2020 Irish Fest is almost here

It is almost that time again! The 26th annual Manhattan Irish Fest will take place March 6th and March 7th in downtown Manhattan. The Irish American Society of County Will (IASCW) is once again the official Fest host in conjunction with the Village of Manhattan. The parade will begin at 11 AM on Saturday, March 7th beginning on North Street then proceeding to State Street. The parade is led by runners participating in the Irish Fest 5K. The Manhattan Irish Fest Committee is strictly made up of volunteers from the IASCW and local community members and groups. The Manhattan Park District provides activities to make the day fun for families of all ages.

The 2020 Manhattan Irish Fest Parade Grand Marshall is Frank Forsythe. A life-long member of
Manhattan, Frank is one of five brothers who terrorized the community of 800 in the 1960’s. He is a graduate of St. Joseph Grade School, Providence Catholic High School and College of St. Francis. Frank is married; he has three children & seven grandchildren all residing in the area. He is employed as a Financial Representative with COUNTRY Financial. Frank has been involved with Manhattan in numerous capacities from volunteering to financially supporting several initiatives. He was a member of the Manhattan Fire Department for 40 years, served one term on the plan commission and three terms on the Village Board of Manhattan. He served as the commissioner of men’s and women’s softball for the Park District for several years and has coached boys’ and girls’ baseball and basketball teams for 20+ years. Frank has been involved with Manhattan Irish Fest since its inception, volunteering on several committees and most recently as the chairman of the parade committee. Frank cares about his community. When out of town he is often asked, “Where is Manhattan?” and his answer is always the same! He asks them, “Do you plan on going to Heaven?” and when they say yes, he responds, “Manhattan is the last stop before
Heaven.”

In 2018 the Manhattan Irish Fest Committee officially announced that the King & Queen Scholarship will forever be named the “Michael J. McHugh Memorial King & Queen Scholarship”. Mike was a life-long Manhattan area resident and business owner who dedicated himself to the community. He was a founding member of the IASCW in 1981 and one of the original founding organizers of the Manhattan Irish Fest. Mike gave back to his community in many ways and loved to talk about his Irish Heritage.

The 2020 Fest Committee is proud to announce the 2020 winners of the Michael J. McHugh Memorial King & Queen Scholarship. The King award goes to Ethyn Tibble of Elwood; and the Queen award goes to Abigail Dudeck of Manhattan. Each student will receive a $1,000 scholarship toward the school of his/her choice. The Manhattan Irish Fest has awarded $31,000 in scholarships since 2004.

As always, Manhattan Irish Fest will offer the Irish heritage and culture through, bagpipers, Irish dancers, Irish entertainment, food and drink. Activities will take place at the Main Tent on Park Street. The Prairie State Roadrunners will start the parade again by hosting the Manhattan Irish Fest 5-K race. This race continues to be recognized as a USATF-timed course. The Manhattan Park District will be providing youth entertainment in the State Street facility immediately following the parade.

Entrance buttons are $7 in advance and $10 at the gate. Net proceeds go back into the community to organizations and clubs that provide volunteers. Each organization donates time to promote the Fest, help run the Fest, and sell raffle tickets--there are no paid workers. Your attendance helps to award scholarships, brightens military lives, create programs for area children and promote local businesses.