One of St. Augustine's most beloved annual traditions is coming to an end. Romanza-St. Augustine, the volunteer-run nonprofit behind both the Celtic Music & Heritage Festival and the city's St. Patrick's Day Parade, has announced it will not hold either event in 2027 — effectively closing the book on 15 years of Highland Games, whiskey tastings, and live Celtic music in the heart of the nation's oldest city.
Organization president Albert Syeles points to a convergence of challenges that made continuing unsustainable. Chief among them: an aging all-volunteer board with no new leadership coming up to take the reins. "I'm getting old; so is my entire board," Syeles told Jacksonville Today. "It's something we do on a volunteer basis, and we love doing it, but there's only so much you can do after a while."
Funding has been another serious strain. Like many Florida nonprofits, Romanza-St. Augustine has felt the impact of Governor Ron DeSantis' elimination of state arts and culture funding in 2024, along with reduced county support and rising labor costs. The pandemic dealt an earlier blow, and more recently, U.S. immigration policy created hurdles: bands traveling from Ireland, Scotland, and Canada struggled to obtain work visas, complicating the festival's internationally flavored lineup.
Syeles expressed hope that St. Augustine's deep Irish and Scottish heritage won't fade from public memory even without the festivals to anchor it. The city is home to what is believed to be the oldest St. Patrick's Day celebration in America — a legacy he'd like to see others carry forward. "There's a lot of culture here that isn't just Spanish or British — it's Irish, it's Scottish," he said. "There's a lot of history here, remarkable history."
Romanza-St. Augustine is currently focused on its annual Romanza Festivale, scheduled for May 2027, though Syeles acknowledged that event's future beyond next year remains uncertain given the same organizational pressures. This story was originally reported by Jacksonville Today.
