Today, let’s take a pause from buildings and streetscapes of downtown’s Elm Street and feature a very special, local person. Pat Kelly is from Greensboro; a graduate of Page High School and UNCG- where he majored in broadcast cinema. Pat is a self-taught musician who is passionate about all Irish music. He plays the Irish bouzouki, the tenor banjo, and the mandolin. You may recognized Pat from the 15 years he worked at Sheppard Instruments at the corner of Spring Garden and Chapman Street. It is the italianate, brick building that now houses Freeman’s Grub and Pub. Once Sheppard Instruments closed, Pat went to work at his alma mater, UNCG. He retired from Jackson Library in the interlibrary loan section in 2024. 

We met up with Pat at Breakfast in Paris, the little bakery and coffee shop in the alley in the 200 block of South Elm Street. Now that he is retired, Pat likes to walk, especially downtown, and getting a baguette at the bakery is the perfect destination. Pat agreed with us that the serendipity of seeing people you have known for decades is so special. Pat wants to visit Ireland in the near future. We hope  Pat and his wife Claire get back to Ireland soon and that we find a way to meet up with them, so we can hear of their adventures, see some photographs,  and maybe hear a few Irish tunes.