CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Once again there will be a strong showing from Cleveland's West Side and the western suburbs in the 176th annual St. Patrick's Day Parade, which steps off at 1:04 p.m. Saturday from East 18th Street and Superior Avenue in downtown Cleveland. The parade is organized by the United Irish Societies of Greater Cleveland.

James Kilbane is Hibernian of the Year. Photo provided by UIS.

West Park resident Shannon Corcoran is executive director of the parade and UIS.

Leading the parade will be Sheila Murphy Crawford, the grand marshal. Lakewood residents may recognize James Kilbane Jr., who grew up in the city and graduated from St. James School and St. Edward High School. Kilbane is being honored as the Hibernian of the Year. A longtime member of the West Side Irish American Club and an accomplish fife and drum player, Kilbane is a parade director emeritus who also serves as parade announcer. He works as a plumbing inspector for the city of Parma.

Joan Reali, Irish Mother of the Year, emigrated from Ireland at 17 and lived in the West Park neighborhood for many years, where she was active at St. Mark Parish. Recently, she and her family moved to Westlake. The Realis are active with St. Bernadette (Westlake) and St. Raphael (Bay Village) parishes, as well as many Irish and other organizations.

Irish Mother of the Year is Joan Reali. Photo provided by UIS.

Noreen Halley, inside co-chair for the parade, is a West Park resident and a member of Our Lady of Angels Parish. She also is active in several Irish organizations and enjoys Irish music and dance.

Linda Burke is the outside co-chair for the parade. She and her family are active in many Irish organizations. Burke took Gaelic language lessons at PJ McIntyre's in West Park and is planning her 29th trip to Ireland in May.

Those watching the parade will see many area residents and organizations among the marchers, including Our Lady of Angels School, West Park; St. Brendan Parish, North Olmsted; St. Ignatius High School Band, Cleveland; St. Edward High School Trash Talkers, Lakewood; and St. Patrick Parish, West Park, which is celebrating its 170th anniversary on St. Patrick's Day.

For more information about the parade or this year's honorees, visit stpatricksdaycleveland.com.

Inside co-chair is Noreen Halley. Photo provided by UIS.

Budding artist: Isabella Bixler, 10, of Fairview Park, a student at Birchwood School of Hawken, received honorable mention in the November 2017 Cricket League art competition.

Entrants were asked to submit original artwork with the theme "Celebrate the Season." Isabella's name appears in the Cricket League section of the March Cricket magazine and her art is posted at cricketmagkids.com/contests.

Cricket features short stories, poems and articles by children's authors and is illustrated by artists nationally and internationally.

Know your home: The next installment in the "Knowing Your Home" series will address "All About Fireplaces." The session will be 7-9 p.m. March 15 The Hearth Shop, 27303 Center Ridge Road, Westlake. The workshop is free and open to the public.

It will address fireplace-related topics including:

How to ensure your fireplace is working safely

How a fireplace system works

Proper fireplace maintenance

Upgrading or converting your fireplace

Options for installing a new fireplace

To more information or to reserve a spot at the free workshop, visit lakewoodalive.org or call 216-521-0655.

Now in its fifth year, LakewoodAlive's "Knowing Your Home" series draws hundreds of attendees annually. In lieu of charging for the events, participants are asked to consider either making a donation to LakewoodAlive or bringing canned foods or other non-perishable items for donation to the Lakewood Community Services Center.

Cleveland police and Ward 17 Councilman Marty Keane will host a safety meeting on March 21.

Safety meeting: West Park residents are invited to join Cleveland Police First District Commander Daniel Fay, Officer Tim Riley, Ward 17 Councilman Marty Keane, and representatives of Kamm's Corners Development Corp. at a spring safety meeting 6-7:30 p.m. March 21at the West Park Historical Society hall, at 17401 Lorain Ave., in the KCDC Building.

The session will provide safety information and allow residents to express concerns to police and city officials.

Last chance: This is the final weekend for Dover Players' original interactive jury trial murder mystery, "A Question of Guilt - State v. Davis," which is written and directed by Greg Lavelle.

Performances are at 8 p.m. March 16-17 and 3 p.m. March 18 at North Olmsted United Methodist Church, 4600 Dover Center Road. Tickets are $5. Call Linda Little at 440-782-0095 or send an email message to doverplayers@gmail.com for reservations.

Breakfast time: Olmsted Historical Society will have a pancake breakfast 9-11 a.m. March 18 in the Event Barn at the Frostville Museum complex, 24101 Cedar Point Road, North Olmsted, in the Rocky River Reservation of the Cleveland Metroparks. Tickets are $7 for adults, $5 for children 10 and younger.

Breakfast is unlimited pancakes plus juice, hot beverage and sausage. Additional sausages are three for $1 and additional orange juice is 50 cents. Takeout orders are available.

For additional information, call 216-789-5298 or visit olmstedhistoricalsociety. org.

Information, please: Readers are invited to share information about themselves, their families and friends, organizations, church events, etc. in Fairview Park, Lakewood, North Olmsted and West Park for the A Place in the Sun column, which I write on a freelance basis. Awards, honors, milestone birthdays or anniversaries and other items are welcome. Submit information at least 10 days before the requested publication date to carolkovach@hotmail.com.