• To help finance his ventures, Father Earley depended heavily on two of the grandest social events of the year in Irvington. The first was the mid-winter "Euchre and Ball" which was held in the auditorium above the Town Hall. The participants played "progressive euchre"- the losers being called out until only enough winners were left to match the donated prizes that were displayed on the stage. After the game, the floor was cleared for dancing, which generally lasted until 1:00a.m.
  
  The second major occasion each year, a lawn party, occurred in August at the Hopkins estate on North Broadway. Although they were not CathoIics themselves, the Hopkinses willingly made their property available because their gardener, Mr. Kelley, was a loyal member of the church. Recalls Mr. Tynan: "Several weeks in advance of the day, committees were appointed to handle the various activities, which included all of the amusements and games usually found at a carnival. Workmen constructed a large dance platform with a special, raised gazebo for the orchestra. A small platform some distance away accommodated Piper O'Grady, who performed for the energetic Irish dancers. Wives, daughters, and sweethearts baked pies, cookies, and cakes."
  
  Mr. Tynan's letter continues, "There were many stands for games and prizes for the most adept at hurling a baseball at a stuffed doll. Mike Tynan and John Herlihy presided at the 'wheel of chance: and handed out dollars to the lucky winners. As the sun went down, the younger children were escorted home, and the strings of electric Iights added a touch of glamour and romance as the evening festivities took over.”
  
  Mary Tewey remembers that one year she and Margaret Lonergan dressed as Rebecca at the Well and sold lemonade.
   
  Some idea of the importance of the summer and winter events to the finances of the church can be gained from the financial re­ port of 1903, the year of Father Earley's arrival, which shows that even then the Euchre and Ball produced $611.97 and the lawn party $1,011.20. Annually, these socials raised more money than did the Sunday and Holy Day collections, plus the yields of the special solicitations for coal and a new road on the property combined. As Father Earley took hold, the amounts raised in the Town Hall every winter and on the Hopkins estate every summer must surely have risen sharply.