Shannon McGirr crowned parade queen

Shannon McGirr will be the queen of the St. Patrick's Day parade scheduled for Sunday, March 26 in Chateauguay.

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She was crowned from among a few aspirants at the Queen's Pageant held in Chateauguay on February 11 by the Chateauguay and Valley Irish Heritage Association Inc. which has organized the annual procession for several years now.

The candidates had to notably do an exhibit on an Irish theme submitted before the pageant. The authors, geography, characters and historical places of the country were part of the possible subjects, as well as « the history of the Irish people (the Irish famine,

Grosse Ile, Quebecers who warmly accepted Irish orphans, the Black Rock near Victoria Bridge, and other important stories to relate, » enumerated parade spokesman Eric Brophy.

And how did the winner  stand out from the others? « Shannon McGirr presented herself well. She was very much at ease to speak in front of the judges and the 100-plus people present. She answered the questions without any difficulty, and she spoke well on her subject, the Giant's Causeway in Antrim, Northern  Ireland,» Brophy reported.

Her grandfather predicted it

Shannon McGirr also affirmed her pride to be Irish and evoked pleasant souvenirs from attending the parade with her grandfather when she was a child. « Her grandfather predicted that one day she would be queen, » Brophy confided.

He emphasized that it was important for the Irish to transmit their history and their culture from generation to generation.

Ernie Presseau, organizer of the Queen's Pageant since 2006, this year passed the torch to 2015 parade queen Sydney Legare, while accompanying her in her mission.

Presseau will be the Grand Marshal of this year's parade while Charlie Campbell will be the Chief Reviewing Officer.

Irish couple of the year

During the evening of February 11, Emily and Matthew Finnegan were designated Irish couple of the year. Odette Pottie received the association's humanitarian award.

(Translation Dan Rosenburg)