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www.celtic-connection.com
JUIY/AUGUST 2000
Mythological a magical treasures
gargoyles, goddesses & faeries
Candles & Incense
Tee shirts & Jewellery
Chess sets & Cards
Medieval, Celtic, Pagan & Fantastical Books
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Open 7 days a week 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. tel: (604) 689-8931
#6 - 1551 johnston st. Granville Island, Vancouver b.c. v6h 3r9
est. 1990
SANDBLASTING OF CONCRETE & STEEL, APPLICATION OF INTERNAL & EXTERNAL PROTECTIVE COATINGS
6632 - 90TH.
Avenue s.e. Calgary, alberta T2C 2T3
TEL: (403) 236-0988 fax: (403) 236-0993
(Work performed on industrial and civil projects) FULL YARD & MOBILE EQUIPPED FACILITIES
'FREE ESTIMATES Pat McCay Rod Bradley
— Complete Mechanical Contracting
Vancouver Branch
190-4611 No. 6 Road Richmond B.C. V6V 2L3
Tel: (604) 278-3553 Fax: (604) 278-3573
Calgarv Branch
2-2355 Pegasus Way N.E. Calgary, Alberta T2E 8C3
Tel: (403) 735-3267 Fax: (403) 735-6227
website: www.WKellyandSons.com
Conor Byrne Offers the Best in Traditional Irish Music
By CATHOLINE BUTLER
SEATTLE - Dublin born Conor Byrne is the owner and manager of the Conor Byrne Pub in the Ballard area of Seattle. The pub is a neighbourhood-type of bar and well-known for its traditional music.
Byrne is a very hospitable pub owner with a quick Dublin wit who is always ready with a joke or two and seems ideally suited for the job of publican.
Although, the day I dropped in to visit his establishment and asked him to tell me a joke.... he said he couldn't think of anything printable. Mind you it was very early in the day for jokes, especially since he had worked into the wee hours of that morning.
I asked Conor about his background and how he got into the pub business. He said, " I left Dublin in 1980, so I've been in North America for 20 years. I lived in Canada for four years, three years in Alberta and one in B.C. and, then I moved to Seattle in 1984.
"When I first moved to Seattle, I had a slight problem with green card issues...I didn't have one. So, that limited my options to work and I ended up working at
CONOR BYRNE
Murphy's Pub, since they very kindly gave me a job.
"So, that's how I got into the bartending and then in 1991,1 got my green card. That was also the time I had figured out what I wanted to do.
"When I lived in Calgary, Alberta,
I worked as an engineer and it was also my plan to work in Seattle as an engineer. But having worked in the bar business, it seemed to have more meaning for me and that's when I decided to open a pub.
"Since there wasn't anyone in town doing a solid diet of traditional Irish music...I thought there's an idea, maybe I should open up a pub with Irish music.
"Right now we have traditional music Thursday through Sunday and we'll probably add Wednesday night in the fall. We cater to a very broad spectrum of ages and occupations in our pub, anywhere from 21 and up.
"I have a good reputation for selling Guinness. In fact, there have been times when our Guinness sales have been 50 percent of our total sales.
"We're currently looking at the possibility of putting in a kitchen later this year, and that would mean adding liquor to the bar and installing kitchen equipment.
Conor is also a musician and plays fiddle and guitar with the popular Seattle group - The Suffering Gaels. Visit Conor at his pub located at 5140 Ballard Avenue N.W. in Seattle.
Need a Rock Crusher? Call Powerscreen
By CATHOLINE BUTLER
SEATTLE - Pat Low is a representative for Powerscreen Company, based in Seattle with a head office in Coalisland, Northern Ireland. I spoke to Pat on a recent visit to the Emerald City and spoke to him both about his background and his company.
He said, "well, I was born in Coalisland and I started working for Powerscreen in the Eighties. In 1993, the company sent me to Los Angeles as their representative and my job was to help people set up Powerscreen franchises. In 1995, I moved to Seattle and ended up setting up my own franchise.
"Powerscreen makes rock crushing equipment, screen equipment, and recycling equipment for material handling, such as gravel pits, compost sites, bark, crushed rock and sandblasting. We have equipment to do all that. It's a very specialized market and it's hard to explain, but some of the equipment could weigh up to as much as 50 tons.
"We depend on the construction industry for our sales and rentals and if the construction business is busy, then so are we. At the moment, Seattle is booming in construction so its good for us. Most of our business entails visiting construction sites and gravel pits and our customers are mostly referred through word of mouth.
"My territory is the state of Washington, which means I travel a lot but I have another sales person who works with me. He's from Fermanagh and a couple of service people are also from Offaly. John Foreman is our representative in Canada and he lives in Abbotsford, B.C.
PAT LOW of Powerscreen Company of Seattle is a native of Coalisland, County Tyrone in Northern Ireland.
AN EXAMPLE of some of the equipment sold by Power-screen (below).
"Actually, we work as independent businesses, so we don't work for Powerscreen, we have our own business. The company has a very good name and is a recognized leader in this industry For instance, today I have six people to see, some are contractors and I'll be visiting a gravel pit and also checking on our rental equipment."
Low is a big GAA fan (Gaelic Athletic Association), having played Gaelic Football for County Tyrone in the 24 minor teams and also for his hometown team of Coalisland. He also plays football with the Seattle Gaels team and has sponsored the Gaels with their club jerseys.
The Seattle Gaels wear the red and green jerseys, which are the Mayo colours and this is in honour of Mike O'Malley, who was originally from County Mayo, but passed away two years ago. He was a great supporter of the Seattle Gaels football team as he was of many other Irish cultural events and is still sadly missed in the Seattle Irish community.
For more information about Powerscreen equipment, call Pat Low at (253) 209-2900.