By: Adam Dodson

On Saturday, the Tally Ho celebrated St. Patrick’s Day with green beer, good cheer and a worthy cause.

Paul Wilkerson, owner of Tally Ho, tries to make it a memorable occasion through unusual methods, such as serving green drinks.

This year’s special was a green beer called White Zombie. In previous years, Wilkerson said they have served other green refreshments, such as Chardonnay.

“No one really does a lot here for Saint Patty’s. We try to have fun and get people to come out ready to have a good time,” Wilkerson said. “This year we have a keg of beer, and the whole keg is green.”

To top it all off, Tally Ho picks a local organization each year, with whom they  work with to assist them financially alongside the Saint Patrick’s celebrations.

This year, after what Wilkerson said was high popular demand to choose them, the Dallas County Family Resource Center will be the recipient of the financial benefits of teaming up with Tally Ho during the holiday.

For Saint Patrick’s Day, Tally Ho allowed the Family Resource Center to host a raffle near the front of the restaurant to benefit their causes, which include finding ways to assist families in financial education, child protection, financial aid and other tactics to improve at-risk families’ quality of life.

According to James Thomas, executive director of DCFRC, there were 33 items to be raffled off throughout dinner time and later on into the night.

These items included $1 ticket items, such as cakes, decorative items and homemade items. Participants also had the option of purchasing a $5 ticket, which puts an individual in the competition to win a one-week beach house vacation on Dauphin Island.

With no set goal in mind, Thomas remarked that he was just happy to be part of a tradition that dates back to Wilkerson’s father, the former owner, from the 1980s.

With a long-standing relationship with Wilkerson and Tally-Ho, Holmes was pleased to receive some financial support from the community.

“I feel like we do a lot and provide a plethora of services to the community,” Thomas said. “So, we enjoy the community doing something back for us. We try to give people a hand up so they don’t need a hand out.”

It is unknown how much money was raised as a result of the Saint Patrick’s festivities.

According to Wilkerson, the traditional community benefit on Saint Patrick’s Day has been able to stride along for almost 40 years thanks to the members of Selma striving to keep it going.

For more information about the Dallas County Family Resource Center, visit their Facebook at “Dallas County Family Resource Center.”

For more information about Tally Ho, visit their website at www.tallyhoselma.com.