Most people in Milwaukee, when theyhear the name Tom Crean, think of the for-mer Marquette University basketball coach.

But there is another Tom Crean, an Irishexplorer, whose name and feats are oftenovershadowed by others. This ThomasCrean was an Irish seaman and Antarcticexplorer from Annascaul, County Kerry,who was awarded the Albert Medal, aswell as three Polar Medals.

This July is the seventy-ninth anniver-sary of his death in Cork. His life story wasone of determination and adventure, andfilled with multiple acts of bravery. But hewas a humble and quiet man, not given tobragging of his feats in his retirement.

Crean was a member of three major ex-peditions to Antarctica during what isknown as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Ex-ploration, including Captain Robert Fla-con Scott's 1911–13 Terra NovaExpedition. This saw the race to reach theSouth Pole lost to Roald Amundsen andended in the deaths of Scott and his polarparty. During this expedition, Crean's 35-mile solo walk across the Ross Ice Shelfto save the life of Edward Evans led to himreceiving the Albert Medal for Lifesaving.

Thomas Crean was born Tomás ÓCroidheáin in 1877 in the farming area ofGurtuchrane near the village of Annascaulon Corca Dhuibhne in County Kerry, Ire-land, to Patrick and Catherine (née Court-ney) Crean. An Irish speaker, and one often siblings, he attended the local Catholicschool (at nearby Brackluin), leaving atthe age of 12 to help on the family farm.At the age of 16, he enlisted in the RoyalNavy at nearby Minard Inlet, possiblyafter an argument with his father. His en-listment, without his parents' consent, as aboy second class is recorded in RoyalNavy records on 10 July.

In 1901, while serving on Ringarooma

in New Zealand, he volunteered to joinScott's 1901–04 Discovery Expedition toAntarctica, thus beginning his Polar ex-ploring career. After his Terra Nova expe-rience, Crean's third and final Antarcticventure was as second officer on ErnestShackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Ex-pedition, on Endurance. After Endurancebecame beset in the pack ice and sank,Crean and the ship's company spent 492days drifting on the ice before a journey inboats to Elephant Island. He was a mem-ber of the crew which made an open boatjourney of 800 nautical miles from Ele-phant Island to South Georgia, to seek aidfor the stranded party.

Tom Crean proved to be a capable sea-man, rising from naval apprentice in 1893to petty officer, second class in 1899, serv-ing on the ship Vivid. In February 1900,Crean was posted to the torpedo vesselRingarooma, which was part of the RoyalNavy's New Zealand Squadron based in

the South Island.

In December 1901, the Ringaroomawas ordered to assist Robert Falcon Scott'sship Discovery when it was docked at Lyt-telton Harbour awaiting departure toAntarctica. When an able seaman ofScott's ship deserted after striking a pettyofficer, Crean volunteered to replace him.Thus began Crean’s association with themost southern continent.

Discovery sailed for the Antarctic on21 December 1901, and on 8 February1902, arrived in McMurdo Sound, whereshe anchored. The crew established a basecamp at a spot which was later designated"Hut Point.”

One of the demands upon the men wastransport of supplies and equipment,wherein men put on a harness, and pulledsleds across the ice and snow. Creanproved to be one of the most efficientman-haulers in the party. Over the expedi-tion, only seven of the 48-member partylogged more time in harness than Crean's149 days. Crean had a good sense ofhumor and was well liked by his compan-ions. Scott's second-in-command, AlbertArmitage, wrote in his book, Two Years inthe Antarctic, that "Crean was an Irishmanwith a fund of wit and an even temperwhich nothing disturbed."

Crean accompanied Lieutenant MichaelBarne on three sledging trips across the

The Polar Life of Tom Crean .........................................................................................................

