Snow held off for Mineola St. Patrick’s parade
Kelly Schlittenhardt, 22, of Bay Shore, was named Miss Irish America of Queens, Nassau and Suffolk for the 64th St. Patrick's Day parade in Mineola. Credit: Emi Feldman
Hundreds of people lined Mineola streets Sunday for the 64th St. Patrick’s Day parade.
The one-mile-long celebration included more than 50 participants, including Irish step dancers, pipe players, drummers, marching bands and a Portuguese folk dance group.
As the parade neared the grandstand, Eileen Schlittenhardt, 49, of Bay Shore, used her iPhone to proudly record her daughter, Kelly, 22, who was introduced as “Miss Irish America of Queens, Nassau and Suffolk.”
“We’re very proud of Kelly. She’s continuing the Irish heritage and makes her grandfather very proud,” Schlittenhardt said.
Irish American Society President Pat Kearney said celebrating heritage is an important aspect of the holiday.
“It’s really a celebration of St. Patrick,” Kearney said. “Something like this keeps me connected to the heritage.”
The Sunday weather also held up, although Jeff Clark, the parade chairman and Mineola Fire Department chief, said “I wasn’t going to let it rain on my parade. We were going to have it no matter what.”
Top salaries on town, city payrolls ... Record November home prices ... Rocco's Taco's at Walt Whitman Shops ... After 47 years, affordable housing
Top salaries on town, city payrolls ... Record November home prices ... Rocco's Taco's at Walt Whitman Shops ... After 47 years, affordable housing
