Ship sailed out of the fog and into our dreams

I WANT the people of Ireland, the Government and anyone who had anything to do with bringing the Jeanie Johnston to Philadelphia to realise the importance of her visit.

The Jeanie in port represents the physical manifestation of a grand idea. An idea that through communities coming together as one, anything can be accomplished, be it in the north or south of Ireland, or in the melting pot that is this great city of Philadelphia.

When Mayor John F Street, an African-American, hosted his reception on the ship, joined by representatives of all the ethnic communities in Philadelphia, he talked about the hardships that the Irish had endured in escaping the Great Hunger.

He said that when they arrived in cities like Philadelphia they were not always accepted or welcomed and had to overcome great hardship as they helped to build the city.

They did not do it alone, however; they did it by working together and becoming one of the many threads in the great tapestry that Philadelphia has become.

Mayor Street pointed to the Jeanie Johnston as a symbol representing not just Irish immigration but the struggle and the journey they all undertook to arrive in America.

Our mayor was able to talk about all those things because in the background was the living embodiment of what vision, hard work and unity can accomplish.

The Jeanie Johnston has become Kerry’s and Ireland’s gift to the world, a gift that preaches tolerance, co-operation and unity.

I can barely put into words the feelings of my fellow Irish-Americans when the Jeanie, like a ghost ship from the pages of the history books, broke through the veil of fog near Wilmington and appeared for the first time in the Delaware Valley.

I don’t have the skill of language to tell you the raw emotions that welled up inside volunteer and visitor alike when we saw the Jeanie tied up to the dock at Penns Landing. She bridged the gap between the years, miles and waves that separate us from you.

We looked at her and wept for those who never survived the journey and we were thankful for all who did. We said silent prayers for those who came and thrived for laying the foundations that all of us who followed built our lives upon.

Thanks to John Griffin for the perseverance to fulfil all our dreams.

Thanks to everyone who still believed even when it looked as if she would never sail. Thanks for showing that it’s not about timber and sails and riggings but about hope, co-operation and tolerance.

It is my hope that Jeanie Johnston will continue to be Ireland’s ambassador and proudly fly her flag to all ends of the earth, to wherever the Irish diaspora finds itself today.

Robert Gessler,

President,

Philadelphia County Board,

Ancient Order of Hibernians,

Philadelphia,

USA