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Irish President, Mary
McAleese, to open Ireland Park in Toronto this
summer
i travel2000.com,
Canada's most comprehensive travel provider, has
been chosen by the Ireland Park Foundation to
provide travel services for those who wish to
celebrate Irish heritage in Toronto this summer.
Hundreds of people from all over the world will
gather to commemorate the sacrifices made by
thousands of Irish immigrants who came to Canada
during the mid-19th century. 38,000 Irish arrived
on the shores of Toronto in the summer of 1847 when
the city had a population of a mere 20,000. Over
one thousand people died in Toronto as a result of
typhus. Ireland Park will not only commemorate them
but will also celebrate the others who went on to
help build Canada into the great country it is
today. This beautiful park will open on the shores
of Lake Ontario at the foot of Bathurst Quay on
June 21st. The President of Ireland, Mary McAleese,
will make an official visit to Toronto to mark the
occasion.
Other events are
planned around the opening of the park.
Singer/composer Loreena McKennitt will headline an
evening of uplifting Celtic music at Roy Thomson
Hall on June 20th. In a recording career spanning
nearly two decades, McKennitt's "eclectic Celtic"
music has won critical acclaim worldwide, including
gold and multi-platinum sales awards in 15
countries. Also heard at this concert will be the
Canadian premiere of Patrick Cassidy's "A Famine
Remembrance Symphony", featuring the 140-voice
Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and the Festival
Orchestra, under the direction of Noel Edison. On
June 21st, a gala dinner is planned as one of the
first public events to be held in the Royal Ontario
Museum's new "Crystal" exhibit space overlooking
Bloor Street.
itravel2000 is
offering customized travel planning services for
visitors wishing to participate in some or all of
these events. Packages featuring flights,
accommodations, car rentals and event tickets, as
well as sightseeing options around Ontario and the
rest of Canada, can be viewed online at
www.itravel2000.com/irelandpark or by e-mailing
VIP@itravel2000.com. Contact the itravel2000 VIP
Desk at 1-800-941-6751 (North America toll free) or
905-629-5151.
 Chairman's
Statement
One hundred and
fifty-nine years have now passed since the barges
and steamers delivered the destitute Irish Famine
emigrants to Toronto's waterfront. Yet few citizens
of the city today are aware of this traumatic event
in our history. Ireland Park will be a memorial to
their suffering and their hope for a new life in
Canada.
Over two thousand
survivors of the Famine stayed in Toronto and
together with their fellow countrymen and women
living in the city at the time, they went on to
play a major role in the growth and success of
Toronto. Ireland Park is a celebration of this
achievement. From the horror of the Famine years in
the 1840's to the vibrant community of today, the
Park bears witness to the determination of a people
to over-come adversity.
I would like to
take this opportunity to express my thanks to Rowan
Gillespie for agreeing to undertake this work and
to Jonathan M. Kearns for his architectural vision
of Ireland Park as a location for Rowan's
sculptures. I would also like to thank Mrs. Norma
Smurfit for her leadership in establishing the
Famine Fund in Ireland in 1997 and her support and
encouragement for Ireland Park in
Canada.
I would like to
offer my thanks to the Mayor and Council of the
City of Toronto for their generosity and vision in
agreeing to make the site for Ireland Park
available. Special thanks are due to Councilor
Olivia Chow for her leadership in winning Council
approval for Ireland Park in July 2000. I would
also like to thank The Ireland Fund of Canada for
its magnificent gift of $250,000 towards our
fundraising goal of $3.5 million.
Throughout the
course of the last seven years, many individuals at
City Hall and in the Irish Community at large have
embraced the Park ideal with goodwill, energy and
generosity. On behalf of all of those who believe
that commemoration is important for the well being
of our city and community both now and in the
future, I thank you most sincerely.
Robert G.
Kearns
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