A week and change after St. Patrick’s Day, Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine and the Suffolk County Legislature honored residents with Irish heritage in the Third Annual Irish American Heritage Celebration.
Deputy Presiding Officer Steven J. Flotteron organized the midday event, which took place at the H. Lee Dennison Building in Hauppauge on Wednesday, March 26.
Flotteron brought forward the bill the Legislature unanimously passed in 2019 to establish March as Irish American Heritage Month. Approximately 300,000 Suffolk County citizens claim Irish ancestry.
The National Anthems of both Ireland and the United States were sung that day, in addition to musical performances by the Suffolk County Policy Emerald Society Pipes and Drums, and the Hibernian Festival.
Said Presiding Officer Kevin J. McCaffrey: “As a proud member of the Irish American community, I was pleased to honor Patricia Rattigan, the daughter of Irish American parents, with grandparents who immigrated from Ireland-County Clare, County Derry and County Donegal.
Rattigan has been a member of the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernerians for more than 50 years.
She served on both the Suffolk County and New York State Board for a decade, eventually rising to the rank of elected President of the former.
After her tenure, she also served on the Suffolk County 1917 Committee—wherein she raised for the Central Islip-located monument and collaborated with the Babylon Breast Cancer Coalition to the tune of $30,000 donations secured. She also sits at the leadership helm of the “Then and Now Club.”
“At Division Two in Babylon, Patricia has served as President and has chaired numerous events and committees, including the creation of an Outreach Dance to raise money for nine parish food pantries,” McCaffrey adds.
“The Dance has raised more than $200,000. Patricia has also been part of the Celtic Degree Team for 25 years, coordinating the initiation of new members and giving them an overview of how Ancient Ireland and its history is relevant to the present.”
Additional honorees included John Cuddy, Theresa Belkin, Thomas McKenna, Daniel Stapleton, William Paquette, Brian T. Egan, Michael Coyne, Harry Brown, Leslie Lanigan, John J. Wahlberg, Dr. Donald G. Lynch, Susan Benjes, Michael J. Gilmartin, Peigi Fabian and MarryAnne Barry Granato.