As we prepare to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Harvest Time Feis, it’s the perfect opportunity to reflect on how far we’ve come.

Back in 1996, I decided to take a leap and venture into the world of running my own feis. At the time, I had never organized an event of that size. I had no idea whether there would be enough interest, let alone whether we would have the manpower to pull it off. Thankfully, the families of Heavey Quinn Irish Dance stepped up and embraced the challenge. While I had attended many feiseanna organized by my peers, I truly had no idea what I was getting myself into.

In those days, there was no FeisWeb for online registrations, no social media to spread the word, and very few of the conveniences we take for granted today. Entries arrived through local dance schools, one envelope at a time. Yet somehow, they kept coming, and here we are 30 years later.

Our very first Harvest Time Feis was held at West Roxbury High School. I still remember building our own stages and hauling what felt like endless sheets of plywood up to the second floor. Competitor numbers, registrations, and tabulations were all completed by hand. Looking back, it’s hard to imagine how we managed it all!

With the arrival of Riverdance, Irish dance experienced tremendous growth, and those increasing numbers were certainly reflected at the Harvest Time Feis. No matter how often we reminded dancers to submit their entries early, we routinely found ourselves with waiting lists. While participation in Irish dance has declined somewhat since the COVID pandemic, the Harvest Time Feis continues to thrive and remains one of the highlights of the season.

Over the years, I have collected countless memories, but what makes me most proud is not the size of the event or the number of entries—it is the people who have been part of the journey. From my mother running the kitchen in the early days (and heaven help anyone who got in her way!) to seeing the children of former dancers now competing at our Feis, it has been an incredible full-circle experience. One of the greatest compliments I receive is hearing parents and dancers from schools throughout the region say how much they love the Harvest Time Feis. From the very beginning, my goal has been simple: to run an organized, welcoming event where every dancer leaves feeling a sense of accomplishment and excitement, especially when showing off one of our special Halloween awards.

Thirty years later, that goal remains unchanged, and I am grateful to everyone who has helped make the Harvest Time Feis the success it is today. Here's to celebrate our past, honoring the memories we've made, and looking forward to many more years to come. 

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Mary Heavey Quinn