Irish Eyes all smiles for Hamilton St. Patrick’s Day Parade

Miss. St. Patrick and Miss St. Patrick runner up
Miss St. Patrick Grace Conboy along with Miss St. Patrick runner up Paige Rocco. Photo by Mary Malone.

Hamilton St. Patrick’s Day Parade Chairman Vince Mckelvey summed it up best. “The Irish Gods were shining down on us today and gave us a beautiful day on the first shot”

McKelvey was referencing the a string of bad weather in previous years that led to the parades being canceled and rescheduled.

But that wasn’t the case today as thousands lined Nottingham Way to celebrate Irish heritage and have a good time.

This year’s parade Grand Marshall was Charles “Chuddy” Whalen. Whalen is the Assistant business manager of Local 9 Plumbers and Pipefitters.

“It’s been an honor for not only myself but to my family, but to be a son of a past Marshall, being my father in 1991 and he go to walk through his home town in Villa Park and now I get to walk through my home town here in Hamilton. More importantly this year the Irish are honoring organized labor. So not only did I get to walk through town with my family, but with my brothers and sisters in organized labor. It’s certainly something I will never forget and nor will my family”, state Whalen.

St. Patrick’s Parade Photo Gallery
Photos by Mary Malone and Michael A. Sabo

Grace Conboy, a senior at Notre Dame High School, was selected by the St. Patrick Parade and Scholarship Committee @ Hamilton to help lead the 34th annual parade as she was selected the winner in their annual Miss. St. Patrick contest. Grace will receive a $2,000 scholarship award. 

She is an AP and Honors Student and a member of the National Honor Society. At Notre Dame she is communications director for the Student Government, a campus minister and a peer leader. As a member of the performing arts she is a member of the Madrigal Choir and will be performing in the school musical Guys and Dolls. Grace also Irish danced for 9 years. 

She is the proud daughter of Michael and Sheila Conboy.

“Today is a great day to celebrate our Irish heritage. This parade is a day that my family looks forward to every year. I am proud to follow in my sister Jen’s footsteps who was Miss Saint Patrick in 2016.  As a daughter and granddaughter of Irish immigrants, I am honored to represent Miss Saint Patrick in this year’s parade”, explained Conboy.

Paige Rocco, a senior at Nottingham High School was selected as the runner up in the Miss St. Patrick contest sponsored b the St. Patrick’s Day parade and Scholarship Committee @ Hamilton , she will received a $ 1,000 scholarship from the committee. At Nottingham she is a member of the National Honor Society and serves as treasurer for the Student Government. She plays field hockey and is a member of the swim team. For nine years she was a competitive Irish dancer with the DeNogla-Ardmore Academy of Irish Dance . 

Paige is the proud daughter of Scott and Tracy Rocco. She has been accepted to several universities as a physics major but she yet to select where she wants to attend 

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