You don’t have to be Irish, collect four-leaf clovers or know one green stitch about the traditions of Ireland, although it adds meaning if you do, to be lucky and enjoy a Tri-Valley St. Patrick’s Day celebration.
Just ask Green & White Gala co-chair and 46-year Dublin resident Sheri Murray. The annual dinner and dance hosted March 16 by the Dublin Sister City Association precedes area festivities and honors guests from Dublin’s sister city, Bray, Ireland. “I’m not Irish,” says Murray in a phone interview. “You don’t have to be Irish to be interested in community.”
Community will be everywhere in the valley during the St. Patrick’s Day weekend.
Livermore jumps in for a warmup on the 16th with an appearance by traditional Irish band Danú at the Bankhead Theater. The upbeat, energetic songs are accompanied by flute, fiddle, button accordion, Uilleann pipes, whistle, Irish Bouzouki, guitar and Bodhran. Authentic Irish folk music is social music, the domain of storytellers, musicians and singers whose improvisational skills are rooted in century-old traditions and technique, according to a representative of the band.
The morning after dancing at the Sister City dinner or in the aisles at the Bankhead, there are green pancakes courtesy of Alameda County firefighters. There’s a $5 per person charge for a green stack; money raised supports charitable endeavors of Local 55. Clean your plate and remember to say “thank you.”
If you haven’t overindulged, the 20th Annual Shamrock 5L Fun Run & Walk begins at 8:30 a.m. and is open for on-site walkups, although serious competitors will be registered and able to pick up their race packets the day prior. Last year over 2,000 people participated. With three top finishers in each age group receiving medallions and Dick Sporting Goods gift certificates, all preregistered participants depart with an event t-shirt.
Sitting might be more your forté and if it is, the 35th Annual Dublin Lions Club Parade starts promptly at 9:30 a.m. at Dublin Boulevard at the corner of Amador Plaza Road.
Dublin Parks and Community Services Recreation Coordinator Stephanie Mein says, “We’ve been making green for 35 years. We have music on three stages and 250 vendor booths. There’s food like corn beef and cabbage that’s an Americanized version of Irish cuisine and even includes corn beef sliders. But we also have boxty (Irish potato pancake), colcannon (potatoes mashed with cabbage, milk and spices) and shamrock shaped funnel cakes with Bailey’s whipped cream.” An Irish marketplace offers Celtic jewelry, Irish wool sweaters, teas, candies and other goods.
“The music is my favorite part,” says Mein. “With dancing, it sets the tone: happy, like an Irish pub with everyone having a good time.” Carnival rides available during the two-day festival attract families—and not just the descendants of the German and Irish settlers who first established their immigrant homes in the Tri-Valley. “We get a really diverse cross-range,” says Mein. “Everyone shares in the Irish heritage because we celebrate settling in a new land. No matter what the heritage, we can all participate.”
Aimed at adults age 21 and over, Pleasanton’s St. Patrick’s Day Brew Crawl starts March 17 at the Museum on Main. Craft beer, cider and small bites from over 30 establishments in the city’s burgeoning breweries are likely to attract a record crowd of people wearing green and various St. Patrick’s Day accessories. A limited number of reduced price tickets available for designated drivers reflect the Pleasanton Downtown Association’s advisory to behave responsibly—in everything except attire, of course.
Murray says she was drawn nearly a half a century ago to the small town atmosphere of Dublin. She remembers when the city was a mile-and-a-half-square and had only two stoplights. There were cows in the fields. “It was intimate,” she says. Pleased to see strong interest in community events, especially from the large Indian population centered in East Dublin, she says attendance at the Sister City dinner has boomed: 120 reservations are the highest number ever and caused a relocation this year from the senior center to the (larger) Shannon Community Center. “The activities and happiness of St. Patrick’s Day brings the city together,” she says. “Dublin’s small town atmosphere, this brings us back to that.”
Lou Fancher covers Tri-Valley arts and entertainment. Reach her at lou@johnsonandfancher.com.
FYI
Several Tri-Valley wineries, bars, breweries and food establishments have special activities, tastings, menu items and live music. Visit these websites for information:
http://www.dublin.ca.gov/873/Festival-Highlights
https://pleasantondowntownassociation.instagift.com/st-patricks-day-brew-crawl-2018