Saint Brigid's Family Fun Day Out, Crossley

Sunday Jan 31: Turns out that Crossley is beside Koroit so I took a stroll out in the afternoon (sometimes called ‘night’ here!) It is a rural area with a huge number of people of Irish descent. Their ancestors came in the mid-nineteenth century and settled in the surrounding area where they mainly picked spuds. Apparently they were not convicts but other Irish, practically all from an area of less than fifty miles radius of Killaloe/Ballina. The ships used to stop at Port Fairy, nearby, on the way to Melbourne and the local landlord enticed many of the Irish to ‘jump ship’. The clay in the area was perfectly suitable for growing spuds. Loads of O Briens, Lanes and Linnanes and all very proud of their heritage. The current generation, a famous musician called Shane Howard among them, were even interested in getting Irish language lessons for their kids. When I get settled I might consider getting involved. Their ancestors built a beautiful red-bricked church which held around 400 parishioners in its heyday. Alas no more and the church was closed a few years ago. The locals purchased it from the parish along with the old hall and hope to eventually develop a genealogy centre. As the patroness of the church was St Brigid this was their big fundraising day. It was just like an old ‘Bring and Buy Sale’ at home. There was a fancy dress where the kids dressed up as their ancestors, fun sports and even a pony and trap for the kids. Teresa made crosses and showed young and old alike how it is done, while recounting all the relevant stories and customs. She accepted an invitation to St Patrick’s for tomorrow which was St Brigid’s Day. These were so Irish they not only knew about The Saw Doctors, they could even sing some of their songs! I was impressed but also moved by their story and the strength of their heritage.