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“It feels like home” Gavan’s St. Patrick Party makes triumphant return

“It feels like home” Gavan’s St. Patrick Party makes triumphant return

The Equity

The Leahy Family performing to a packed room during the return of Gavan’s.

Brett Thoms

Quyon March 12, 2023

Gavan’s held its traditional Saint Patrick’s Day party last Sunday, which saw at least 350 people, mostly dressed in green, come through the doors of the historic Gavan’s Hotel.

The party was an all-day event with various musical performances organized by Gail Gavan, daughter of the original owners.

Some of the performers to take the stage over the course of the day included Mike and Dave Ryan, Pauline Brown, Virginia Schwartz, Louis Schryer, the Leahy Family and more.

“All the entertainers are having a wonderful time,” Gavan said about the party. “People are singing along and dancing along and everybody’s just really soaking up the Irish spirit. Every generation is here and it just feels like home.”

Gail made a point to thank the new owner, Jim Cain, who is running the bar with his dad.

“We thought this place was just going to be boarded up and shut down and turn into whatever,” Gail said. “But Jim, who is from Quyon, is keeping it going. He knows what it was like back in the day and we’ve recreated it today.”

The party is the first big event at Gavan’s under Cain’s ownership, and he said the reception has been overwhelming.

“I have never been thanked so much for anything in my entire life,” said Cain. “My only answer has been we just turned the lights on, it was everybody that showed up, that made the day.”

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Now that the successful party is passed, the celebrations aren’t done, as Gavan’s will have another St. Patricks Day event next Saturday called Drown the Shamrock.

Virginia Schwartz, a local fiddler who has been coming to Gavan’s St Patrick’s Day party for years, performing in the Shamrock Lounge. “I’ve been coming here for, many years, since I was about six years old. And honestly, it’s really nice to be back and playing music with everybody here, especially after covid,” she said about being back.



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“It feels like home” Gavan’s St. Patrick Party makes triumphant return

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