Local businesswoman tapped to lead 2012 Rockville Centre St. Pat's parade

The Rockville Centre St. Patrick’s Parade Committee has chosen longtime Rockville Centre businesswoman Kathleen Alcock, the owner of Kathleen’s of Donegal at 10 North Park Ave., to be grand marshal of the event, scheduled for March 24. She is the first woman ever to be selected as to lead the parade, now in its 16th year.

“Kathleen Alcock has been a staunch supporter of the Rockville Centre St. Patrick’s Parade since its inception in 1997,” said Parade Committee President Sean O’Rourke, noting her extensive list of contributions to its success. “Her charitable work, her family values, her love of life and her tireless dedication to serving her country, her church and her community reflect the true essence of the Rockville Centre St. Patrick’s Parade —The Parade That Cares and Shares — that celebrates both our Irish heritage and our pride in being American. She has broken the glass ceiling, which is what we are all about—she is a great Irish woman.”

Kathleen Alcock was born in County Donegal as the oldest of three children. In 1958, at the tender age of 19, Alcock set sail to America and an uncertain future. During the next three years, she lived with her aunt in Bryn Mawr, Pa. and worked in the hotel industry. In 1961, Alcock set off for New York and another uncertain future, working for the next four years in Schraff’s Restaurant in Manhattan. After returning to Ireland just before Christmas, 1965, she met her husband, Thomas Alcock, by chance on a trip to England to meet friends. They wed in February 1967, and this year celebrated their 44th anniversary. They are the proud parents of three grown children and have 12 grandchildren with another one expected in March, just in time for the step off of this year’s parade.

In the early 1970s, Alcock decided to follow her dream and opened her own Irish handcraft and gift shop business as an extension to her own home in County Donegal, allowing her to run her home and business at the same time. In the early 1980s, she opened her second Irish craft shop in Donegal town. After its opening, she became involved heavily in organizing tours and events for various Irish-American associations and produced a visual travelogue of Donegal’s history, scenery and folk traditions for tourists. While visiting New York in 1986 to promote her video of Donegal, Alcock visited Rockville Centre and instantly felt a connection to both the village and the people. This instant connection led her to open Kathleen’s of Donegal at its present location in March 1987.

Kathleen’s of Donegal will celebrate its 25th year —once again just in time for the step off of the Rockville Centre St. Patrick’s Parade. During its long tenure in the village, the shop has provided a hand knit sweater to the late President Ronald Reagan and Belleek porcelain china to former President Bill Clinton. In addition, the shop has donated hand knit sweaters to New York governors and traditional Irish walking sticks to the grand marshals of the St. Patrick’s Parades in both New York City and Rockville Centre.

“I am humbled and proud to be associated with ‘The Parade That Cares and Shares,’” Alcock said. “And I am honored to serve as the grand marshal for the 2012 parade.”

To learn more about the parade, visit www.rvcstpatrick.com.