NEW YORK COUNTY LAOIS ASSOCIATION
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Saturday, March 16, 2019
Assembly Time: Please note the parade will be held on March 16. County Laois will
assemble at 3.20 pm near 48 West 48th St., between 5th and 6th Aves. We will march behind
County Wicklow and ahead of County Carlow. Please respect the parade committee’s
dress code, which includes no sneakers, jeans, or inappropriate dress or head attire.
Delegation from County Laois: Laois County Council have kindly accepted the Laois
Association’s invitation to join us in the parade in addition to attending Mass at 8 am
that morning in St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The delegation will include John King, the County
Cathaoirleach (Chairman), and Gerry Murphy, Head of Finance, together with their wives
and John King’s son.
Additionally, Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan will be visiting New York and hopes to
greet the Laois members on West 48th St. We look forward to meeting the Minister again.
Laois Grand Marshal: Michael Erlinger has enthusiastically accepted the Laois Association’s
invitation to serve as our Grand Marshal. His journey to this moment began nearly two
decades ago when Laura Dunphy, who is now his wife, invited him to join us. After marching
every year since, he is now proud to be leading us up Fifth Avenue. Michael has Irish heritage
on both sides of his family tree: Moran on his father’s side and Shea on his mother’s. He took
his first trip to Ireland in 2001, when he joined the Dunphy family for a wedding—and
proposed to Laura.
An entertainment attorney, Michael is currently serving as SVP Business Affairs, TV and
Video for Meredith Corp., the largest magazine publisher in the world, with titles including
People, Sports Illustrated, InStyle, and Real Simple. In 2018, he was awarded an Emmy for
Outstanding Digital Innovation for Capturing Everest, the first virtual reality experience
documenting a bottom-to-top ascent of Mount Everest.
Michael is a graduate of UCLA Law School and Georgetown University. He will be joined at
the parade by his wife, Laura, and their children, Sophie and Desmond, as well as Michael’s
parents, John and Rosemary Erlinger, who have travelled from Los Angeles to march with
County Laois since 2003.
Bill McEvoy: Our senior Laois statesman has just celebrated his 96th birthday and once again
is thrilled to march with us on St. Patrick’s Day. Congratulations, Bill, and many more healthy
and exciting years! Bill, who was the inspiration and founding member of Ceoltas Ceoltori
na hEireann (https://comhaltas.ie) in the U.S. and Canada, continues to actively promote its
goals towards the preservation and promotion of Irish traditional music. He still plays the
fiddle in his own band on special occasions, including St. Patrick’s Day evening.
Tom Phelan: Our grand marshal in 2017, Laois author Tom Phelan, is about to launch his
seventh book. Tom’s memoir of his Mountmellick boyhood, We Were Rich and We Didn't Know
It, will be published March 5 by Gallery Books, a division of Simon and Schuster. It has
already received a number of excellent reviews.
Kirkus Reviews gave We Were Rich and We Didn’t Know It a starred review, indicating a book of
exceptional merit. It called the memoir "a tender recollection of growing up on a farm in
Ireland.” Publishers Weekly called the book “a rich and colorful snapshot of the times that
shaped him.” Newsday said it is "an evocative memoir, with echoes of Frank McCourt." And
the blog For the Love of Books says, “At a time when we have so much and are satisfied with
none of it, [Phelan’s] story is one of grace and beauty.”
Tom will talk about his Irish boyhood and read selections from his memoir on Monday,
March 18, at 7 p.m. at the Levittown Public Library, One Bluegrass La., Levittown, and on
Thursday, April 11, at 7 p.m. at the Freeport Memorial Library, 144 W. Merrick Rd., Freeport.
preorder, https://www.amazon.com/dp/1501197096
2019 Scholarship Contest: The St. Patrick’s Day Parade offers scholarships to high school and college students. You can see all of the rules and get the application on the Parade website,www.nycstpatricksparade.org. Click on “About Us” at the top. Then click on “2019 Scholarship Contest” for the application guidelines. Deadline is April 1st.
Important Websites
- (Note our blog is now linked to the United Irish Counties’ website.)
- County Laois News: laoistoday.ie.
Note: Thanks to Patricia Phelan for her help in editing this press release.
Contacts
Please send us your email address to facilitate sending our press releases and notifications.
See You on the Avenue...Le Chonaigh De
