Axios Finish Line: Stay home
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Illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios
Books, movies and songs celebrate the mobility of America, cheering on the striver who wants to leave home and find their riches somewhere... else.
- Those inspirational stories often overlook the power of the people who choose to stay home and devote their skills and strengths to the town that made them.
Why it matters: Dreamers make good main characters, but every city, town, hamlet and township has families (it's rarely just one) that set deep, multi-generational roots.
Case in point: Holyoke, Massachusetts, a mill town on the Connecticut River, was incorporated in 1873. It lays claim to being the first planned industrial city in America, and within 10 years of its incorporation, the Moriarty family arrived, via my great grandfather Daniel "Satchel" Moriarty, formerly of County Kerry in Ireland.
- He worked in those new mills, built a family and became an active member of early Irish organizations in the city.
Daniel's oldest son, Cornelius, started his career as a local journalist before going to Catholic University law school in Washington, D.C. He came home, got married and raised his family (two sons and a daughter) in town. Very active politically, he helped create the first Holyoke St. Patrick's Day parade in 1952.
- That parade, in this small city, has grown to become a massive annual event that generates more than $20 million each year.
- This generation laid the foundation for an event that infuses itself in every Holyoker, wherever they live. It's truly the tie that binds.
Cornelius' two sons, Jack and Neil Jr., joined him in his law practice in Holyoke, married and raised their families (11 and 5 children, respectively). Jack became a Massachusetts Superior Court judge in 1971, and served on the bench to his retirement. Neil practiced in town his whole life, and served with particular distinction on the Holyoke Gas & Electric Commission.
- Both were members of the parade committee, and in 1979, Jack was honored as grand marshal of the parade his dad "Nelius" helped create.
Several of Jack's kids began their lives and careers in Holyoke, and remained active in the city. But the family is not done yet. His granddaughter Kelsey is a lawyer, who is active on the parade committee today.
Neil's oldest children and my siblings, Mike and Liz, both stayed in town and raised their families. Liz lived and worked in town, actively serving her church and helping fellow Holyokers.
- Mike, currently executive director of OneHolyokeCDC, served two terms on the Massachusetts State Board of Education, and he has spent years on the parade committee. This year, he joins his Uncle Jack as the second of Satchel's heirs to be grand marshal of the parade.
My life took me away from Holyoke, and I don't regret that. But it's special to go back and show my kids their grandparents' and great-grandparents' homes, and then go past their uncle's office and the public library that their grandma helped rehabilitate. My kids' won't be Holyokers, but they will know Holyoke, from its early days until today.
The bottom line: Cities across the country have families like this, and this is just one example.
- I'd love to hear from you about the families that provide an eminent backbone to your hometown at [email protected].
