The City of Federal Way celebrated its seventh annual Irish flag raising ceremony March 17, celebrating Irish heritage and history on St. Patrick’s Day.

Local community member Craig Patrick hosted the event, introducing speakers including Mayor Jim Ferrell, who shared a proclamation from the city and leaders in local Irish groups.

Patrick and other community members have been busy participating in St. Patrick’s Day celebrations around the region, including marching in last Saturday’s St. Patrick’s Day parade in Seattle despite rainy conditions.

Another annual tradition that accompanies the flag raising is an award for community members who embody “the spirit of St. Patrick.”

This year’s award winners included Vickie Chynoweth and Jim Ross. Chynoweth was honored for her community involvement, especially her recent action to bring back a Veterans Day ceremony for the first time since it was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I love this community,” Chynoweth told the Mirror, and said she’s a big believer that “in order to get change, you have to get involved.”

In presenting Ross’s award, Patrick said Ross is “always advocating for safety,” and praised him for being willing to open up his restaurant, Billy McHale’s, for social and nonprofit events no matter the political affiliation of the group.

“Jim’s really been an outstanding member of the community who’s been a stable part of the community for a very long time,” Patrick said.

This year’s event also featured Rich Finn, who shared the background of the organization Vox Hiberniae, which is Latin for “Voice of the Irish.”

The group hosts an “internet information portal dedicated to posting current and historic insights on the Irish and Irish diaspora through articles, humor, and information gleaned from archival and up to date postings,” according to their website. The group shares that they “support and advocate for the welfare of the Pacific Northwest Irish, Irish organizations here or abroad, clubs, charities and fundraisers.”

Caron McMahon, who also spoke, is a recent immigrant from Ireland, moving to the United States in 2016. She is now the President of the Irish Heritage Club of Seattle.

McMahon described the resilient Irish spirit and the impetus for the flow of Irish immigrants to the United States over the years.

Today there are only 5.3 million people in Ireland, but 70 million around the world who claim Irish heritage, she said.

Many of those who came to the United States in the 19th century “left Ireland because of famine. Left because they had no other choice. They had no other future, and they went and left their families and their hardships behind to try and find a way forward.”

McMahon explained after the event that in addition to the famine, economic challenges and land inheritance laws in a predominantly agriculture-based economy also drove immigration from Ireland to the United States in the 19th century.

“Sometimes it just wasn’t enough from the land to raise the whole family, so then someone had to go and leave and send money home,” McMahon said.

Today these reasons of “better work and educational opportunities, a better future for their children, and more rights and freedoms,” are still the most common reasons for people to immigrate to the United States, according to a survey by KFF in partnership with the Los Angeles Times during spring 2023.

For Ireland, McMahon said that “as the centuries have changed, now people are choosing to leave because of their intelligence and the influence that they can actually produce across the world,” and spoke to the strong position of the country internationally today. She also celebrated the modern and changing face of the country as it becomes more diverse.

Although other groups bear the brunt of anti-immigrant sentiment today, Irish Americans were some of the first to be deported without cause and targeted by xenophobic political groups. A case can be made that the Irish were the first targets of deportation policy in the U.S., as the Irish Times described in a 2017 article.

To recent immigrants to the U.S. from any country, McMahon said “just be patient. It may feel very tough and hard for the first six, eight months, as you’re waiting for work permits and you’re trying to find your professional identity here and community identity here … just be brave, and just don’t try and make things happen too fast. The right thing will come.”

Irish immigrants can connect to community in the U.S. in many ways, and both McMahon and Finn recommended getting involved with the local Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) clubs. Local groups include the Tacoma Rangers club and the Seattle Gaels.

Another local resource for Irish community and culture is the dance studio in Federal Way that is the home of the Fire and Ice Irish Dance Company, located at 32911 1st Ave. S., Suite D.

Mayor Jim Ferrell and Craig Patrick stand under the flag before it is raised as Rich Finn of the Vox Hibernaiae (Voice of the Irish) speaks. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / the Mirror

Caron McMahon spoke at the Federal Way Irish flag raising in her capacity as the President of the Seattle Irish Heritage Club. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / the Mirror

Guests at the flag raising event were decked out in green – even down to the dogs! Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang/the Mirror

Steve Groom is the finance director for the city of Federal Way but served the city in another capacity on St. Patrick’s Day with his bagpipes. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang/the Mirror

Federal Way community members celebrating the flag raising on St. Patrick’s Day. Photo by Keelin Everly-Lang / the Mirror