Volume XLIII, No. 5 • July (Lúil), 2017

continued on page 5

SHAMROCK CLUB ANNUAL INSTALLATION DINNERJULY 13, 2017

Alioto’s Restaurant - 3041 N. Mayfair Road, Wauwatosa

T T TCocktails 6:00 P.M. • Dinner at 7:00 P.M.

(Replaces Milwaukee Monthly Membership Meeting)

TMilwaukee Calendar of EventsTFor More Information visit http://shamrockclubwis.com

JULY11 Celtic Women International Book Club; Lunch at O’Lydia’s; 338 S. 1st St.,

Milwaukee, WI 5320413 Shamrock Club Installation Dinner; Alioto’s Restaurant, 3041 N. Mayfair

Rd., Wauwatosa; Cocktails at 6 pm, Dinner at 7 pm15 Badger State Feis; Pettit National Ice Center, 500 S 84th St; Supporting

Glencastle Irish Dancers16 Cream City Feis; Pettit National Ice Center, 500 S 84th St; Sponsored by

Kinsella Academy Family Association22 Milwaukee Set Dance; ICHC; music by Ceol Cairde; 7 pm

AUGUST3 Shamrock Club Monthly Meeting; ICHC; 7 pm; Dinner at 6:3012 Milwaukee Feis; University of Wisconsin Milwaukee Student Union, 2200

E. Kenwood Blvd.13 McMenamin Academy Feis; UW-Milwaukee Union, 2200 E. Kenwood

Blvd; info@mcmenaminacademy.com 13 Milwaukee Hurling Club Semi-Finals; Brown Deer Park; 10 am14-18 Milwaukee Irish Fest Summer School; Celtic MKE Center; Carol

Walker; Edel McBride; Shannon Heaton; Matt Heaton; Liz Carroll; 18-21 Milwaukee Irish Fest; Maier Festival Grounds; Paddy Keenan; Dervish;

Frankie Gavin; Moxie Strings; The High Kings; Jig Jam; Skerryvore; We Banjo 3; Scythian; Drowsy Lads; Eileen Ivers; The Elders; Gaelic Storm; more

27 Milwaukee Hurling Club Finals; Brown Deer Park; 10 am

SEPTEMBER7 Shamrock Club Monthly Meeting; ICHC; 7 pm; Dinner at 6:30

2

ON GOING … Set dancing at the following: Set dancing Wednesdays, 7 PM atO’Donoghue’s T Craobh Curtin Conradh na Gaeilge meeting at O'Donoghue's Pub, 7 PM, last Tuesday each month T Irish Emigration Library in ICHC open every Wednesday 12–6 PM T Irish Sing-a-long, Irish Fest Center, First Sundays, (throughMay) 7 PM T Irish Fest Sing-a-long: O'Donoghue's Pub, second and fourth Sundays, 7-9 PM T Irish Music Sessions at the following: Session - O’Donoghue’s,Sundays 7 PM; Thursdays @ Paddy’s 7 PM; and The Pub in Oconomowoc, 7:30 PMT Thursdays: Barry Dodd; County Clare Inn; 10 PM T Fridays: áthas and Myserk;County Clare Inn; 6 PM T

Installation DinnerThursday, July 13, 2017

Alioto’s Restaurant, WauwatosaCocktails (Cash Bar) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:00 pmDinner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7:00 pm

Cost: $25 per personBuffet dinner of Roast Beef au Jus, Baked Cod Florentine and

Chicken Parmesan with salad, assorted sides and dessert.

Tickets can be ordered at the June meeting or by emailingRon Danielson - rdanielson4@gmail.com by July 9th.

ScholarshipCommittee.................................

We were pleased to have the threescholarship recipients join us at our June1, 2017 general meeting. They sharedwith us their study-abroad plans for thissummer or fall.

Rachel Bielfuss will be studying thissummer at the UC-Dublin and the Na-tional University of Ireland-Galway.

Kyle Battle will also be studying inIreland this summer to continue learningGaelic and Irish culture.

