Grand Marshals for Alexandria 2017 St. Patrick's Day Parade Announced

ALEXANDRIA, VA -- The Ballyshaners Inc., organizers of Alexandria's annual St. Patrick's Day Parade, has announced that Karen and Bill Butcher, founders of Port City Brewing Co. in Alexandria, will be the grand marshals of the 2017 parade.

This will be the 36th parade that the organization has hosted in Old Town. The Ballyshaners is a non-profit, volunteer organization dedicated to promoting and preserving Irish history and culture.

"We are thrilled that the Butchers accepted our invitation to serve as the Grand Marshals for our upcoming parade," said Ballyshaners Chairman Mike Pablo, in an announcement Monday from the group. "The Butcher family's long history in Alexandria, plus Bill and Karen's efforts not only to create outstanding craft beers, but also to also make Alexandria better-known throughout the nation made them an obvious choice," Pablo noted.

Bill Butcher is a fourth generation Alexandrian and serves on the Board of Governors of Visit Alexandria. Karen is a Partner at Morgan Lewis, where she leads the global trademark, copyright
and advertising practice. She also has enjoyed watching their boys participate in Alexandria Little League baseball over the last several years. Karen and Bill live in Rosemont with their two sons, Riley and Key.

Bill noted, “Karen and I were thrilled to be asked to lead the Alexandria St. Patrick’s Day Parade. We have participated in the event for the last five years. Serving as Grand Marshals in our hometown is a terrific honor. It will be a great day.”

Bill Butcher began his career in the wine business working with Robert Mondavi Wine Company building world-class fine wine brands in the Mid-Atlantic market. As a longtime craft beer aficionado, Bill watched the craft beer business evolve, and become more like the fine wine business.

It was this evolution that convinced him and Karen to start Port City Brewing Company in Alexandria in 2011, when there were no other packaging breweries in the DC area. Through their dedication to creating high quality products, Bill and Karen quickly established Port City Brewing as a quality leader in the D.C and Mid-Atlantic craft beer market.

Port City Brewing has achieved national acclaim for its beers, including 9 medals at The Great American
Beer Festival, and being named Small Brewing Company of the Year in 2015. The St. Patrick’s Day Parade is financed through fundraising, sponsorship and partial support from the City of Alexandria. The Alexandria St. Patrick's Day Parade will be held on Saturday, March 4, 2017.

For more information about or to support the parade, visit www.ballyshaners.org.

PHOTO: Bill and Karen Butcher; photo courtesy of Ballyshaners