March 17 is known across the world as St. Patrick's Day, a feast day for the patron saint of Ireland.
The Seton Hall community will hold events celebrating Irish culture for the holiday.
The Pirates of the Irish Persuasion and Extraction (PIPE), Seton Hall's Irish club, will walk in the Newark St. Patrick's Day parade March 18. PIPE is a member organization of the Newark St. Patrick's Day Parade Committee, and members of PIPE have been working behind the scenes all year to plan the parade.
Elish Harrington, founder and current adviser of PIPE, said their group is "keeping traditiona alive" for the next generation.
"We are planning to make this the biggest and best Newark has seen in decade," she said.
All members of the Seton Hall community are invited to march with PIPE.
In the style of the old country, Cryan's Beef and Ale House has been celebrating all week with events like Irish Sing Along night and the lighting of the Shamrock on St. Patrick's Day at midnight.
The St. Patrick's Day events have already started: on March 15 the English Club dined on Irish soda bread, Irish stew and scones and sponsored a discussion on Irish culture, history and literature. The discussion featured lectures from Dr. Dermott Quinn of the department of history and Dr. Martha Carpentier of the department of English.
St. Patrick's Day has been celebrated since the saint's death in the year 461. Many recognize him by the popular myth in which he rid Ireland of all its snakes. In earlier times this holiday was celebrated only as a religious holiday, though in today's America, the purpose seems to be to celebrate Irish culture.
"As far as culture goes, I think it's great to have such a great day where you can be proud of your heritage, especially in a country as diverse as the United States," sophomore Samantha Polizzi said.
Although drinking green beer is often associated with St. Patrick's Day, most find that there is more to do on March 17 than hit the bottle.
"It's a great night with your friends, lots of entertainment like music and dancing, and it helps you learn a lot about the Irish culture," junior Andrew Kornberg said.
Corned beef and cabbage has become the signature dish of Irish Americans as it was one of the few affordable meals that could be cooked by Irish immigrants when they first came to America during the time known as the Great Famine of the 1840s. Since then, it has become an American staple for St. Patrick's Day.
"I love the corned beef and cabbage," junior Matt Chapman said. "It's a huge factor of the day. It's just fun seeing everyone dress in green and crazy St. Patrick's day apparel."
Whether a student is Irish or not, there is no doubt that the Irish spirit will be seen all over campus this week in Stevens can be reached at kevin.stevens@student.shu.edu. Erin Bell can be reached at erin.bell@student.shu.edu. Christopher Spall can be reached at christopher.spall@student.shu.edu.