Hannah Crownover will be spendingthe fall semester at the National Univer-sity of Ireland-Galway.

After the brief explanation of theirstudies, they were each given their schol-arship.

All three of them are great fans of IrishFest and they each assured me that theywill be happy to volunteer in our retailbooth. Kyle will also bring his girlfriend.

- Mary MozeScholarship Chair

Scholarship Chair Mary Mozepresents scholarships to HannahCrownover, Rachel Bielfuss and

Kyle Battle.

Facebook&Social Media..................................If you haven’t seen us on Facebook,

like us! 2150 people have already.https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sham-rock-Club-of-Wisconsin/102023943184

You can also find us on Twitter athttp://twitter.com/shamrockclubwis or on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/com-pany/shamrock-club-of-wisconsin.

3

MilwaukeePresident’s Message..................................

Ladies and Gentlemen, Celtic Friendsall:

July . . . Happy Birthday U.S.A! Onehundred and forty-one years old, goingstrong, looking good and striving to be-come even greater.

Let's try to do the same with the Sham-rock Club. We've had our founding Fa-thers AND Mothers. We too, have hadgood people work tirelessly for years tomake our Club the organization that it is.Our presidents, democratically nominatedand elected, with the fantastic assistanceof our board and hundreds of volunteersover the years, has made us one of thelargest Irish groups in the state.

Let's all gather at the Shamrock ClubInstallation Dinner, July 13th at Aliota's onHighway 100 in Wauwatosa, and celebratethe great things our club has done and plansome "new" events. Buffet Dinner, CashBar . . . bring your friends, and relatives.New members are welcome.

Six weeks or 47 days from today, ourShamrock Club will, again have the priv-ilege, and Our Color Guard, the honor, ofperforming before the crowds of IrishFest. The Shamrock Club is a proud spon-sor of the Gaeltacht Tent, an Irish speakingand traditional song and dance venue, inthe Cultural Area.

We, as a club have sponsored this areafrom the beginning. We do this as a cul-tural public service and we raise funds forthis endeavor through our sales in theShamrock Club retail booth in MarketSquare. We find and recruit new membersin the Cultural Tent, working along sideIrish Fest, AOH, Friends of St. Patrick andother organizations.

THIS IS A HINT . . .WE NEED YOU TO HELP US INRETAIL AND MEMBERSHIP.

We need volunteers to step up and set upand assist Mary in OUR retail booth.

We need volunteers to step up and set upand assist Maggie in OUR membershipbooth.

SEE YOURSELF getting moreinvolved with the Shamrock Club. Events

Come to theShamrock Club

Installation Dinner!Thursday, July 13th..................................

Plan on attending the Shamrock Club’sOfficer Installation Dinner! The dinner isin place of our July general membershipmeeting. The buffet dinner will be atAlioto’s, 3041 North Mayfair Road inWauwatosa. The dinner will be on Thurs-day, July 13, 2017. There will be a socialhour at 6:00pm, with the buffet at 7:00.We will be having Roast Beef au jus,Baked Cod Florentine, and ChickenParmesan, with four sides, salad, Italianbread, dessert, coffee, tea, or milk. Thereis a cash bar. There will be door prizes!The cost is $25 per person. We need tohave fifty (50) attendees to get this price.As of this printing, I have 35 peoplesigned up.

Please RSVP to Ron Danielson,rdanielson4@gmail.com, or at 262-470-1004. I need the final count by Sunday,July 9, 2017. Let me know if you arecoming; I will allow you to pay at thedoor. If you sign up, please show up!This will be a fun time!

- Ron Danielson

of the past have provided fabulousmemories.

SEE YOURSELF making a differencein our organization. Create "New" eventsthat will be memorable.

SEE YOURSELF MAKINGTHIS ALL POSSIBLE!

