Our May edition: Irish Polar Bears. Winter Sowing. Game of Catan. And more...
Calendar of Events
Our list of what's going on in the Maryland Irish set and ceili dance scene, plus a little more.
Birthdays A Week Around Today
Diane M, Liz W
Our annual meeting is coming up on Tuesday September 21. Please come and hear about — and contribute — ideas on celebrating our longevity and getting back on the dance floor!
The Book Club delves into Three Words for Goodbye on Wednesday September 22, via Zoom.-
"The Inside Story about the Irish of Dupont Circle" - a walking Tour sponsored by the RKIDs, on Saturday October 9th. The Irish played a major role in the development of Washington, DC. There is evidence of this throughout the city. On this guided tour, you will learn about how it pertains to the Dupont Circle area. Sign-up and more information is here.
Quick Steps
Membership is Open!
Because the pandemic severely constrains our ability to meet in person, we currently aren't offering set and ceili dance classes. But we are providing periodic social activities, whether online via Zoom, or, when possible, physically together. Please join us for $20 per year per person. Download our membership application from right here, but please note the questions about your Covid vaccination status on the first page. If you want to participate in face-to-face activities, for now you must be vaccinated and provide proof of same with your application. More information on membership.
F O R M
Lending Library
Check out the interesting reads and media you can borrow from our library for members. New items were added as of September 15.
Book Discussions
Book Discussion Club registration is open. Every member who is interested in participating may sign up. Contact Sonja via her email as listed in our membership directory. Discussion sessions will be conducted via Zoom on designated Wednesdays; see our events calendar. Registrants will get an email from Tom O. with connection instructions shortly before each discussion date. There will also be an outline of ideas to discuss. You have to acquire the books on your own. Enjoy the readings! On the soon-to-review agenda are:-
A novel by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb, Three Words for Goodbye. New York, 1937: When estranged sisters Clara and Madeleine Sommers learn their grandmother, Violet, is dying, they agree to fulfill her last wish, which is to travel across Europe—together. They are to deliver three letters, in which Violet will say goodbye to those she hasn’t seen since traveling to Europe forty years earlier. The tension mounts as they wonder if they can fulfil Violet’s wish, until a shocking truth about their family brings them closer together. To be discussed on Wednesday September 22.
Upcoming Readings (click here)
| How the Irish Saved Civilization | |
|---|---|
| by Thomas Cahill | |
| Date: | Wednesday October 27, 2021 |
| Time: | 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm |
 | In this entertaining and compelling narrative, Thomas Cahill tells the story of how Europe evolved from the classical age of Rome to the medieval era. Without Ireland, the transition could not have taken place. Not only did Irish monks and scribes maintain the very record of Western civilization - copying manuscripts of Greek and Latin writers, both pagan and Christian, while libraries and learning on the continent were forever lost - they brought their uniquely Irish world-view to the task. (From the publisher, Random House) |
| Contact: | Sonja |
| From a Low and Quiet Sea | |
| by Donal Ryan | |
| Date: | Wednesday November 24, 2021 |
| Time: | 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm |
 | A moving novel of three men, each searching for something they have lost, from the award-winning and Man Booker nominated author, Donal Ryan. (Amazon) |
| Contact: | Sonja |
| More About This: | NOTE: Yes, this is the day before Thanksgiving. When we discussed this book several weeks ago, we felt it was okay to have the discussion on this day. |
| In the Woods | |
| by Tana French | |
| Date: | Wednesday January 26, 2022 |
| Time: | 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm |
 | The plot of the novel circles around the murder of a twelve-year-old girl, Katy Devlin, whose case Rob and his partner Cassie Maddox are assigned to investigate. The body is found in the same woods where Rob's friends disappeared, at an archaeological dig site; and the coincidence is enough to make Rob nervous, though he insists to his partner that he is fine. (Wikipedia) The is a long book (464 pages), but comes highly recommended by several members of the Book Club. It is the first in a series known as the Dublin Murder Squad. |
| Contact: | Sonja or Marilyn O. |
| A Star Called Henry | |
| by Roddy Doyle | |
| Date: | Wednesday February 23, 2022 |
| Time: | 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm |
 | This book describes the early years of Henry Smart's adventure-filled life in early 20th century Ireland. Readers will get caught up in the fight for a free Ireland as did Henry at the age of 14. (Must-Read Books of 2021) |
| Contact: | Sonja |
| The Pull of the Stars | |
| by Emma Donoghue | |
| Date: | Wednesday April 27, 2022 |
| Time: | 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm |
 | In an Ireland doubly ravaged by war and disease, Nurse Julia Power works at an understaffed hospital in the city center, where expectant mothers who have come down with the terrible new Flu are quarantined together. Into Julia's regimented 1918 world step two outsiders, Doctor Kathleen Lynn, a rumored Rebel on the run from the police, and a young volunteer helper, Bridie Sweeney. (Goodreads) |
| Contact: | Sonja |
The dances we practice are selected from popular MD-DC-VA ceili and set dance group lists as well as other sources. Learn more about us.
