Life Foundation and the North Shore Sheltering Program, Inc., a shelter for the homeless.
“Dan is extremely humbled and honored to be named as the 2025 Favorite Son of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick on Long Island. He works hard, through dedication to both his profession and his community, to represent the values upheld by the organization in advancing their mission of advancing economic development of the homeland, as well as Long Island, and promotion of the rich culture of our ancestors.
“Always knowing he was a Son of Erin, but not having any details on family history, he visited Ireland on several occasions with family, friends and colleagues, including a trip in 2008, a semi-official delegation led by then County Executive Tom Suozzi (half-Irish!) and his Irish-American cohorts (all Friendly Sons), where they met the Taoiseach and the President of Ireland!
“Then in 2020, one of his mother Nancy O’Connell’s cousins delved into the family heritage, discovering that Dan’s great-great grandfather, Daniel O’Connell, the third of four children born to Michael and Catherine Kelly O’Connell, was born in Baslicon, County Kerry in 1844, and emigrated to the US in 1863. With this information, Dan made a pilgrimage to his ancestral homeland, with his daughters Natalie and Georgia, and members of his extended O’Connell family in 2023.
“Despite having visited Ireland on several occasions previously, it was on this visit that he first felt truly connected to his homeland. Visiting the farm and stone hut where his great-great grandfather was born, and meeting distant cousins on the land of his ancestors, Dan felt a deep connection to Ireland that he had never known before.
“Dan’s greatest treasures are his daughters Natalie and Georgia. He has shared with the his love for sailing, the Mets, traveling the world, and most importantly, Family. The oldest of four children of Francis and Nancy Deegan, he is Uncle Danny to his ten nieces and nephews, and the wise and dutiful older brother to his sisters, Kathleen (Brad Dickson), Mary (Rick Haff) and Molly (John Breen).
Finally The New York City Knights of Saint Patrick, in its unwavering dedication to supporting Downstate regional Irish cultural events and Saint Patrick’s Day parades, has presented a contribution of $1,000 to the Warwick Saint Patrick’s Day Parade. This event will be held on March 9, 2024, in the Village of Warwick, New York at 11 am with Matthias “Matty” Reilly assuming the role of Grand Marshal.
The donation was presented to Brian E. McCabe, the Chairman of the Warwick Parade Committee (a member of the New York City Knights of Saint Patrick), at the New York Athletic Club on February 11, 2024, by Knights of Saint Patrick’s Brian J. Sharkey.
Well there you have it. I hope you have enjoyed my Out&About this week and I hope to see you all again next week when I am Out&About again…