Job Posting: Executive Director
Women's Wellness: January 29, 2025
An evening with local author, Deborah Derrickson Kossmann. Deborah will discuss topics affecting many of us - aging, hoarding and caregiving, and read from her new book. Deborah will also talk about that process and then open to discussion and close with another brief reading from the book.
Deborah Derrickson Kossmann is the winner of Trio House Press's inaugural 2023 Aurora Polaris Creative Nonfiction Award; Lost Found Kept: A Memoir, published by Trio House Press in early 2025, is available for purchase now. She is currently working on a collection of essays, Complications of Captivity.
“Taking a Step Forward” and “Why We Needed a Prenup With Our Contractor” were published as “Modern Love” columns in The New York Times, and the "Tale of Two Primates" appeared as a "Menagerie" column in the New York Times Opinionator section. Deb won the Short Memoir Competition at the Philadelphia First Person Arts Festival. She has also received a Pennsylvania Council on the Arts Poetry Fellowship and an Individual Creative Artist-Special Opportunity Stipend for Literature (Poetry) from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.
Her poetry, essays and feature articles have appeared in a range of literary journals and other publications including the Nashville Review, The Woven Tale Press, Psychotherapy Networker, and Solstice Literary Magazine. She has been a fellow in residence at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts and The Ragdale Foundation on a number of occasions for both poetry and nonfiction.
A licensed clinical psychologist who has been in full time private practice for more than thirty years, Deb has experience in oncology, community mental health, and leadership consulting. She participates in PSYPACT which allows her to see clients in more than 42 states via telehealth. She has taught graduate courses on ethics, family therapy, trauma and counseling skills. A member of the Pennsylvania Psychological Association, she sits on the Ethics Committee. She was formerly on the Board of Directors for the Pennsylvania Psychological Foundation and was an Alumni Trustee on the Board of Trustees of Arcadia University. She is a member of Arcadia's President's Advisory Council.
Prior to becoming a psychologist, Deb was the Public Relations Manager/Special Events Coordinator at the Philadelphia Zoo and also worked at KYW Newsradio as the Advertising and Promotions Manager.
Deb lives in Havertown, PA with her husband, Marc, and Sofia Carmela, a cat with a whole lot of “tortitude.”
Women's Wellness: January 22, 2025
2025 Women's Wellness Series
January 8th: Strengthening Self Through The Senses
Come join us for an exciting workshop exploring the many ways that we can use our senses to help regulate the nervous system, expand our internal and external resources, listen to what the body is communicating and learn how to attend to it, and to deeply strengthen our relationship with self. This workshop will include a guided sensory meditation, journaling, playfulness with textures, sounds, scents, and will conclude with a tea tasting and light snacks.
Stacey Vinci is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and an ANFT Certified Forest Therapy Guide. Stacey has been in practice for 14 years, supporting individuals, communities, and family systems in generational healing, growth, and change. Stacey facilitates embodied wellness through somatic, trauma-informed, and nature-based offerings.
transcendcsc.com
January 15th: Reducing cortisol/stress levels with aromatherapy
Returning Women's Wellness speaker, Lauren Cattie, will share a presentation covering aromatherapy, herbs, and plants that reduce cortisol levels, as well as other things you can do to naturally reduce cortisol/stress levels day to day. (Breath work, mindfulness, accupressure points, self care, etc.).
Follow Lauren on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/laurencattie
January 22nd: Astrology Basics
What you’ll learn:
• Sun, Moon & Rising (your big 3)
• Mercury, Mars & Venus (persona planets)
• The House System (where life happens)
• Fire, Earth, Air & Water (zodiac elements)
www.shalamainline.com; Tricia Adelman, Yoga Shala Main Line, Yoga, Mindfulness & Astrology; Tricia@shalamainline.com, 267-274-4648
January 29th: Lost Found Kept: A Conversation with the Author
How does a psychologist fail to recognize that her intelligent, sensitive, and book-loving mother has created "the worst hoarder house ever seen?" After making the horrifying discovery that her mother had no water in her house for at least two years, Deborah Derrickson Kossmann begins the otherworldly excavation of a childhood home she hasn't been inside for three decades.
Moving back and forth in time, from this surreal nightmare of an archaeological dig to recollecting her past and long buried family secrets, Kossmann seeks to untangle a web of complicated familial relationships. In her lyrical and unflinching quest, she comes to understand what's been lost, what's been found and what's been kept in both her own and her mother's life.
February 5th: The Big 6 & Lymphatic Drainage
February 12: update coming soon!
Move to Ireland: Tax Essentials Webinar
Thank you Expat Taxes for sharing this webinar with our community.
📆 January 16th
⏰ 12 pm EST
🔗 Register at --> attend.zoho.eu/sg0
Winter Essentials Drive
Donations will be collected at the Irish Diaspora Center until January 17th
Irish Living Legacy: Silver to Gold Edition
Christmas Raffle
Get ready to make this holiday season extra special with the Irish Diaspora Center's Christmas Raffle! We’ve gathered an amazing lineup of prizes that are sure to bring cheer to your holidays.
