The trailblazing Connaghan family in Philadelphia will be inducted into the Delaware Valley Irish Hall of Fame this Sunday in honour of their contribution to the Irish-American community.
Tom Conaghan, formerly of Doorin, Mountcharles, has spent over fifty years contributing to the greater good of the Irish-American community in Philadelphia.
The Conaghan Family frequently come home to Doorin, and they accept this great honour with an abundance of gratitude.
As an immigrant who arrived in Philadelphia on July 4 (Independence Day), 1972, Tom Conaghan quickly became involved with the Irish Immigration Reform Movement and Gaelic Assistance Association.
As President of the Donegal Association of Philadelphia, he advocated for the establishment of the Donegal Gaelic Football Team and Philadelphia’s participation in the Mary from Dungloe Festival in Ireland. Thirty-five years later, both are going strong.
Tom was elected President of the Federation of Irish-American Societies of the Delaware Valley. During his tenure, the Federation and other organizations played a vital role in the peace process. Tom was invited by the National Security Counsel to numerous meetings in the West Wing of the White House as part of a small working group from Irish America to advise President Clinton on peace negotiations. Clinton’s peace initiatives, with the appointment of Senator George Mitchell as lead peace negotiator, culminated with the Good Friday Agreement of 1998.
After the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, later in October of that year, Tom founded the Irish Immigration Center of Philadelphia, now known as the Irish Diaspora Center. Tom was honoured as its founder during its 25th Anniversary Celebration this October. The Center continues to provide much-needed services such as legal counselling on immigration, education, and employment and serves as a community hub.
His wife, Mary (O’Malley) of Brenter, Co. Donegal, and daughters, Sarah, Karen, and Mary, established the Philadelphia Rose of Tralee Center in 2002. Realising that one of Ireland’s most beloved, largest, and longest-running festivals was missing representation from a major Irish-American city, they took the initiative and put in the footwork to put Philadelphia on an international stage. Since then, twenty young notable women have represented Philadelphia in Ireland. In 2004, Philly’s own Sinead DeRoiste made history as the first Irish African-American Rose. Maria Walsh, who represented Philadelphia in 2014 and was crowned the International Rose of Tralee, is now a Member of the European Parliament. The opportunities granted and connections made through the Rose of Tralee International Festival have been instrumental in empowering our younger generation of Irish American women who are now paving the way for others to realize their dreams while representing our unique, diverse city and celebrating their Irish culture.
The Delaware Valley Irish Hall of Fame award will be presented this Sunday, November 12, at the Commodore Barry Irish Arts and Cultural Center.
