You don't have

to be Irish to appreciate St. Patrick's Day. However, Fayette County is

home to a large number of second and third generation Irish and a few

original Irish transplants.

The town of

Tyrone was settled by Irish farmers in the 1800s. It was purportedly named

Tyrone because the area reminded the original Irish settlers of the County

Tyrone of Ireland. Some of the original homes built by the Irish immigrants

who founded the town are still occupied by their descendants.

March 17 is

an Irish holiday honoring Saint Patrick. The missionary, who was not actually

Irish, is credited with converting the Irish to Christianity in the 400s.

Saint Patrick

used the shamrock, which resembles a three-leaf clover, as a metaphor

to explain the Holy Trinity the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. His use of

the shamrock led to its being considered an Irish national symbol.

In honor of

Saint Patrick, we set out to discover how some local Prime Timers would

be celebrating the traditional feast day. In America, everyone is Irish

on the 17th, so we talked to a few who will just be wearing the green

for the day!

Some Prime

Timers are going to take a trip to Buckhead for the 120th Saint Patrick's

Day Parade. This year the parade will have over 22 floats, bands of every

kind, military units, and all the fun of the Irish. The parade starts

at 1 p.m.

The grand marshals

will be John McDermott, one of the Three Irish Tenors, and Malachy McCourt,

actor and author. For information on the parade, call 770-594-7110 or

visit their web site at www.stpatsparadeatlanta.com/welcome.htm .

McDermott will be in concert the evening of the 17th with The Atlanta

Symphony Orchestra.

Four lovely

lasses from our fair county will be traveling to New York for their famous

parade.

Colette (Duggan)

Dunne said in her lilting Irish, "I lived in New York for 25 years

and never went to the parade." She also plans to visit another place

she missed while living there, Ellis Island.

She's leaving

her husband, Jim Dunne, also Irish, at home and is going to enjoy the

Irish festivities and take in a few sites with her friends Nan Holohan,

Geraldine Flanagan and Ann Quinn. With strong Irish names like those,

they should all fit right in! (We have asked them to share some pictures

and tales from their trip with us in next month's Prime Timer Pages.)

Just in case

Jim would like to see if he can catch some of their shenanigans, he can

follow the parade on the web at www.earthcam.com/stpats/2000/index.html .

Earthcam has past parades, will have this year's parade and a few others

from around the world.

The Peachtree

City Rotary Club is holding a party on Saint Patrick's Day, quite a few

will be celebrating at the event. John and Laura Musil with Kwik Kopy

Printing in Peachtree City will be pretending their Irish at the event.

Conna, a.k.a.

Connie Graham, of Irish descent, is planning to celebrate the holiday

in Minneapolis with her husband John, part Irish, and their three granddaughters.

Their idea of a grand St. Pat's is a dip in a heated pool with a side

trip to the sauna. Who knows, maybe the hotel will dye the water in the

pool green.

J.D. and Varner

Holmes also plan to spend the time with their family. However, they are

having a "pre-St. Patrick's Day" celebration for the Fayette

County Chamber of Commerce March 17. Green Apple Pucker Punch, Irish fare

and the tallest Leprechaun in or out of Ireland will be just a few of

the highlights. They plan to give away a Pot of Gold's Gym prizes, have

a hunt for lucky 4-leaf clovers and other fun for Chamber members.

The libraries

in the county all decorate and have story hours or other events to celebrate

throughout the month. Contact the libraries for schedules. The library

is a great place to find information on the holiday, Ireland and its traditions.

Be sure to take a look at their bulletin boards for other local events.