Our December gathering will be our annual Christmas Ceili, and it will take place on Thursday, December 5th this year. The ceili will be a potluck as in years past, so please plan to bring something yummy to share. This will be a fun event for all ages, so encourage your extended family to attend. And people definitely don’t need to be IAS members or even Irish to attend, so bring friends! The more the merrier.
Please consider arriving early to help us with décor and set up. Please note that we will not start going through the buffet until 7:00 pm in order to get everything set up properly. If your dinnertime is earlier, then please eat a snack in the afternoon that will tide you over until 7 pm.
PLEASE BRING WHATEVER CANNED GOODS AND OTHER NONPERISHABLE FOOD ITEMS YOU CAN SPARE TO THE MEETING IN DECEMBER TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE CHURCH’S FOOD PANTRY FOR THOSE LESS FORTUNATE. Let’s try to brighten the holiday season for others. And please don’t forget that the IAS is “adopting” a unit currently deployed to Afghanistan to try to brighten their holiday season as well. Please bring items to contribute to a care package for them that the IAS will ship in December.
As in the previous two years, please note that the holiday decoration contest at our Christmas Ceili will have 3 categories: (1) table centerpiece, (2) wreath/door hanging, and (3) ornament. I will be calling on some of you to help with the judging. There will be actual score sheets, and each entry will be judged on beauty, creativity, and artisanship. Bragging rights are at stake, plus I have some nice Irish seasonal prizes for the winners!
Edward is organizing live music for us for the party. If you play, please bring an instrument and sit in! We are very fortunate to have so many talented people in our area. And don’t forget your dance shoes if you are so inclined! It would be really fun to have some ceili dancing as we often have in years gone past.
It’s sure to be a lovely night of fun, festivity, and fellowship – don’t miss out! And BYOC! (Bring your own cooler!)
I also wanted to mention that those of you interested in some IRISH holiday shopping might want to be aware of the following wonderful gifts and stocking stuffers that will be available for purchase at our IAS Christmas Ceili!
1. The gift of an IAS membership for 2014 to friends or family members who are not already members. $25 for a family membership, $20 for an individual membership
2. IRISH peanuts! Joe Brady has delicious Virginia peanuts bagged and ready to enjoy or ship as gifts! $3 per bag/$5 for two bags – IAS fundraiser
3. The NYC Dempsey Pub Seisiuns “Beautiful People” dvd/cd combo (Outstanding documentary about the oldest running trad music session in NYC which we watched at the July 2012 IAS meeting!) – You get the documentary DVD and the soundtrack CD both for one low price! $25/each – IAS fundraiser
4. Peace on Earth – Edward Brash’s first full-length Christmas cd! $10 each
5. For the Goat in All of Us – Glasgow Kiss’s latest cd! $10 each
