IN-LAWS SHARE SPECIAL BOND BECAUSE OF IRISH HERITAGE.

Byline: BETTIE RENCORET

LANCASTER - "Erin go bragh!" - Ireland forever! - has special meaning for Frances Shannon and Joseph Reilly as they celebrate St. Patrick's Day.

It goes to the heart of their heritage.

Both were born in Philadelphia of Irish immigrant parents who, despite Americanization, remained "bits of the old sod."

Shannon and Reilly have other things in common. They are in-laws and married their respective mates after being love-struck at first sight.

In 1939, at age 23, Joseph Reilly married Mercedes Leech, sister of Shannon, and they were in love until the day she died, four days after their 54th anniversary.

The Rev. Ambrose Leech, newly ordained priest and the brother of Mercedes and Frances, performed the wedding ceremony. It was his first.

A couple of years later he also officiated at Fran's wedding to Cornelius P. "Neil" Shannon, whom she met at the wedding of a friend. He had taken another girl but was smitten when he saw Frances. He ditched the other girl and took Fran home.

They were married on Reilly's birthday in 1941. Neil died just 12 days short of their 44th anniversary.

When Reilly's father decided to come to the United States from Ireland, he booked passage for the maiden voyage of the Titanic. Shortly before the sailing date, he ran across a longtime friend whom he hadn't seen for several years.

The friend talked him into changing his plans and taking a later ship so that they could spend a couple of weeks together catching up.

"That must have been the luck of the Irish working," Reilly said. "It was probably the smartest decision he ever made. It was a miracle."

Reilly's mother came over later, and she met his father in New York.

When Reilly was 3-1/2, his parents decided to go back to County Meath, Ireland, hometown of actor Pierce Brosnin.

They remained there until Reilly was 13 before they returned to the United States.

Reilly's dedicated Irish teacher continued to correspond with him through the years after he and his family returned to Philadelphia. He kept her apprised of his educational progress and what he was doing with his life.

One day, after he was grown, she wrote and asked him to look up her sister, Emily Leech, who years before had moved from County Louth, Ireland with her family, to Philadelphia.

He obliged, and Emily turned out to be the mother of Fran and Mercedes. She invited him to stay for dinner.

"Merc was working as a telephone operator, so she wasn't home when I arrived. I met Fran first. Then about 5 o'clock Merc arrived home. I took one look and that was all she wrote. I was a goner."

The Reillys came to Lancaster from Philadelphia in 1948 after Joe did a hitch in the U.S. Navy as a radio instructor.

He and Merc had two children, John, who still lives in Lancaster; and Mercedes Smith, who lives in Las Vegas.

"Mercedes loved Lancaster. She loved the climate. She could let the kids play outside and when they came in, the dirt would just shake right off them. It was not like the grimy coal dust of Philadelphia."

After they settled in, the Reillys bought out the Kappas Brothers Meat Market on what is now Lancaster Boulevard and renamed it Reilly's Market.

When they later sold the market, he went to work as a civil service electronics technician at the Edwards Air Force Base bombing range. He retired in 1980.

For most of her life, Shannon has been strictly a homemaker.

The Shannons had five children: Frances Harte, Mary Beth Stephens and Michael Toepfer, all of Quartz Hill; Neil, who succumbed to bone cancer at the age of 20; and Claire Ann Long, who has been hospitalized for 3-1/2 years as the result of a tragic accident on her honeymoon.

Fran's parents came over from Ireland in 1905 on their honeymoon and stayed to raise their children according to moral values handed down for generations.

"We always celebrated St. Patrick's Day. St. Patrick is our patron saint," she said.

The food was always special, she said.

"Corned beef and cabbage is not the truly traditional Irish boiled dinner. It is really ham and cabbage. Like a lot of people, I prefer the corned beef with the cabbage, and potatoes, of course."

There was the usual beer.

"You had to have green beer on St. Paddy's Day but it was kind of hard to find. That didn't stop us. We just used food coloring in regular beer. Our kids still do that."

Both widowed now, Shannon and Reilly retain family ties. They live only doors apart on the same block and "do" for each other as much as possible.

LANCASTER - Friends of the Center will host a forum for Lancaster City Council candidates at 1:30 p.m. Friday, in the Antelope Valley Senior Center, 777 W. Jackman St.

"This is an opportunity for all seniors to question and become more enlightened voters," said Nina Frazier, center director.

LANCASTER - Election of a representative from this region to the California Senior Legislature will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday in the Antelope Valley Senior Center, 777 W. Jackman St.

The region encompasses the Antelope and Santa Clarita valleys. Seeking a fourth two-year term is Bill Curtiss of Palmdale, the only candidate for the assembly from Antelope Valley. Merritt Wolf is running from Newhall. There is no local candidate for senator.

The CSL, patterned after the state Legislature, is made up of 40 senior senators and 80 senior assembly members. As nonpartisan representatives, the members support and propose legislation that speaks to the needs of the elderly.

For more information or to see a videotape on the senior legislature call Curtiss at 947-9408.

LANCASTER - Menus for the week at the senior life nutrition sites in Lancaster, Palmdale and Pearblossom have been announced. All meals include bread and margarine and coffee, tea or milk.

Monday: Chili egg puff, parsley potatoes, green beans, carrot/pineapple.

Tuesday: Barbecued chicken, macaroni salad, cabbage, tossed salad, apple crisp.

Wednesday: Lemon herbed fish, rice pilaf, mixed vegetables, marinated beets, orange.

Thursday: Hamburger on a bun, corn, cauliflower, tossed salad, cheesecake.

Friday: Pinto beans and ham, carrots, fiesta coleslaw, cornbread, pudding.

CAPTION(S):

PHOTO

Photo In-laws Frances Shannon and Joseph Reilly, both widowed, enjoy leafing through a family photo album. Bettie Rencoret/Special to the Daily News