A St. Patrick’s Day Celebration

About the event

Celebrate Irish culture this St. Patrick’s Day with poet Damian Gorman, Ronnie Millar, and Laura Tavares, accompanied by live music from Regina Delaney and Frank Gibbons.

This event is co-sponsored by the Rian Immigrant Center in Boston, Massachusetts.

The event begins at 12 Noon EST/ 5PM GMT.

Damian Gorman is a poet and playwright, born and reared in Newcastle, Co. Down. Throughout his adult life he has also been an encourager of writing in other people. His own work has garnered awards as diverse as a Better Ireland Award and an MBE; a Golden Harp and a BAFTA (British Oscar). His acclaimed verse documentary about the Troubles, Devices of Detachment, has had a number of screenings on the PBS network.

He was founding director of AN CRANN/ THE TREE, a not-for-profit organisation which worked to “help tell, and hear, the stories of the Northern Irish Troubles” through the arts.

His selected poems and memoir As If I Cared was launched in the Seamus Heaney Homeplace last year, and has been enthusiastically welcomed by readers and critics alike. He was invited to record 8 poems from the book for the national poetry archive in Dublin – among them “Available Light,” commissioned by the RIAN International Immigrant Center in Boston.

In 2019 and 2020 he was International Resident Artist at the Theatre Peacebuilding Academy, and is currently a Fellow of the Oxford Initiative for Global Ethics and Human Rights.

Ronnie Millar is the executive director of the Rian Immigrant Center. Rian, formerly known as the Irish International Immigrant Center, was founded in 1989 and has become Boston’s Welcome Center for immigrants and refugees from around the globe, providing immigration legal, resource & support services, education, advocacy, and welcoming services. Ronnie is an immigrant from Belfast, Northern Ireland. He worked in technology for 20 years and then moved into human services. He served as center director of Corrymeela, Ireland’s largest peace and reconciliation center. Ronnie is a graduate of UMass Boston’s College of Public and Community Services. He is also the vice president of the Coalition of Irish Immigration Centers, and in 2020 helped co-found the Massachusetts Immigrant Collaborative; a diverse group of 15 immigrant serving organizations across the Commonwealth.

Laura Tavares is a longtime educator with a deep interest in the relationship between the study of the humanities, schooling, and democracy. She began her career teaching middle and high school in New York City and Boston, before joining the staff of Facing History and Ourselves, a global education non-profit which uses the lessons of history to challenge teachers and students to stand up to bigotry and hate. She is currently at work on a new non-profit startup, the WPS Institute, which creates transformative learning experiences for educators from the highest need schools and communities in the country. She is also a recurring faculty member at Harvard’s Project Zero Classroom Institute and a fellow of the Transatlantic Exchange of Civic Educators. Laura writes about history, current events and education for publications including the New York Times, Educational Leadership, Greater Good Magazine, and Social Education.

Regina Delaney is a harper, singer, and dancer. She has been performing traditional Irish music since 1997. As an artist on the NH State Council on the Arts roster and the MaineArts Commission, Regina performs and teaches in schools throughout the state. She introduces students to Irish poetry, music, song, dance, history, and literature. Regina is also an artist on the NH Arts in Healthcare Roster, bringing her music into hospitals, hospices, and other institutions. Regina also founded and directs The New England Irish Harp Orchestra.

Frank Gibbons is a lifelong musician, having first learned to play the penny whistle at age seven. He is an immigrant, having grown up in Ireland, but has lived in the US since the 1990’s. A founding member of the Boston Uilleann Pipers Club, he’s studied with many of the great performers and teachers of uilleann pipes, and has performed previously for RIAN and other audiences. A scientist by training and occupation, he believes music enriches life beyond measure, and delights in sharing it with all who feel similarly, regardless of background.

The Rian Immigrant Center is Boston’s welcome center for immigrants and refugees. Their vision is of a shared society where all are welcomed and valued, and enjoy equal opportunities and protections. By embracing their Irish traditions of hospitality and social justice, they empower more than 3,500 immigrant and refugee families from over 120 different countries every year with a comprehensive range of support services.