First Word Archives
Trailblazers Past & Present
“The Irish in Boston, as elsewhere, have an ability to see opportunity where there was…
The First Word: “People Forget So Quickly”
Patricia Harty, Editor-in-Chief. As the room fills up with the members…
U.S. Elections and N.I.
Patricia Harty, Editor-in-Chief. With the election coming up in November, Irish…
More Articles
The First Word: We Are All Immigrants
And so it begins. A new year, and already a happy one with the election of an Irish mayor in Boston. And who better to embody the tough, tireless, tender trajectory of our […]
The First Word: Faugh A Ballagh
“The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” – William Faulkner, from Requiem for a Nun (1950) Irish America’s impact on the history of America is well established, as […]
The First Word: Grace and Healing
The First Word, by Patricia Harty. Our hearts weep for Boston. This most Irish of American cities has seen its share of tragedy, but when the bombings at the marathon […]
Country Girl
In this excerpt from her memoir, Edna O’Brien returns to Ireland to build a house in which she hopes to avail of the “peace that passeth understanding,” only to find […]
The First Word: Finding the Way
“First determine that the thing can and shall be done and then we shall find the way. – Abraham Lincoln As we go to press, we learn that Lincoln received […]
The First Word: Arch of Triumph
“[The Arch] is a soaring curve in the sky that links the rich heritage of yesterday with the richer future of tomorrow.” – Vice President Hubert Humphrey at the opening […]






