How it’s New York: at the New York Irish Center in Long Island City
How it’s Irish: Irish singer Donie Carroll and friends raise funds for the Mercy Centre orphanage in Thailand
Last week at the New York Irish Center local Cork transplant Donie Carroll brought together a host of Irish and area talent to raise money in his annual concert for the Mercy Centre Orphanage in Bangkok Thailand. I’ve been to this concert over the past few years and it is always a treat.
Featured in the show were Donie’s longtime cohort in supporting the Mercy Centre , multi-instrumentalist and singer Mick Moloney, joined by a trio of lovely fiddlers, Liz Hanley, Heather Bixler and Haley Richardson.
This ensemble featured lively jigs and reels and a songs from Mick. They were joined by Donie for a few songs and then by New York Fiddle Trad-father Tony Demarco for a few tunes and two wonderful dancers from the Niall O’Leary School of Dance providing some percussive accompaniment.
The first half of the show closed with two video presentations on the wonderful work done by the Mercy Centre, helping children from the streets of Bangkok who would likely not have survived with their assistance.
It was an eye opening experience to see the great work being done there, and the amount of joy and hope in the faces of these young kids who have had their lives enriched by the instruments and art and music classes that the funds raised by these concerts have provided. You can find out more here on their site Mercy Centre
The second half of the show brought the wonderful singing and concertina playing from English singer John Roberts and Irish guitarist and singer Robbie O’Connell, joined by fiddler Liz Hanley, and Irish singer and concertina player Brenda Castles. The evening was rounded out with an all-hands on deck finale, with the addition of piper Jerry O’Sullivan and another performance from Niall O’Leary’s dancers.
It was an all-around wonderful night bringing folks together to create great music for an inspiring cause.
There is still more money needed, and if you have a few dollars to spare before the holidays, even the smallest donations will help. You can donate here at GoFundMe for Mercy Centre
