The City of Kingston is gearing up for its 32nd annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade, preceded by its 31st annual Shamrock Run, to be held on Sunday, March 10. Both follow essentially the same two-mile Broadway course, which is mostly flat but ends with a long downhill approaching the Rondout riverfront. Runners step off at 12:50 p.m. sharp from the Academy Green, with parade marchers departing at 1 p.m. from Kingston Plaza.
Believed to be the largest race between New York City and Albany, with 4,500 or more runners expected, the Shamrock Run does not time runners (though a clock is posted at the Finish Line for those who wish to keep track of their own times). The honoree for this year’s race is Robert Cook, Jr., longtime Shamrock Run volunteer and former principal at Rondout Valley High School, who died of cancer this January.
Registration for the race can be done online through Wednesday, March 6 at https://bit.ly/2ENoAQk; or in person from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 9 at the Hudson Valley Maritime Museum at 50 Rondout Landing or from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on race day in front of the Governor Clinton at 1 Albany Avenue. The entry fee is $22 if preregistered by March 6, $25 by March 9. Proceeds from the 2019 run will benefit the ARC of Ulster-Greene’s children’s arts program.
Co-sponsored by the Ancient Order of Hibernians Fr. Con Colbert Woulfe Division 1 and the Ladies’ Ancient Order of Hibernians Division 5 of Ulster County, the 2019 Kingston St. Patrick’s Day Parade will honor David Doyle as Grand Marshal. An Albany native and graduate of SUNY-Schenectady’s Culinary Arts Program, Doyle is the chef at the Blackboard Bistro at the Rondout Municipal Center in Cottekill, operated by the ARC of Ulster-Greene. Mayor of the Day for the parade will be Jean Steuding; middle-schooler Nina McCann is this year’s Irish Princess; and Hunter Castle, 7, will be the 2019 Bearer of St. Patrick.
Immediately following the race at 1:30 p.m., registered runners will be invited to a Post-Race Party at the Rondout Neighborhood Center at 105 Broadway. Prizes randomly drawn from all registered runners will include a trip for two to Ireland (must be present to win). To learn more, visit www.shamrockrunners.org.
Join the family! 
