Irish Fest Information – UPDATED

The Milwaukee Hurling Club at (August 19th – 22nd)

For the past 14 years, the Milwaukee Hurling Club has been an active participant in Milwaukee’s Irish Fest. Each year the MHC manages a booth in the Cultural Village to talk to people about the “National Sport of Ireland”…conversations include the rules of hurling, which counties will be in the All-Ireland Hurling Finals, the folklore of Cuchulain, the Gaelic Athletic Association/North American GAA, and the MHC/our memberships/what we are like/why people should give hurling a try.

One popular feature of our booth and the festival is our “hitting tube”, where people line up to get a chance to give the sliotar a whack with a hurley.

For even more culture, we are welcoming back for a 2nd year in a row, master craftsman and hurley maker, Philip Doyle, Sr. Philip will be traveling from the mountains of County Wexford to demonstrate the very fine art of hurley making, a true cottage industry in Ireland. Philip is considered among the best hurley makers in the world and we are honored to have him back.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR MHC BOOTH

We are looking for people to work in our booth in the Cultural Village. All volunteers should have an understanding of hurling, the rules, and the various memberships the MHC offers. We will also be selling merchandise, so any youth volunteer will need to be supervised. Each two hour shift will also require one person to work in the hitting tube and be comfortable and good at giving direction on striking the ball. In most cases, we would like players with more than one year of playing experience.

For the shifts listed below, we are in need of 1 more person per shift. Rebecca will be at Brown Deer Park for camogie practice Tuesday night for those who still need to pick up their admission passes. If picking them up Tuesday night does not work, please contact Rebecca.

Available Shifts:
Friday: 6-10pm
Saturday: 10-12am
Sunday: 5-7pm, 7-8:30pm
People interested in volunteering should email Rebecca Sigmon.

SCRIMMAGE SCHEDULE
Irish Fest is a lot of fun, especially when playing hurling to music! Our field schedule is listed below. No RSVP’s are needed – simply show up ready to play. All participants will get a festival ticket.

Saturday:
12:30 – 1:45: Adult/Open Scrimmage
2:00 - 3:15: Camogie Game (open to MHC women/girls 12+)
3:30 – 4:45: Men’s Traveling Team Game (by invitation)

Sunday:
11:00-12:15: Youth Clinic (FREE – Pass the word)
12:30 – 1:45: MHC Youth U15
2:00 – 3:15: MHC Youth U12
3:30 – 4:45: Adult/Open Scrimmage

ASH TREES NEEDED!
As we did last year, the MHC is looking for a few ash trees to be used for making hurleys (by Philip Doyle). Please let us know if you know of any ash trees that can be cut down and donated. It is very important that the tree not be cut down yet, as making a hurley requires much of the base of the tree that has a specific cut.

SPONSORSHIP HAPPENINGS at IRISH FEST
Be sure to look for some of our sponsors at the festival when you are there.
A perennial favorite for food, McBob’s can be found dishing out their great cooking towards the North End of the festival.
Also be sure to stop by the Jameson Tasting Lounge, located in the middle of the festival, by the Tipperary Tea Room.
The County Clare will be talking about their great travel packages to Ireland and the Castledaly Manor.
Slim McGinns will also be cooking up great food for all festival goers.
And there is an unconfirmed thought that Mystic Ireland will be selling their wares for some great shopping for us all.

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