Homewood’s Cheekiest Resident Named British Expat of the Month

If you’re a fan of the H-F Patch Facebook page, there’s a good chance you’ve already been offended (or tickled) by one of David Parry’s comments. The eccentric 38-year-old Welsh immigrant has a knack for ruffling local feathers, and he’s in full form in a recent BBC America article featuring him as the "British Expat of the Month." 

“… How and why BBC America picked my name out of the hat is beyond me,” Parry said. “My reaction was, ‘Ah, to hell with it. My mates are going to read this, I'd best be honest. Not going to pretend I'm anything I'm not.’ 

"And any chance to … get a few more eyes on the Tafia is always good,” he continued. “I’m conceited like that.”

The "Tafia," that Parry mentioned refers to the Chicago Tafia, an organization he started to help nearby Welsh expats with immigration, networking and joy seeking, among other things.

“We badger the owners of the Wrigley Building to have it illuminated white, red & green on March 1st for St. David’s Day,” Parry told BBC America, ”but in general we mainly meet up for Welsh sporting events, bands, festivals etc. We have a few dozen regular members and a few hundred overall in the city and surrounding area that follow what we get up to and come out once in a while.”

While it’s not mentioned in the article, you might also recognize Parry as one of the promoters of the increasingly popular Homewood-Flossmoor Science Pub. Or maybe you might recognize him as the guy that was wearing a kilt around town (check photo above for reference).

You can read BBC America’s full feature on Parry on their website. And yes, that’s Walt’s Grocery Store in the picture.