The Irish Showed Up — Behind the Bar

Dublin Irish Festival · Sharing o' the Green Beverage Tent

If you want to know what this program is really made of, don't just watch us on the ice. Watch us pour a beer.

This past weekend, Dublin Irish Hockey parents traded in their rink gear for a crash course in festival bartending, showing up at the Dublin Irish Festival to staff the Sharing O' the Green beverage tents. They poured pints, rang up orders, mixed drinks, and kept the lines moving — all with the same energy they bring to every practice run, game night, and postgame parking lot celebration.

It wasn't glamorous. It was hot, some parents got to hear the thunder and the lightening, and there was probably at least one moment where someone got splashed. But that's kind of the point.

Every dollar raised goes directly back into the program — helping keep player fees manageable, funding our scholarship support, and making sure that the cost of a jersey and ice time never stands between a kid and the game they love. Our parents didn't just write a check. They showed up, put in the hours, and earned it.

That's what we mean when we say this is a family. Not a talking point. Not a mission statement. A group of people who actually show up for each other — whether that's in the stands, in the locker room hallway, or behind a beverage tent at one of Dublin's biggest celebrations of the year.

To every parent who volunteered this weekend: thank you. The players are watching. They see what you do for them, even when you think they don't.

And if your beer tasted just a little better this weekend — you're welcome.

— Dublin Irish Hockey Association