See you at the dinner and at Irish Fest!- Joseph Hughes, President

T T T

Rent the ICHC for your next

PartyMeeting

RecitalWedding

Spaces available for large

or small events

Email: director@ichc.net

or call (414) 345-8800

Joe Hughes, President, andMary Moze, 2017 Irish Rose,

represented the Shamrock Club at theDanny O'Donnell concert at the

Riverside on June 3, 2017.

It is time to start thinking about volunteering an hour or two at the Shamrock Club membership table

in the Cultural Village at Irish Festand the Shamrock Club retail

booth in the market. This is a greatway to promote our club!

Emerald Reflections

Copy Deadline.................................

Membership Chairs

Content for Emerald Reflections is dueon the 15th of the month (next deadline:July 15th to appear in the August issue.)Copy received after that date will not appear due to deadlines. While we try toinclude every submission possible, due tospace limitations, we cannot guarantee thatevery submission will be included imme-diately. E-mail submissions preferred,send to:

Brian Witt, Editoremeraldreflections@shamrockclubwis.com

Pam Canon, Publisher

4

DANE COUNTY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Pat McCarthyP.O. Box 70765, Madison 53707-0765

pmmccarthy@charter.net; (608) 277-0394

FOX CITIES . . . . .P.O. Box 1632, Appleton 54912

LA CROSSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Linda O. Pfaff,1702 Jackson St., LaCrosse 54601

LAFAYETTE CO. . . . . . . . . . . . . .Beverly Mulcahy,504 E. Mary, Apt. A, Darlington 54530

MILWAUKEE . . . . Member. Chair Maggie Blaha, 2133 West Wisconsin Avenue,

Milwaukee, WI 53233slainte4142-shamrock@yahoo.com; (414)344-0688

NEW DUBLIN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Suzi Snyder,313 W. Beacon Ave.., New London 54961

NORTHEAST WISC. . . . . . . . . . . . . .Judy Brehm,2577 Oakwood Ave., Green Bay 54301

SOUTH CENTRAL . . . . . . . . . Dana Horkan-Gant,610 Vine St., Reedsburg 53959

email: willardana@yahoo.com; (608) 524-6821

E-mail: . . . . . . . . . . club@shamrockclubwis.com

Web site: . . . . . . . . http://shamrockclubwis.com

To become a member of the Shamrock Club ofWisconsin contact the membership chair of thechapter you would like to join. MILWAUKEE ONLY:Family membership (includes both parents and all children under eighteen) - $25.00. Single membership - $20.00. Membership is renewable annually on the anniversary month of the originalmembership. Please send all new and renewal Milwaukee club membership dues to MembershipChair, 2133 West Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee,WI 53233. Be sure to send change of address notification to Membership Chair, also. The postoffice will NOT forward copies of Reflections.

Sunshine Report..................................Good news to share this month. Alex

Marshman, grandson of Mary Moze, wasawarded the Kiwanis Rishe Service schol-arship from the East Troy Kiwanis organ-ization for his volunteer work. Alex hasbeen working with his grandparents atIrish Fest, Folk Fair, and St. Patrick’s pa-rade. Congratulations, Alex, and goodluck at UW-Whitewater.

Erin Canon, Miss West Allis 2017,competed at the recent Miss WisconsinPageant in Oshkosh. Although Erin didnot place in the competition, she wasawarded a scholarship.

Jack Suit will be having a whole kneereplacement this month. Please keep Jackin your thoughts as he looks forward tomore mobility and no more pain.

Joan Monaghan Kenney, one of ourregular meeting attendees passed awayMay 25, 2017. Her companion, Fran Paul,will need our support and encouragementto return to the Club activities.

June Birthdays were celebrated by AdamBartlelt on the 12th, Josh Walton – 22nd,Mary McAndrew- 23rd, Dave Knight –24th and Mary Moze – 27th. Many morehealthy years to all of you!

If you are a July birthday, feel free tosend me an email with the date.

If you have Sunshine news, please emailit to: slainte4142-shamrock@yahoo.com.

