Irish America Hall of Fame

The Irish America Hall of Fame was founded by Irish America magazine in November 2010. It recognizes extraordinary figures in the Irish American community who have had a profound effect on the Irish in America and strengthened the bonds between the United States and Ireland.

The Irish America Hall of Fame is the centerpiece of the Dunbrody (2001) Famine Ship's new Emigration History Visitor Center in New Ross, Co. Wexford. It was developed in collaboration with publishers Niall O'Dowd and Patricia Harty of Irish America Magazine. The exhibition celebrates the lives, works, and achievements of noted Irish individuals such as: President John F. Kennedy and the Kennedys, Henry Ford, Donald Keough, and President Clinton.

Honorees

2010 Inductees

• Donald Keough : Chairman of the Board of Allen & Company Inc.; Former president, COO, and a director of The Coca-Cola Company — Inducted November 2010

2011 Inductees

• Dr. Kevin Cahill : Medical Doctor and Chief Medical Advisor for Counterterrorism — Inducted March 2011^[1]
• Bill Clinton : 42nd President of the United States — Inducted March 2011^[2]
• Mary Higgins Clark : World-renowned author of suspense novels — Inducted March 2011^[3]
• Charles Feeney : Entrepreneur, Philanthropist, and Humanitarian — Inducted March 2011^[4]
• Michael Flatley : Lord of the Dance — Inducted March 2011^[5]
• William J. Flynn: President and CEO of the Mutual of America and chairman of the National Committee on American Foreign Policy — Inducted March 2011^[6]
• Denis P. Kelleher : Founder, chairman and CEO of Wall Street Access — Inducted March 2011^[7]
• Jean Kennedy Smith : American diplomat, former United States Ambassador to Ireland, founder of Very Special Arts — Inducted March 2011^[8]
• James D. Watson : joint 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for mapping the structure of DNA — Inducted March 2011^[9]
• Maureen O'Hara : Irish actress and legend of the American silver screen — Inducted July 2011
• Bill Ford, Jr. : Executive chairman of Ford Motor Company — Inducted December 2011^[10]

2012 Inductees

• Loretta Brennan Glucksman : Advocate for Ireland — Inducted March 2012^[11]
• Ray Kelly : New York City Police Commissioner — Inducted March 2012^[12]
• John Lahey : President of Quinnipiac University — Inducted March 2012^[13]
• Tom Moran : Chairman, president, and CEO of Mutual of America — Inducted March 2012^[14]
• Kevin Roche : Architect — Inducted March 2012^[15]

2013 Inductees

• Joe Biden : Vice President of the United States — Inducted March 2013^[16] and addressed immigration reform in his keynote speech.^[17]
• Brian P. Burns : Chairman of BF Enterprises, Inc. — Inducted March 2013^[18]
• Robert M. Devlin : Chairman of Curragh Capital Partners — Inducted March 2013^[19]
• John Fitzpatrick : President and CEO of Fitzpatrick Hotel Group, North America — Inducted March 2013^[20]
• Bruce Morrison : Former U.S. Congressman and head of Morrison Public Affairs Advocacy Group — Inducted March 2013^[21]

2014 Inductees

• Christine Kinealy: author and founding director of the Ireland's Great Hunger Institute at Quinnipiac University

2015 Inductees

• Hillary Clinton : Politician - Inducted March 16, 2015 ^[22]
• Robert J. "Bob" McCann: CEO of UBS Group Americas and Wealth Management Americas
• Patrick Quinn: creator of the Ice Bucket Challenge, which has raised over $100 million in donations for ALS research

2016 Inductees

• President Bill Clinton: Lifetime Achievement award "in recognition of his extraordinary role in bringing peace to Northern Ireland."
• Eileen Collins: Astronaut, NASA's first female space shuttle commander
• General Martin Dempsey: former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
• Pete Hamill: novelist, essayist, and journalist
• Edward J.T. Kenny: special consultant at Mutual of America.^[23]

2017 Inductees

• William C. Campbell: joint 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
• Michael J. Dowling: university professor and health service executive
• Tesa Fitzgerald: nun of the order of the Sisters of St. Joseph and the founder of non-profit organization Hour Children
• Terence M. O'Sullivan: labor union leader Laborers' International Union of North America
• Kevin White: athletic director

2018 Inductees

• John O. Brennan: former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
• Jerry Brown: Governor of California
• Dennis P. Long: president and chief operating officer of Anheuser-Busch
• Kelli O'Hara: actress and singer

2019 Inductees

• John C. Dearie: lawyer and politician New York State Assembly
• Adrien Flannelly: radio broadcaster, 'Dean of Irish Radio in the U.S.'
• Terry George: screenwriter and director; In the Name of the Father, Some Mother's Son,
• Charlotte Moore: stage actress; artistic director and co-founder of the Irish Repertory Theatre
• Arturo O'Farrill: pianist, composer, and director for the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra.

2020 Inductees

• Jean Butler: dancer, actress and musician, Riverdance
• Judy Collins: singer-songwriter and musician
• Patrick Doherty: New York State comptroller and promoter of MacBride Principles
• Thomas Kelly: teacher, school principal, district superintendent
• Sean McGarvey: labor union leader International Union of Painters and Allied Trades

2022 Inductee

• Denis O'Brien: billionaire businessman, and the founder and owner of Digicel^[24]

2024 Inductees

• John Feerick: Sidney C. Norris Chair of Law in Public Service, Fordham University
• Joanie Madden: traditional musician, Cherish the Ladies
• Patrick Boland: Orthopaedic Surgeon^[25]