by Maggie Fitzgibbon
What does it mean to grow up Irish? When I posed this question to my three daughters and a few cousins, each shared with me their reflections on what being Irish means to them, and their childhood recollections.
My mother’s parents, William and Margaret Garvey, both emigrated from Ireland in the 1930s, married, bought land in Mendon, and raised a family of one boy and four girls. Each of those girls married an Irish immigrant; the oldest girl, Eileen, married Michael Culhane, Margaret married Patrick Fogarty, Bridget (my mother) married Seamus McGinnity and the youngest daughter, Louise, married Arthur Waters. The family story goes that William Garvey (my grandfather) would only allow my mother and aunts to date Irish boys. These marriages produced a large, extended and very close family who share a proud, Irish American lineage.
Being Irish is not something one just celebrates on St. Patrick’s Day but it’s part of one’s self-identity. Just ask my cousin, Bridget Culhane, Eileen’s oldest daughter: “It’s about listening to the uncles, their stories of Ireland and how they arrived in the United States. Or when the family is together at gatherings at McGinnity’s. It’s about attending fundraisers for the Irish Children’s Program, and many other Irish charity organizations. Or watching my Mom when she performed with her Irish dance group,” Culhane said.
Like me, Culhane grew up with the sounds of Irish music in her family home and to this day she still enjoys these same sounds.
“When you hear an Irish fiddle, your foot taps and you know that is the music you enjoy,” she said.
Culhane has many childhood memories of St. Patrick’s Day.
“In the days before the Rochester St. Patrick’s Day Parade was formally organized, a bunch of folks including my parents walked down Main Street in Rochester (on the sidewalks as they were not allowed to be in the street) on St. Patrick’s Day carrying the Irish and American flags. I remember how my parents allowed my sister and I to be absent from school on St. Patrick’s Day. We went to Mass and then visited friends and relatives,” she explained. Culhane served on this parade committee for over 20 years.
Like Culhane, my cousin Mary Lou Egan loves spending time with our large family and having a bit of the craic (the Irish word for fun or enjoyment that is pronounced crack). Egan grew up with the sounds of Irish music playing in her family home. She took Irish dance lessons with her sister, Anne.
“We practiced our dance steps in our basement as we listened to Irish music playing on my Dad’s jukebox,” Eagan said.
Cousin Sheila Waters-Olin describes being Irish as more than genetic; its part of who she is.
“Coming from a father who is an Irish immigrant and a mother whose parents were Irish immigrants, being Irish is in my genes, my soul and most of all, in my heart,” Olin said.
Olin said that being Irish is much more than celebrating on March 17. It’s about family, sharing memories, telling stories and laughing.
“I have such great memories of our family reunions in Mendon, watching my cousins compete in a Feis (an Irish dance competition and pronounced fesh) or going to the Catskill Mountains for the Irish Festival. There is the memory of going to Ireland to visit aunts, uncles and cousins that I didn’t know but leaving with a bond that can never be broken. It’s the times when our family is together that makes me appreciate what we have. When we are laughing, telling stories and singing Irish songs, that’s what being Irish is about,” Olin said.
In 1986, I married Michael Timothy Fitzgibbon and together, we raised three girls, Caitlin Regan, Mairead Diegnan and Shauna Donoghue. Each of our daughters bears the maiden name of one of our grandmothers. Michael also comes from a large Irish family. It was important to Michael and to me to pass along family traditions and customs to our own girls as a way of keeping our faith and culture alive for this next generation.
Caitlin, our oldest, recently married and she values the strong faith formation and ethics instilled in her and believes her heritage plays an important role in that foundation.
“You and Dad taught us to believe in God, to always do the right thing, and if you work hard good things will come. I am proud of my Irish heritage, that’s something I learned at an early age,” she explained. Sharing those family traditions are what she hopes to someday pass along to her own family like, “Family comes before anything else and always have meat, potatoes and vegetable with every meal,” Caitlin added.
Caitlin first began taking Irish dance lessons at the age of four and continued until she was 18. She now teaches Irish dance as she recently took over for me when I retired from teaching dance.
“The legacy of Irish dance continues. My love of Irish dance and good Irish music is part of who I am,” Caitlin said.
Being Irish means many things to our middle daughter Mairead (pronounced ma raid and is Gaelic for Margaret). She believes that strong family ties, dedication to hard work, a passion to help others and the love of Irish dance have made her a better person.
Having a large extended family is something Mairead treasures.
“I love having this type of family because I always know that someone is always there to support me in happy and in difficult times,” Mairead said.
Working hard to achieve their goals is something that our girls never shied away from.
“I learned the meaning of hard work by working at McGinnity’s. I can remember when we were little and being excited to help Grandma because I knew that I would learn something new. Papa would always smile ear to ear when we all were together working at McGinnity’s. I am proud of my Irish heritage because it has helped shape me as a strong person,” Mairead said.
Mairead studied Irish dance from the age of three until she was 18. Exploring this art form gave her many opportunities, “Irish dance is part of who I am. Dance taught me discipline and to have ambition to pursue goals,” Mairead said.
The love of a close-knit extended family and exploring her Irish culture is important to our youngest daughter, Shauna. Trips to Ireland with my Mom in 2009 for Mairead and in 2011 for Shauna, gave each the chance to visit family homesteads, connect with uncles, aunts and cousins, and discover their roots.
Irish soda bread, one of her favorite Irish foods, is what Shauna looks forward to upon arrival home from college. Her love of Irish music includes artists Flogging Molly and Dropkick Murphy’s. But one of her favorite songs is the “Unicorn” and Shauna knows all the lyrics. Michael taught our girls this song and not only do they know all the lyrics, but they know the hand motions, too.
Michael and I have always tried to instill a high work ethic in our girls and that includes working at the family business, McGinnity’s (Ridge Road, Rochester).
“We all work together and we work hard on St. Patrick’s Day but it’s not just working, we are celebrating, too. It’s fun to go into McGinnity’s when I’m home from college and know that I’ll be able to see my cousins, aunts and uncles,” Shauna said.
Working hard, a love of family and pride in one’s Irish heritage are common threads in our family. Being Irish is not something we just celebrate on St. Patrick’s Day; we celebrate our heritage all year long.
