Irish American Archives Society of Northeast Ohio

05/01/2026

Last call for Walks of Life tickets!

Meet our final 2026 Walks of Life Honoree:

Ann Marie Hawkins, Managing Member of Hawkins and Company, LLC, has notched more than forty years as an accountant and a lawyer. Part of the University of Notre Dame's first graduating class of women, she began her career as a Certified Public Accountant. Hawkins earned her Juris Doctor from Marquette University Law School in 1980 and soon after that was admitted to practice law in Ohio, Florida, Wisconsin, federal courts in the Northern District of Ohio, the Southern District of Florida, the Eastern and Western Districts of Wisconsin, the U.S. Tax Court, and the U.S. Supreme Court. Today, she serves clients in areas ranging from tax, real estate, and health care law to estate, trust, and probate law, helping clients to navigate the ever-changing intricacies of estate planning. In addition to her many accomplishments in the field of business law, she co-founded and has served as president of the Irish American Law Society of Cleveland. She is also on the Board of Trustees of the Cleveland Pops Orchestra. (Those are her parents, pictured, Ed and Dorothy Hawkins.) # # #

Six distinguished Clevelanders will join the ranks of our Walks of Life Honorees on May 7 at Windows on the River: Sr. Nancy Conway, CSJ Dr. Charles Garven Ann Marie Hawkins Thomas F. McManamon Al and Celine O’Leary Thursday, May 7, 2026 at Windows on the River 2000 Sycamore Street, Cleveland, OH 44113 5:30 VIP Reception • 6:00 Cash Bar Reception 6:30 Dinner • 7:30 Award Presentations Donation $75 ($35 charitable donation) or $150 VIP ticket ($90 charitable donation). Table Sponsorships and Ad opportunities also available. Assigned Seating - Free parking for dinner attendees Purchase tickets, sponsorships, and ads online at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2026-walks-of-life-awards-dinner-tickets-1982736078986?aff=oddtdtcreator

04/23/2026

Meet our fourth 2026 Walks of Life Honoree:
Sr. Nancy Conway, CSJ, entered religious life in 1966. Her sixty years as a member of the Congregation of St. Joseph have led her to assume a variety of roles. She began her religious life with eight years of teaching, subsequently serving as the CSJ Coordinator of Research and Development. She obtained a master’s degree in social work, advocating for women at Woman Space and at Metro Health Medical Center. From 1984-1989, she served on the Cleveland Congregation’s leadership team. She also pursued a PhD in Organizational Development, which led her to co-found Organizational Leadership Inc., a consulting firm that reached 130 congregations of women religious for 27 years. After helping to guide the union of seven Congregations of St. Joseph, she served two terms, from 2007-2018, on the leadership team of the unified Congregation. She is currently an engagement specialist with Hoffman Planning, Design & Construction, Inc., which has a practice focused on meeting the facility needs of religious congregations. # # #

Six distinguished Clevelanders will join the ranks of our Walks of Life Honorees on May 7 at Windows on the River: Sr. Nancy Conway, CSJ Dr. Charles Garven Ann Marie Hawkins Thomas F. McManamon Al and Celine O’Leary Thursday, May 7, 2026 at Windows on the River 2000 Sycamore Street, Cleveland, OH 44113 5:30 VIP Reception • 6:00 Cash Bar Reception 6:30 Dinner • 7:30 Award Presentations Donation $75 ($35 charitable donation) or $150 VIP ticket ($90 charitable donation). Table Sponsorships and Ad opportunities also available. Assigned Seating - Free parking for dinner attendees Purchase tickets, sponsorships, and ads online at https://www.eventbrite.com/.../2026-walks-of-life-awards...