Prizes include:
Two Nights in the Poconos – Enjoy a serene getaway in a beautiful mountain retreat (dates to be arranged with the homeowners).
$500 Airbnb Gift Card – Plan your dream escape to anywhere you desire
Handmade Afghan – Lovingly crafted by Maria McGarrigle, this cozy treasure will keep you warm all season long.
iPad with Pencil and 2-Year Warranty – Perfect for work, play, or creativity on the go!
Gift Card Tree – A fabulous assortment of cards valued at over $500, including local favorites like The Plough & the Stars, Lower Merion Beverage Co., and more!
Basket of Cheer – A delightful selection of beverages to toast the holidays.
Raffle tickets go on sale now through December 19th. Click HERE to purchase tickets via Venmo, PayPal, credit or debit card. To purchase a chance using cash or check, please email alanna@icphila.org.
The lucky winners will be drawn at the IDC Christmas Party on December 19th – don’t miss your chance to win big while supporting a great cause!
Proceeds from the raffle will benefit the vital programs at the Irish Diaspora Center. Purchase your tickets today! Let’s spread joy, support our community, and make this holiday season unforgettable!
Pen Pal Project
Two hallmarks of Irish culture are a community of care and a passion for writing.
It is in those traditions that the Irish Diaspora Center is launching ‘Putting Your Heart in the Write Place’, a Pen Pal Project to connect seniors with students who are in their first year of college and away from home for the first time.
This intergenerational project allows for an exchange between our past and our future in an activity that engages and enriches our seniors and students.
The aim of the project is to have a senior and student each exchange one letter per month from January through May of 2025 with a gathering of all participants in early summer to meet over lunch and share their experiences.
A monthly exchange of caring and sharing through letter writing strengthens the connections in our community and promises to be a rewarding experience for all participants.
If you are a senior with an interest in being a Pen Pal or know of a college student who is away from home for the first time and would like to participate, please reply via email to alanna@icphila.org or call the Irish Diaspora Center at (610) 789-6355.
Irish Living Legacy: Silver to Gold Edition
2026 Green Card Lottery
OPEN NOW: Diversity Visa (DV) Program – 2026 Green Card Lottery
The online registration period for the DV-2026 Program began on Wednesday, October 2, 2024, at 12:00 pm EST and concludes on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, at 12:00 pm EST.
To be eligible to apply for the DV Green Card Lottery, applicants must have graduated from high school or its equivalent or have a minimum of 2 years qualifying work experience in the past 5 years.
If you are a current visa holder in the US (J1 Grad, H1B, L1) or are currently in Ireland and interested in coming to the US, then we highly recommend you apply for the DV Green Card Lottery. This is one of the ONLY ways to secure legal permanent residency in the United States.
Enter now at https://dvprogram.state.gov/
Extending the validity of Green Card
On Sept. 10, 2024, USCIS began automatically extending the validity of permanent resident cards (also known as Green Cards) to 36 months from the expiration date on the face of the current Green Card for lawful permanent residents (LPR) who file Form I-90 to renew an expiring or expired Green Card.
They are in the process of sending out amended receipt notices for individuals with a pending Form I-90. You can present a receipt notice with an expired Green Card as evidence of LPR. Your amended receipt notice with your expired Green Card provides proof of employment and travel authorization for 36 months from the expiration date on the front of your expired Green Card.
Click HERE to read more.
Community members featured in "Meet the Voices"
Click HERE for tickets for Inis Nua’s "The Playboy of the Western World”.
2024 Delaware Valley Irish Hall of Fame
Congratulations to our Board Member, Tom Higgins, and Director of Community Engagement and Organizing, Una McDaid, on being named to the 2024 Hall of Fame!
The Teaching of Irish in our Primary Schools
On Wednesday, August 7th, our Silver to Gold group enjoyed a visit and talk with Tina (McDaid) McLaughlin. Tina talked about Gaelic in Ireland’s school system today. Click HERE to read an essay she shared with the group.
Job Posting: Part-time Community Social Worker/Case Manager
Click HERE to download the full job description.
Irish Living Legacy: Silver to Gold Edition
School Supplies Collection
Please consider donating much needed back-to-school supplies! We will be collecting supplies during the month of August and donating all items to Grands Stepping Up.
Grands Stepping Up is a non-profit corporation dedicated to assisting grandparents/kinship guardians who are raising their grandchildren, due to issues such as the opiate epidemic, incarceration, mental health issues, death or illness of the parents that cause the parents to be unable to perform their traditional parental roles.
Suggested Items:
School bags
crayons
markers
colored pencils
paints
pens (black/blue/red)
pencils
pencil sharpener
notebooks (composition/1-subject/3-subject/5-subject)
folder
pencil cases
highlighters
rulers
compasses
scientific calculators
tissues
disinfectant wipes
hand sanitizer
IDC Merchandise
Click HERE to place an order before July 12th!
