Mapping Georgetown: February Love Stories
By • February 7, 2022 0 1130
“X marks the spot where I met the girl who was to be my wife. I went to the Tombs (1226 36th St. NW) 7/12/69 with friends to have a beer. Some Marymount girls were there. My friend knew her friend. We’re going back next month to celebrate 50 years of marriage! Story-Map from Pat Kernan courtesy Mapping Georgetown.
“Just an old-fashioned love song…” Three Dog Night (Paul Williams)
“Talkin’ ‘bout my girl…” The Temptations
Ah, it’s February… Have you got one of these love songs stuck in your head?
“Show me the love, Jerry!” Jerry Maguire.
Here’s a sweet love story we received from Pat Kernan, a perfect opener for this month of Valentines!
Pat Kernan’s Mapping Georgetown Story:
I was born at Georgetown U. Hospital in the first half of the last century and grew up at 4323 44th St. NW.
The family attended St. Ann’s Church at Tenley Circle. We have a family reunion scheduled 2/22/22 at the St. Ann’s gym. My two brothers and their wives still live in the Tenleytown area, and we actually plan to tour the old homestead that day! The house was sold in 1979 and I’m excited to visit the house I haven’t seen in over 40 years.
Upon graduation in 1967 from St. John’s College High School in D.C. I applied to the University of Notre Dame and Georgetown University. Being of modest means I concluded it would be cheaper to live at home than in South Bend, Indiana, so I enrolled at Georgetown U.
As luck would have it a chance visit to The Tombs at 1226 36th St NW in July 1969 with friends resulted in meeting some Marymount girls! Long story short, I struck up a conversation with a cute redhead, recognized a good thing when I saw it, followed up later and we eventually married right across the Potomac 11/13/1971 at Ft. Myer, VA.
We always enjoy visiting Georgetown on our trips back east from the Dallas area where we have lived 34 years. With two grown sons, both married with two kids (one redhead each), Kathy and I are now retired. We enjoy cruises, with two since the restart and another booked for April.
The Kernan’s have been married for over 50 years and are now retired together. Photo courtesy Pat Kernan.
My brother Jim Kernan and his wife Chris are an integral part of the youth basketball program at St. Ann’s. The parish a few years ago named the court after them!
A great venue for our Kernan family reunion later this month!
St. Ann’s named their basketball court — the site of the Kernan family reunion — after Pat’s brother, Jim Kernan. Photo courtesy Pat Kernan.
Thank you, Pat! We are so very grateful for your lovely story. You and your wife are an inspiration. You make it look so easy!
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To learn more about the Mapping Georgetown project see https://georgetowner.com/articles/2021/07/19/marilyn-butlers-vision-for-mapping-georgetown/.
To submit your Georgetown recollections to Mapping Georgetown go to www.mappinggeorgetown.com or visit the Georgetown Public Library to pick up a physical map-story form to fill out.
Marilyn Butler can be reached at marilyn.butler@gmail.com.