04/17/2026

Meet our third 2026 Walks of Life Honoree:

Dr. Charles Garven has been a family physician, educator, healthcare executive, and medical mission volunteer in Honduras. After earning his medical degree from Case Western Reserve University, his career has encompassed several leadership roles with the Cleveland Clinic, including as founding medical director for Rockport Family Medicine for Lakewood Hospital; lead physician at Cleveland Clinic Family Medicine, Rockport; and vice president of medical operations at the former Lakewood Hospital. He has worked with such charitable clinics as Neighborhood Family Practice and NorthCoast Health, also serving as the Chief Medical Officer for the Sisters of Charity Health System. He is an assistant professor in the Department of Family Medicine at CWRU’s Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine. He has served on the Cuyahoga County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services Board as well as the boards of Healthy Lakewood Foundation and Regina Health Center. # # #

Six distinguished Clevelanders will join the ranks of our Walks of Life Honorees on May 7 at Windows on the River: Sr. Nancy Conway, CSJ Dr. Charles Garven Ann Marie Hawkins Thomas F. McManamon Al and Celine O’Leary Thursday, May 7, 2026 at Windows on the River 2000 Sycamore Street, Cleveland, OH 44113 5:30 VIP Reception • 6:00 Cash Bar Reception 6:30 Dinner • 7:30 Award Presentations Donation $75 ($35 charitable donation) or $150 VIP ticket ($90 charitable donation). Table Sponsorships and Ad opportunities also available. Assigned Seating - Free parking for dinner attendees Purchase tickets, sponsorships, and ads online at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2026-walks-of-life-awards-dinner-tickets-1982736078986?aff=oddtdtcreator

04/16/2026

Another of our 2026 Walks of Life Honorees is TOM MCMANAMON!

Thomas F. McManamon, the principal of McManamon Insurance, has been in the insurance business for over 45 years. Tom started McManamon Insurance with his father in 1970, and in 1978 he became the principal producer of all property and casualty business within the firm. Tom became President of this three-generation family business in 1983, and by 1990 the firm’s sales had more than tripled. Often serving multi-generational clients, Tom has continued to guide the firm’s growth from a one-man agency into the multi-line firm it has become. McManamon has also played a key role in managing Cleveland’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade for a similar length of time, following his father and grandfather—all named Thomas McManamon—in this lifelong commitment.
and was honored as Parade Grand Marshal in 2022. He and his father are the only father-son duo to date who were named both Executive Directors and Grand Marshals. Tom has actively participated in the United Irish Societies for fifty-one years, receiving recognition as the organization’s longest serving member.

Six distinguished Clevelanders will join the ranks of our Walks of Life Honorees on May 7 at Windows on the River: Sr. Nancy Conway, CSJ Dr. Charles Garven Ann Marie Hawkins Thomas F. McManamon Al and Celine O’Leary Thursday, May 7, 2026 at Windows on the River 2000 Sycamore Street, Cleveland, OH 44113 5:30 VIP Reception • 6:00 Cash Bar Reception 6:30 Dinner • 7:30 Award Presentations Donation $75 ($35 charitable donation) or $150 VIP ticket ($90 charitable donation). Table Sponsorships and Ad opportunities also available. Assigned Seating - Free parking for dinner attendees Purchase tickets, sponsorships, and ads online at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2026-walks-of-life-awards-dinner-tickets-1982736078986?aff=oddtdtcreator

04/15/2026

Alphonsus and Mary Celine O’Leary are longtime stalwarts of Cleveland’s Irish American community. Although born in the United States, almost 100 years ago, Al O’Leary returned as a young child with his mother to Ireland, where he was raised on a farm in Curraghglass, County Tipperary. O’Leary enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1944 and found his way to Cleveland after discharge. He quickly became involved here in playing traditional Irish music and sports, helping to form a Gaelic Hurling team in 1951 and an Irish Musician’s Club in 1958. He and his wife, Mary Celine McNamara, an immigrant from Achill Island in County Mayo, met at the West Side American Club on Madison Avenue. For decades, the couple spearheaded an annual St. Patrick’s Day dance, co-sponsored by the Musician’s Club. Both have been faithful members of the Pioneers Total Abstinence Association. Al O’Leary was honored as Grand Marshal of Cleveland’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade in 1993 and Celine O’Leary as Irish Mother of the Year in 1997. Al still leads a traditional Irish music session at the Plank Road Tavern most Thursdays. The Akron Hurling Club runs an annual tournament in honor of the family's longtime commitment to Gaelic sports.