- Maggie BlahaSunshine Chair

MilwaukeeMembership News..................................Volunteers are needed to work for the

Shamrock Club during Irish Fest in themembership booth and the retail booth.You cannot volunteer too much. Rewardsare all the fun of meeting new people,connecting with Club members, and a freepass for Irish Fest. Contact Maggie B atslainte4142-shamrock@yahoo.com.

- Maggie BlahaMembership Chair

Jackie’sCorner Cupboard..................................

I hope everyone enjoyed the picnic forthe June Meeting. Thanks everyone whobrought a dish to pass or donated.

July is the installation dinner so therewill be no General Membership meetingin July but we hope to see you at the in-stallation dinner.

Stay tuned to the August Reflectionsfor more info on what to bring for the mealfor the August meeting. We will be bringingback the 50/50 Raffle for the August meet-ing so come prepared and ready to win!

A special thank you to those who cameto help with the club inventory at the clubstorage unit on June 3rd and especially toMaggie Blaha for bringing her two grand-sons along to help. Any questions on sup-plies please let me know.

Thanks for your continued participa-tion and support. Any recommendationsor suggestions for themes or raffles wouldbe much appreciated.

Happy 4th of July and stay cool out there! - Jackie Konkol

Sergeant-at-Arms

Advertise in theEmerald Reflections

Contactdpcanon@wi.rr.com for rates

5

Ross Ice Shelf, then known as the "GreatIce Barrier.” These included the 12-manparty led by Barne, which set out in Octo-ber 1902 to lay depots in support of themain southern journey undertaken byScott, Shackleton and Edward Wilson.

During the Antarctic winter of 1902,the Discovery became locked in the ice.Efforts to free her during the summer of1902–03 failed, and although some of theexpedition's members (including ErnestShackleton) left in a relief ship, Crean andmost of the party remained in the Antarc-tic until the ship was finally freed in Feb-ruary 1904. After returning to regularnaval duty, Crean was promoted to pettyofficer, first class, on Scott's recommen-dation. In 1906, Scott requested that Creanjoin him on the Victorious. Over the nextfew years, Crean followed Scott succes-sively to Albemarle, Essex and Bulwark.

By 1907, Scott was planning his secondexpedition to the Antarctic. Meanwhile,Ernest Shackleton's Nimrod Expedition,1907–09, despite reaching a new furthestsouth record of 88°23'S, had failed toreach the South Pole. Scott was withCrean when the news of Shackleton's nearmiss became public. Scott observed toCrean: "I think we'd better have a shotnext."

Crean, whose Irish skin proved to beresistant to the cold, was among the firstpeople recruited for the Terra NovaExpedition, which set out for the Antarcticin June 1910, and was one of the few menin the party with previous polarexperience.

After the expedition's arrival in Mc-Murdo Sound in January 1911, Crean wasa part of the 13-man team who established"One Ton Depot,” 130 statute miles fromHut Point, so named because of the largeamount of food and equipment cachedthere on the projected route to the SouthPole. Returning from the depot to basecamp at Cape Evans, Crean, accompaniedby Apsley Cherry-Garrard and Henry"Birdie" Bowers, experienced near-disas-ter when camping on unstable sea ice.During the night the ice broke up, leavingthe men adrift on an ice floe and separatedfrom their sledges. Crean probably savedthe group's lives, by leaping from floe tofloe until he reached the Barrier edge andsummoned assistance.

Crean departed with Scott in Novem-

continued from page 1 ber 1911, for the attempt at the South Pole.This journey had three stages: 400 milesacross the Barrier, 120 miles up the heav-ily crevassed Beardmore Glacier to an al-titude of 10,000 feet above sea level, andthen another 350 miles to the Pole. At reg-ular intervals, supporting parties returnedto base. Crean was in the final group ofeight men that marched on to the polarplateau.

