As a spokesman for the American Academy of Pediatrics, Dr. Sean O'Leary talks about the impact of coronavirus on school openings. In this interview with Tom Deignan, he also talks about his heritage and the traditions that helped shaped his identity. Dr. Sean O’Leary has vivid memories of lively family reunions from his youth, which took place in lesser-known … [Read more...] about Keeping Children Safe
Tom Deignan
Reagan Democrats, Biden Time, and The Irish Swing Vote
If things were never simple they are even more complicated now, when we talk about the “Irish vote” as the 2020 presidential election nears. A 2017 Newsweek headline put it bluntly: “Why are all the conservative loudmouths Irish American.” The short answer: Um, they’re not. The longer answer: It’s complicated. But 2020 may finally be the year we recognize the many shades of … [Read more...] about Reagan Democrats, Biden Time, and The Irish Swing Vote
The Pull Of The Stars
By Tom Deignan Best-Selling Dublin-born author Emma Donoghue has a brilliant and timely new novel out. Set in an Irish maternity ward during the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918, The Pull of the Stars explores the challenges and heroism of nurses and other health care workers, while at the same time tenderly chronicling the loves and losses of their inner lives. Tom Deignan … [Read more...] about The Pull Of The Stars
Father-Son Sea Saga
60 Years in the Making
By Tom Deignan
This past Father’s Day, Kelly Walsh went a long way to pay tribute to his Dad – almost 40,000 feet under the sea.
Kelly’s father, Don, is one of only a handful of other human beings who have explored the ocean at such great depth.
“It’s been such a once in a lifetime experience, to complete this circle with my dad,” said Kelly Walsh, 52, speaking to Irish … [Read more...] about Father-Son Sea Saga60 Years in the Making
A Teacher Learns A Lesson
By Tom Deignan About a month ago, if you’d asked me how things were going, I could only shrug. Busy, busy, busy. My day job as an English teacher sends me on an hour and 45 minute trek from New Jersey to Brooklyn - at a high school Mondays through Fridays, and a college on Saturdays. There’s also an after-school class wedged in there two days a week. I’ve found … [Read more...] about A Teacher Learns A Lesson