Six distinguished Clevelanders will join the ranks of our Walks of Life Honorees on May 7 at Windows on the River:

Sr. Nancy Conway, CSJ
Dr. Charles Garven
Ann Marie Hawkins
Thomas F. McManamon
Al and Celine O’Leary
Thursday, May 7, 2026 at Windows on the River
2000 Sycamore Street, Cleveland, OH 44113

5:30 VIP Reception • 6:00 Cash Bar Reception
6:30 Dinner • 7:30 Award Presentations

Donation $75 ($35 charitable donation) or $150 VIP ticket ($90 charitable donation). Table Sponsorships and Ad opportunities also available.
Assigned Seating - Free parking for dinner attendees

Purchase tickets, sponsorships, and ads online at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2026-walks-of-life-awards-dinner-tickets-1982736078986?aff=oddtdtcreator

04/08/2026

Free talk tonight, Wednesday night, at 7 pm at P.J. McIntyre's (downstairs): Irishtown Bend Past and Present

**Venue Change to P.J. MCINTYRE'S**

Irishtown Bend Talk
Wednesday, April 8, 7 pm
P. J. MCINTYRE'S IRISH PUB
Bridgie Ned Room
17119 Lorain Ave, Cleveland, OH 44111

IAAS director Margaret Lynch speaks about Cleveland's forgotten Irishtown Bend neighborhood and previews plans for the upcoming park. Grab a pint and enjoy a free talk and conversation. Ample free parking behind the pub.

Irishtown Bend prints will be sold after the talk.

04/01/2026

**Venue Change to P.J. MCINTYRE'S**

Irishtown Bend Talk
Wednesday, April 8, 7 pm
P. J. MCINTYRE'S IRISH PUB
Bridgie Ned Room
17119 Lorain Ave, Cleveland, OH 44111

IAAS director Margaret Lynch speaks about Cleveland's forgotten Irishtown Bend neighborhood and previews plans for the upcoming park. Grab a pint and enjoy a free talk and conversation. Ample free parking behind the pub.

Irishtown Bend prints will be sold after the talk.

03/26/2026

Six distinguished Clevelanders will join the ranks of our Walks of Life Honorees on May 7 at Windows on the River:

Sr. Nancy Conway, CSJ
Dr. Charles Garven
Ann Marie Hawkins
Thomas F. McManamon
Al and Celine O’Leary

Thursday, May 7, 2026 at Windows on the River
2000 Sycamore Street, Cleveland, OH 44113

5:30 VIP Reception • 6:00 Cash Bar Reception
6:30 Dinner • 7:30 Award Presentations

Donation $75 ($35 charitable donation) or $150 VIP ticket ($90 charitable donation). Table Sponsorships and Ad opportunities also available.
Assigned Seating - Free parking for dinner attendees

Paper invitations are in the mail. OR
Purchase tickets, sponsorships, and ads online at

The Walks of Life Awards recognize distinguished living Clevelanders of Irish descent who have excelled in various fields of endeavor.

03/25/2026

Johnny Kilbane enjoyed the Parade season!!!

Johnny was dressed up for St. Patrick's Day with a Guarantors' Sash this year! Photo courtesy of our sculpture "guardian" Mary Catherine Conway!

03/18/2026

Irishtown Bend talks coming up!
Saturday, March 21, 10 am - 1 pm, Irishtown Bend Symposium. Includes several talks about aspects of Irishtown Bend--the history of a forgotten Cleveland neighborhood, along with plans for the Irishtown Bend Park. This event is free, but advance registration is required. https://www.clevelandmetroparks.com/parks/visit/parks/ohio-erie-canal-reservation/canalway-center --events

Wednesday, April 8, Five Points Coffee Shebeen, 3601 W Park Rd, Cleveland, OH 44111; Doors open at 6:30 pm; Free Talk at 7 pm. IAAS director Margaret Lynch speaks about Irishtown Bend Past and Present.

Irishtown Bend prints will be sold after both events.

View one of the CanalWay Center interpretive programs or an indoor exhibit at the Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation. Stop in on your hike on the Towpath Trail!