On January 4, 1912, Scott selected hisfinal polar party: Crean, William Lashlyand Edward Evans were ordered to returnto base, while Scott, Edgar Evans, EdwardWilson, Bowers and Lawrence Oates con-tinued to the pole.

Unknown to Scott, Edgar Evans hadsuffered a debilitating injury to his hand,whereas Crean was still hale and hearty.Scott in his diary recorded that Crean weptwith disappointment at the prospect ofhaving to turn back, so close to reachingthe Pole.

The return trip also showed the mettleof Tom Crean. The group got lost on thejourney back to the base camp, a hike of700 miles. Crean told the others that theyneeded to slide on the sled without con-trols, free-sliding half a mile before stop-ping on an ice cliff. Evans later wrote:"How we ever escaped entirely uninjuredis beyond me to explain.”

The gamble paid off, as they made itto the storage area, but were still hundredsof miles away from their base. Evans be-came snow blind after taking off his gog-gles, and then succumbed to the effects ofscurvy. Crean had thought Evans died, butEvans also had an inner resilience. Creanand William Lashly ended up hauling himthe final 160 miles on the sled. When theycould no longer traverse the landscape,Lashly told Crean to go the thirty milesback to get help.

Scott and the others never returned, soeventually the decision was made to returnto New Zealand. When they returned toEngland, King George presented themwith Polar Explorer medals.

Ernest Shackleton, a Kildareman, knewCrean well from the Discovery Expedi-tion. Like Scott, Shackleton trusted Crean.Crean joined Shackleton's ImperialTransantarctic Expedition on 25 May1914, as second officer, with a variedrange of duties. In the absence of a Cana-dian dog-handling expert, Crean tookcharge of one of the dog-handling teams,

and was later involved in the care and nur-ture of pups born to one of his dogs earlyin the expedition.

In January 1915, the expedition's ship,the Endurance, was beset in the WeddellSea pack ice. In the early efforts to freeher, Crean narrowly escaped beingcrushed by a sudden movement in the ice.The ship drifted in the ice for months,eventually sinking on 21 November.Shackleton informed the men that theywould drag the food, gear, and threelifeboats across the pack ice, to Snow Hill,200 miles away. Because of uneven iceconditions, pressure ridges, and the dan-ger of ice breakup which could separatethe men, they soon abandoned this plan.

The pack ice held firm as it carried themen well past Paulet Island, and did notbreak up until 9 April. The crew then hadto sail and row the three ill-equippedlifeboats through the pack ice to ElephantIsland, a trip which lasted five days. Creanand Hubert Hudson, the navigating offi-cer of the Endurance, piloted their lifeboatwith Crean effectively in charge as Hud-son appeared to have suffered a break-down.

Shackleton, Crean and two others de-cided to sail to South Georgia Island, onthe southern edge of South America, togain rescue assistance. The trip in an openlifeboat took seventeen days, traversingeight hundred miles of open sea, consid-ered by many to be one of the greatestfeats of navigation ever.

After returning to Britain in November1916, Crean resumed naval duties. In De-cember 1916, he was promoted to the rankof warrant officer (as a boatswain), inrecognition of his service on the En-durance, and was awarded his third PolarMedal.

One irony was that because of the ex-pedition, Crean had missed most of WorldWar One.

September 1917, Crean married EllenHerlihy of Annascaul. In early 1920,Shackleton was organizing anotherAntarctic expedition, later to be known asthe Shackleton-Rowett Expedition. He in-vited Crean to join him, along with otherofficers from the Endurance. By this time,however, Crean's second daughter had ar-rived, and he had plans to open a businessfollowing his naval career. He turneddown Shackleton's invitation.

continued on page 6

6

Word of the Month..................................Shu - (hee) SittingTá mé i mo shuí. (Ta may ee muh hee) I am sitting.

Fall HallamorConcerts Preview..................................

