City leaders will mark the 20th anniversary of Newport’s Sister City relationship with Kinsale, Ireland later this week as Mayor Jamie Bova and members of the Newport City Council welcome a delegation from the Bandon-Kinsale Municipal District as part of the City’s annual St. Patrick’s Day celebration.
This year’s visit will be led by the Chair of the Bandon-Kinsale District, the Cllr. Aidan Lombard and his partner, Irene O’Driscoll. They will be joined by former Mayor Charles Henderson and his wife, Teresa; John Twomey, the long-time chair of the Kinsale-Newport Twinning Committee; and Claire O’Donovan, Clerical Officer for the Bandon Kinsale Municipal District and her niece, Sharon Buckley.
All will march in Newport’s 63rd Annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade on Saturday, March 16, 2019.
To help kick off the festivities, all are invited to join a welcome reception at the Edward King House on Friday, March 15th from 6-7 p.m. During the reception members of the delegation will be introduced to the public and a gift exchange will take place between the two communities. Guests will also be treated to light refreshments and performances by the Ancient Order of Hibernian’s Men’s Chorus along with singers Carmela Geer and Regina Chase.
In addition to taking part in the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade, the delegation is also expected to attend a special forum hosted by the Aquidneck Island Planning Commission addressing the future of housing on Aquidneck Island, followed by a formal meeting with the Mayor and guided tours of the Newport Art Museum, and other cultural attractions.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of Newport’s sister-city relationship with Kinsale, a historic port and fishing town on the coast of County Cork, Ireland. Like Newport, Kinsale boasts a significant military history, seasonal tourism economy, and is known for its lively restaurant scene.
Bonded by common geography and bolstered by Newport’s own proud Irish community, the two cities have forged a particularly strong connection since formally establishing a Sister City relationship, with regular cultural exchanges centered around St. Patrick’s Day and Kinsale’s celebrated annual Gourmet Festival, in which many chefs from Newport have taken part over the years.
