Washington's Irish Ball

“May the Kingdom of Ireland merit a stripe in the American Standard”
– Marquis de Lafayette, 1779 on the contributions of the Irish to the American Revolution

OVERVIEW

The Irish American Cultural Institute’s Washington’s St. Patrick’s Day Ball commemorates George Washington’s declaration of St. Patrick’s Day as a holiday while his troops were encamped in Morristown during the American Revolution in 1780, “as an act of solidarity with Irish in their fight for independence…”

This fundraising gala, held annually during the St. Patrick’s Day season since 1994, offers the opportunity to honor a distinguished Irish-American for their contributions to arts & culture, community, heritage, or business. The evening is a blend of history, pageantry, music, and dance with the Annie Moore Award presentation as its centerpiece. Annie Moore, a 15 year old from County Cork, Ireland, was the first immigrant processed at Ellis Island on January 1, 1892, and is representative of the contributions of the Irish to this country. The Irish American Cultural Institute conceived and developed the project that resulted in statues of Annie Moore being placed at Ellis Island and her departure point in Ireland, Cobh. Each year the IACI honors an outstanding Irish American with an award bearing her name.

A highlight of the evening is the posting of flags and the reading of Washington’s orders for the day by members of the National Park Service, in colonial costume, accompanied by the Spirit of Liberty, a fife and drum band.

The annual gala benefits the established educational, arts, and cultural programming of the Irish American Cultural Institute. For more information on the Irish during the American Revolution, please click here.

BACKGROUND - Download Ball Background (PDF)

People from Ireland were the largest single group to arrive in the thirteen colonies in the seventy-five years leading up to the American Revolution. Having fled an oppressive system at home, these immigrants needed little persuasion to enlist in the cause of American liberty. Many people of Irish ancestry, therefore, are to be found among the officers and leaders of the rebellion. Sources claim anywhere from 35% -66% of the colonial forces were Irish.

Irish born participants in the Revolution and the birth of this nation include:

The first Secretary of the Continental Congress and the designer of the Great Seal of the United States, Charles Thomsom
3 signers of the Declaration of Independence: Matthew Thorton, James Smith and George Taylor; six were of Irish background: Charles Carroll, Thomas Lynch, Thomas McKean, Edward Rutledge and George Read
4 signers of the Constitution: Pierce Butler, Thomas Fitzsimmons, James McHenry and William Patterson
Printer of the Declaration of Independence, John Dunlop
The father of the American Navy, John Barry
5 Aides de camp of General Washington
Sharpshooter Tim Murphy of Morgan’s Rifles
Sixteen generals were from Ireland, including Generals Moylan, Montgomery, Knox
The Pennsylvania Line was also known as the Line of Ireland
First units to be sent by France were the Irish Brigades under Walsh, Dillon and Roche
State governors, Thomas Burke of North Carolina and John McKinly of South Carolina; first governor of Pennsylvania – George Bryan
Fedanus Burke, one of the most notable figures in revolutionary South Carolina.
Washington’s intelligence men: Hercules Mulligan and John Honeyman
Architect of the White House, James Hoban

Thus, the Irish were an integral part in the fight against the British during the American War of Independence. They are rarely recognized for their contributions.

Download Ball Sponsorship Opportunities (PDF)

OUR HONOREE

Kathleen McGinnis DiChiara
Founder, Community FoodBank of New Jersey

As President and CEO of the Community FoodBank of New Jersey, Kathleen McGuinnis DiChiara oversees 108 staff members, more than 22,000 volunteers, two warehouses, and a small fleet of trucks. Beginning in 1975, Kathleen provided food for the needy from the back of her station wagon. Three years later, she began the Emergency Food Program for the Archdiocese of Newark, and two years after that, she founded FoodBank.

In 1982, Kathleen formed a nonprofit corporation called the Community FoodBank of New Jersey that began operation with a staff of five in a former slaughterhouse in Newark. That year, Community FoodBank distributed 75,000 pounds of food to 80 charities. Today it provides 20 million pounds of food and groceries annually to more than 1,500 charities. In addition, a commercial kitchen, a job training facility, a food rescue program, Kids Cafes, a children's clothing distribution center, and a thrift shop all operate from FoodBank's 280,000-square-foot warehouse. A community garden, emergency pantry, and food rescue program operate from a 28,000-square-foot branch outside Atlantic City.

Kathleen has received numerous awards, both local and national, including those from three presidents, three governors, and Pope John Paul II. She has a B.S. in Education from the State University of New York at Oneonta and six honorary doctorates from colleges and universities in New Jersey.

The Irish American Cultural Institute is pleased to honor Kathleen as our 15th recipient of the Annie Moore Award. For a list of previous honorees, please click here.

“On more than one imminent occasion, Congress owed their existence, and America possibly her preservation, to the fidelity and firmness of the Irish.” George Grieve, Travels in North America, in the Years 1780, 1781 and 1782