The Irish Cultural and Heritage Center,2133 W. Wisconsin Ave., Milwaukee, hasannounced its fall Hallamór Concert Series.The start time for each concert is 7:30 p.m.Tickets will be available at a later date.

The season opens with Skipper’s Alleyon Friday, Oct. 20. A modern Irish folkband with an old-school approach, the six-piece ensemble has drawn praise for theirgritty, high-octane Irish tunes and occa-sional detours into the dark, sombremelodies of the Irish song tradition.

Performing on Friday, Nov. 10 areMaura O’Connell and Karan Casey, twoof Irish music’s most revered singersknown for the depth, beauty and joy intheir exploration and interpretation ofsongs. They will be joined by in-demandmusicians John Mock and Ed Boyd.

Internationallyrenowned performer,arranger and recordingartist, harpist KimRobertson will presentan intimate, warm andjoyful celebration of atraditional Celtic Christ-mas on Saturday, Dec.16. A Wisconsinite, Robertson will bejoined by musicians from the Milwaukeearea as well as Irish dancers.

Tickets for the Skipper’s Alley and KimRobertson concerts are $21 in advanceand $25 on concert day. Tickets forO’Connell and Casey are $29 in advanceand $33 at the door. Tickets for studentsare $10 and free for children 12 and under.For tickets and more information, go towww.ichc.net.

- Kathy Schultz

Upcoming Feiseanna..................................There will be two Feiseanna in July.

The first is the Badger State Feis, on July15th, sponsored by Sharon Murphy. It willbe held at the Pettit National Ice Center.There will also be a Mass at the PettitCenter at 4:30pm on Saturday.

http://www.badgerstatefeis.com

The second is the Cream City Feis, heldto benefit Kinsella Academy of Dance. Itwill also be held at the Pettit National IceCenter, on Sunday, July 16th. The Pettit Center is located at 500 South 84th Street, Milwaukee.

http://www.thecreamcityfeis.com

In August, the 28th annual MilwaukeeFeis takes place on Saturday, August 12th,at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee– Student Union, 2200 E. Kenwood Blvd,Milwaukee, WI.

http://www.milwaukeefeis.com

And the Seventh Annual McMenaminAcademy Feis will be held on Sunday, August 13, 2016 at the UWM Union.

http://midadance.com

On his last naval assignment, with HMSHecla, Crean suffered a bad fall whichcaused lasting effects to his vision. He wasretired on medical grounds on 24 March1920. He and Ellen opened a small publichouse in Annascaul, which he called TheSouth Pole Inn. The couple had threedaughters, Mary, Kate, and Eileen, withKate dying when she was four years old.

Crean returned to Ireland in the middleof the Irish War of Independence. Onetime the Black and Tans invaded his inn,and started to destroy it, until a picture ofCrean in his Royal Navy uniform wasfound, whereupon they left him alone.

But the War, and the subsequent CivilWar, proved to be difficult for Crean. Hewas under constant suspicion for havingserved so long in the British Armed serv-ices. His brother, Cornelius Crean, a ser-geant in the Royal Irish Constabulary(RIC) was based in West Cork, where heserved with the RIC during the War of In-dependence. Sgt. Crean was killed duringan IRA ambush near Upton, West Cork inApril 1920.

Statue of Tom Crean in Annascaul

Crean put away his medals, and neverspoke of his role to the press. He died asthe result of a burst appendix on July 27,1938. Thus ended the life of one of Ire-land’s most amazing heroes.

continued from page 5

Celtic Women International..................................

The CWI Book Club meetings begin at 1:00 pm at the ICHC and include discussion, tea, and treats. New membersand guests are always welcome to join us!

On July 11th we will enjoy luncheonat O’Lydia’s, 338 S. 1st St., Milwaukee,WI 53204.

We will not meet in August due to IrishFest.

In September, Rough Music, by PatrickGale will be our topic, and our hostess willbe Rosemary Walsh.

- Rosemary Walshrowalsh@wi.rr.com

7

Hurling Club News.......................................................................

