Local pols and special guests gathered in the festively decorated Ironworkers Union hall on Sunday morning for the annual St. Patrick’s Day Breakfast. This event had it all. Pots of shamrocks, a delicious breakfast of scrambled eggs and sausage, live Irish music, lots of singing, and plenty of jokes.  Caught in Southie was lucky enough to be a part of it all – by providing behind-the-scenes footage and interviews.  NECN and BNN were broadcasting the event live.

Senator Nick Collins (lifelong Southie resident) was the host of the event and did an amazing job from the beginning to the end. Collins navigated the head table through introductions, jokes, singing, jabs, and self-deprecation.  He kept the programming moving quickly and smoothly.

Seated at the head table included Governor Maura Healey, Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, Senator Elizabeth Warren, Congressman Stephen Lynch, Congresswoman Ayanna Presley, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, Auditor Diana DiZoglio, Massachusetts Secretary of the Executive Office of Veterans’ Services Jon Santiago, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden, Senate President Karen Spilka, State Rep. David Biele, State Rep John Moran, Norfolk County Treasurer Michael Bellotti, plus members of the Boston City Council including Ed Flynn, Erin Murphy, Ruthzee Louijeune, Julia Mejia and John FitzGerald.

Here are some takeaways

The crowd was in the St. Patrick’s spirit

Green was the color of the day! Green ties, hats, dresses, suits, socks and more! There were plenty of Irish knits, tweed and scally caps too.  The audience laughed, sang along, clapped, cheered, and enjoyed their breakfast.

Both sides of the aisle agreed that the Breakfast is awesome

“President Joe Biden” and “Former President Donald Trump” both called in to say how much they loved and enjoyed the breakfast.

The DunQueens were in the house.

Gov. Maura Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll showed us DunkQueens – a homage to Ben Affleck and Matt Damon in the wildly popular Super Bowl commercial – complete with munchkins and iced coffees.  A special addition to the DunQueens was a surprise appearance by Gov. Jane Swift.

State Auditor Dianna DiZoglio can sing

DiZoglio showed off her musical chops with her rendition of Savage Daughter.

Live Music

The Breakfast had the wildly popular Irish band Curragh’s Fancy, keeping the hands clapping and the toes tapping.  State Rep. John Moran sang the Irish National Anthem beautifully, and the Boston Fire Department Acapella Quartet sang the National Anthem.

Brunt of the Jokes

Mayor Wu received some good old-fashioned ribbing for bike lanes, bus lanes, and the City Hall People of Color Holiday Party.  Senate President Karen Spilka’s target was DiZoglio. Spilka suggested that she investigate the Kate Middletown situation in England.  “This sounds like a job for Diana DiZoglio. Instead of wasting taxpayer money in auditing the already audited state Legislature, all of us here chipped in to buy you a plane ticket to London to find out what’s happening,” Spilka said. “However, there weren’t enough donations, so it’s a one-way ticket.”

The Breakfast was dedicated to BFD Officer Pierce Norton

This year’s breakfast was dedicated to the life and legacy of Pierce Norton, a Boston Police officer, husband and father, and friend of Collins, who passed away suddenly in January. You can read more about this here.

Small Businesses were a central part of the celebration.

This year’s breakfast featured a wide range of small businesses, from florists to restaurants!  The program for the event was printed by ProPrint, owned by Southie resident Jay Arthur.  The centerpieces on the tables were created by Yanni at Stapleton Floral on East Broadway. Even the tables and chairs are from a South End small business, Party Rental Ltd, and the St. Patrick’s Day Breakfast banner was created by Carroll Advertising in Dorchester. Guests sampled some neighborhood specialties from sips via Castle Island Brewery, Grand Ten Distillery, and Dorchester’s Boston Harbor Distillery to pizza from Bardo’s and even hot dogs from the legendary Sullivan’s Castle Island.

Did you miss the breakfast? Well, you can still watch it!

You can watch on demand via NECN or here via NBC10 youtube

You can check out our behind-the-scenes interviews via our Instagram highlights here! 

Thank You Very Much!

Thank you to the sponsors of this great neighborhood event! Without them, it wouldn’t be a thing! You can check them out here! 

The organization of the breakfast was impressive, as I watched it first-hand. The pro team of Dusty Rhodes and Conventures, Jimmy Callahan and Olivia Callahan from JCALPRO, the crew from Thistle Communications, Haley Dillon Walsh, Denise Higgins, Tommy Butler, Sean Pierce, Jennifer Jackson, and David Wedge – plus all the amazing volunteers made the event run seamlessly!

Special thank you to my partner in crime and cameraman – Peter Gailunas