by Hunter Dawkins, Publisher/Owner – thegazebogazette@gmail.com
For over 20 years, the Krewe of Blarney Walking Parade has been conducted to honor the annual St. Patrick Day holiday. Along with the Halfast Walking Club organizing the parade, a royalty is announced with the parade and is normally local residents.
The annual Colleen named for this year’s walking parade is Catherin Authement. Authement is the daughter of Stan and Christy Authement. She is a Hancock County native that was an honors graduate oc Hancock High School and Pearl River Community College (PRCC) in Poplarville, Miss. Currently, she is attending Mississippi State University where she serves as President of the Sociological Student Association and is a member of the German club.
Authement will graduate in May 2023 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminology.
“This opportunity means so much to me because I am a Gulf Coast native,” said Authement. “I am honored to be this year’s Colleen for the Krewe of Blarney.”
The 2023 Colleen completed 14 years of studio dance and spent all four high school years on the Talons dance team while playing second bass on the drumline. Additionally, she was a member of the String of Pearls at PRCC for both years where the won first place at a national competition in Dallas, Texas.
The annual Grand Marshal is none other than the Mayor of Pass Christian, Jimmy Rafferty. Jimmy was born and raised in Pass Christian. He comes from three generations of public servants in the Pass (his grandfather was the Mayor back in 1936, his father was the Superintendent of Utilities, one of his brothers was a City Judge and another brother was an Alderman).
The mayor earned a Bachelor’s degree from LSU in History and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Loyola University of New Orleans.
Jimmy was a Human Resources practitioner who worked in the financial services, pharmaceutical and aerospace & defense industries for over 30 years. He got his start in New York and later lived and worked in Hong Kong, Boston and Washington, D.C.
Rafferty returned to Pass Christian with his wife Beverly and unfortunately lost her to cancer a few years ago.
As Mayor, Jimmy is utilizing his Human Resource skills in bringing people together, forming partnerships with the Board of Alderpersons, City Employees, Citizens of Pass Christian and State Legislators, getting things done and helping the City grow on a measured basis.
The 2023 Krewe of Blarney parade will begin Saturday, March 18, 2023 at 1pm in the Davis Pavilion north of downtown Pass Christian. The walking path will start south on Davis until Scenic Drive next to Hancock Bank and finishing at Bacchus on the Beach on W Scenic Drive.
Block party will follow at Bacchus on the Beach at the end of the parade.
