The Friends of Irish Studies in the West

The Friends of Irish Studies Activities for 20222022 saw the Friends of Irish Studies become fully active again in promoting Irish culture in Montana. In the course of that year, the organization raised a considerable amount of funding and used this resource to revive old programs and to create new ones. Listed below are all the activities that Friends were involved in for that year. Supporting Organizations and Institutions Promoting Irish Culture:The following accounts lists the names of the institutions or societies the Friends supported in 2021. The University of Montana Irish Studies Program1.Fulbright Teaching Assistants - The Friends provided financial support to offset the costs of bringing a Fulbright teaching assistants, Hannah Collins, for the academic year 2021/22, and Darragh OKeeffe and Eilis OHerlihy for the academic year 2022/23.2.Internship The Friends offered an internship to a young Irish student, Shay Evans, in the fall of 2022. Shay assisted the Friends in promoting cultural activities. He assisted young hurlers learning the game and he organized various cultural events for students to improve their competence in the Irish language.3.Documentary Film - The Friends provided funding to cover the post-production costs of this movie. The project is also funded by the Irish Studies program, the Montana Film Office, and the Greater Montana Foundation.4.The Friends sponsored an Irish Studies outreach to Flathead Community College in February 2022. The purpose of the presentation was to introduce students, faculty and community members to the program and to invite them to avail of some of the offerings in language, history, an literature. The Butte Silver Bow Archives1.Digitization Project The Friends donated $7,000 to the Butte Silver Bow Archives to assist in the digitization of primary written material, photographs and images relating to the history of the Irish in Montana. The Ancient Order of Hibernians1.The Friends donated $5,000 to Division 1, Butte, of the AOH to assist in the restoration of St. Patricks Cemetery and to provide historical markers that identify the plots and tell the history of the members of Irish nationalist organizations who are buried in these plots.The Montana World Affairs Council1.The Friends partnered with the Irish Consulate in San Francisco, the Montana World Affairs Council, the Butte Silver Bow Archives, Irish Studies at the University of Montana and with public schools and community groups in Montana and Ireland to create a high school virtual exchange program. The Friends also donated $12,000 to this project. Listed below are the schools and organizations on both sides of the Atlantic that participated in this venture:Montanai.The Butte Silver Bow Archivesii.The Montana Office of Public Instructioniii.The Butte Silver Bow Public Schoolsiv.Project for Alternative Learning [PAL] high school, Helenav.Hays Lodgepole high school, Fort Belknap. vi.The Friends of Irish Studiesvii.The Ancient Order of Hibernians Irelandi.The Fulbright Commission, Ireland.ii.The Allihies Copper Mining Museum.iii.Waterpark College high school (Waterford).iv.Scoil Phobail Bheara high school (Cork)v.Cahermore National School (Cork). vi.Scoil an Chro R Naofa (Cork)vii.Coliste Ghobnatan high school (Cork).Cultural ActivitiesSt. Patricks Day Celebration 1.The Friends sponsored an online concert of Irish music, song and story. People from all over the world tuned in for the event, placing Montana on the international map as a place with a robust tradition in Irish language, music, and song. 2.The Friends worked with the Ancient Order of Hibernians to organize the 2022 St. Patricks Day celebrations. Beginning with Mass, the program included an afternoon of music and dance and an event banquet and auction. Over 300 people attended the evening banquet, the largest attendance to date. Irish Language Instruction 1.Evening classes The Friends sponsored ten-week Irish language evening courses for non-traditional students in the spring and fall of 2022. Over 100 students from all over the United States participated in these courses2.Summer course The Friends sponsored a two-week online summer program of Irish languages courses in July 2022. The courses were directed at teachers and offered Montana Office of Public Instruction credits. 27 people participated.Irish Dance1.The Friends assisted the Missoula Irish Dance Association to stage their Christmas recital. Members of the Friends secured the location for the event and also donated over $1,300 to offset the costs.Irish Hurling1.The Friends of Irish Studies donated $1500 for the promotion of the Irish game of hurling in Montana. Mission Mountain Music Camp 1.The Friends organized and funded the third traditional Irish music summer camp in Montana. This was a four-day event, and over 100 musicians participated.New CoursesIrish Language Courses The Friends continue to fund the creation of new online and blended courses in Irish culture. Irish Traditional Song The Friends funded the creation of a new course in Traditional Irish Music that was offered for the first time in the spring of 2023.