The Shamrock Club is again sponsoring an adult and a youth team in the MilwaukeeHurling Club’s 2017 season. All matches take place at Brown Deer Park on Sundays.

Milwaukee Hurling Club ScheduleShamrock Club upcoming matches include:

July 9 - 11:00 - County Clare vs SCJuly 16 - 2:00 - SC vs Three LionsJuly 23 - 11:00 - SC vs Spring HouseJuly 30 - 2:00 - SC vs TrinityAugust 6 – PlayoffsAugust 13 – Party at the PitchAugust 27 – Championship match

Join the Shamrock Clubat the Hurling Matches

We are looking for volunteers to staffthe Shamrock Club table at the HurlingMatches each week. We wish to sign upmembers for the Club, pass out informa-tion, and just be a part of the day. We arethe Milwaukee Hurling Club’s longest termsponsor, going into our 19th year in 2017.If you would like to volunteer for a game,contact Brian Witt at 414-423-4383, orinfo@shamrockclubwis.com

32nd annual ChicagoIrish American

Heritage Festival..................................Get your Irish on at the 32nd annual

Chicago Irish American Heritage Festivalon July 7, 8 and 9, 2017.

Irish Fest showcases the finest in localand international Irish and Americanmusic, dance and family activities. Thefestival is our biggest fundraiser and isheld on the grounds of the Irish AmericanHeritage Center at 4626 North Knox,Chicago.

Confirmed performers are: GaelicStorm, We Banjo 3, Scythian, Makem andSpain, Tupelo, Michael McDermott, RoryMakem, the Young Folk, RUNA, Acad-emy of Irish Music, Baal Tinne, bohola,the Boils, Bua, Patrick and Karen Can-nady and Friends, the Chancey Brothers,the Sean Cleland Band, Marta Cook,James Cramer, Devin Shepherd School ofIrish Music, the Dirty Wellies, the DooleyBrothers, Kevin Flynn, Aislinn Gagliardi,the Gleasons, Great Whiskey Project, IrishHeritage Singers, Irish Music School ofChicago, Kennedy’s Kitchen, Larkin andMoran Brothers, Misericordia Heart-breakers and Heartzingers, Joe McShaneand the SilverBridge Band, MulliganStew, Jim Sullivan, Jimmy Moore andFriends, Mark Piekarz, Shannon RoversIrish Pipe Band, St. Stephen’s Green, theTooles, Trinity Irish Dancers and more.

In addition to the great music lineup,the weekend is packed with festival fa-vorites: Irish and American food and drinkfrom vendors, step dancing, cultural exhibits,children’s activities and dozens of vendorsand artisans selling Irish gifts. Activitiesinclude contests for adults and childrenand cultural exhibits and programs in theArt Gallery, Library and Museum.

Tickets are $10 in advance if purchasedby the end of the day on July 5 and $15thereafter. Children 12 and under are free.

Fest hours are: 6pm to Midnight on Fri-day, July 7, Noon-Midnight on Saturday,July 8 and Noon-11pm on Sunday, July 9.Sunday Mass and BreakFEST is at10:30am. Fest parking is free and a freeshuttle runs all weekend from Wilson andLamon to the Center grounds. To purchasetickets, order online at irish-american.org/at-the-center/iahc-irish-fest/,call 773-282-7035 or buy at the door.

EMERALD REFLECTIONSPHOTO OF THE MONTH

An Old Gaelic PrayerMay the Road Rise to meet youMay the wind be always at your backMay the sun shine warm upon your face,

till the rains fall soft upon your fields.And, until we meet again,May God hold you in the palm of His hands.

SHAMROCK CLUB OF WISCONSIN2133 W. Wisconsin AvenueMilwaukee, WI 53233

For Information: http://shamrockclubwis.comor: www.saintpatricksparade.org

Cork City, Co. Cork, Ireland