When US President Barack Obama sits down at his desk in the Oval Office this morning, pride of place on that famous desk will go to a piece of Waterford Crystal presented to him by Taoiseach Brian Cowen.
The tradition of handing over a Waterford Crystal bowl of shamrock to the American President on St Patrick’s Day dates back to the days of JFK - and it was an Irishwoman who helped to start the tradition that continues to this day.
The lady in question is none other than Dot Tubridy - and if that name rings a bell, yes she is a cousin of the one and only Ryan Tubridy!
It all started when Dot was working with Waterford Crystal in the early 60s. A friend of the Kennedys, she made sure that there was a piece of Waterford Crystal in the famous Oval Office.
It started with an ash tray to hold the Presidential cigar and now, decades later, it has become a bowl filled with shamrock.
The lady that is Dot is very modest about her role in the creation of this tradition and says that it was really JFK who started it.
But her relationship with the Kennedy clan has endured to this day. This week she attended the American Ireland Fund ball with her good friend Ethel Kennedy, the widow of Bobby Kennedy.
And when it comes to her cousin Ryan, the Kennedy apple didn’t fall to far from the tree there!
Ryan is writing a book about the Kennedy era and spent these past few days immersed in all things Kennedy-esque.
The book is expected to hit the shelves in Autumn of next year.
2 comments:
The only family connection between Ryan and Dot Tubridy, as far as I am aware, is sharing the name 'Tubridy' - which is Dot's married name.
I am searching for the link too. Dorothy was married to my father's 2nd cousin, Michael G Tubridy. I am searching for Ryan's link to Dorothy. I have managed to go back to his Great, great, great grandfather and can come up with no obvious link. He credited her with inspiring him to go into broadcasting and she obviously inspired him re the Kennedys too, so he must have known her?
Post a Comment