Irish American James Callahan, the president of the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE), is looking forward to finally leading the march for the NYC St. Patrick's Day Parade after two postponements.
James Callahan, Grand Marshal of the 2022 New York City St. Patrick's Day Parade, believes he could be the answer to the threat! one day. Q: Who is the longest-serving Grand Marshal at the world's most famous St. Patrick's March?
"It's been a long time and I have three sashes to prove it," laughs Callahan, general president of the 400,000-member International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) in North America.
The three years as Grand Marshal are unprecedented, but thanks to the coronavirus pandemic that shocked the world in March of 2020, Callahan's march up Fifth Avenue was postponed until now. A much shorter pre-dawn, No Crowd March will be replaced with the usual band and pageantry this Thursday, March 17, to keep the parade's 260-year tradition alive, with Callahan leading the way. ready for
“It has been a great honor and it is quite real to be chosen to lead the biggest parade in the world,” Callahan told The Irish Voice, sister publication, during Monday's interview to Irish Central.
“It is only fitting that after two years and all the hardships through that parade we are returning to Fifth Avenue. What better sign of the start of spring than a parade, which is a great sign that we are ahead. ready to grow."
Covid-19 halted what should have been Callahan's time to lead the 2020 parade, but the world was quickly falling apart and an Irish party was not a priority.
“The devastation put everything in perspective, people were suffering. Being Grand Marshal was not a matter of life or death," Callahan recalled.
It had been assumed that 2021 would see the Irish return to Fifth Avenue, but as the pandemic raged and vaccines became available, a full-on parade was not on the cards. Which meant Callahan had to put his other sash back in the drawer.
"By the time we got to the end of 2020, the writing was on the wall for 2021. So I pushed it because there was nothing that could be done and people were dying and suffering," Callahan said.
He offered to step down as Grand Marshal for the year to give someone else the opportunity, but Parade President Sean Lane did not hear about it.
So this is a third time lucky for the native Long Islander. If things go wrong in two weeks by some crazy coincidence, Callahan thinks it will be his fault.
"Believe me, there are people across the country whom I know who have brought to my attention, that I may have bad luck," he laughs.
With all four of her grandparents being natives of Ireland, Callahan was steeped in Irish traditions, growing up in the Nassau county town of Hicksville. He even used to play hookie with his friends on March 17th and ride the Long Island Railroad in Manhattan.
"It's certainly funny to think that from that point forward, one day I'll be leading the parade," he says.
Callahans were regulars at local Irish events when they weren't working hard. Callahan's maternal grandfather, Ko from Cork, was an operating engineer who immigrated to Boston and stopped working in excavations of seaways and canals throughout New York. His father was employed in Pan American Airways.
Talk about the dining table often centered around union events and young Jim, who liked to fix cars in his spare time, was paying attention.
“Joining a union was always on my mind, but I must say as a tribute to my parents, they supported all opportunities for their children. I have a brother who is a nurse anesthetist and two brothers who is in construction management. My father was not insistent that we have to do union jobs,” Callahan recalled.
Callahan secured a union job as a heavy equipment mechanic and earned a bachelor's degree in crane work, fixing and assembling giant machines at various New York City job sites. The job is as high-tech as it sounds — "fixing cars was really helpful when I was growing up," he notes — and he eventually transitioned into management, becoming a shop manager. In 1993, he was the maintenance foreman in the parking garage of the World Trade Center, which is to be rebuilt after the 1993 terrorist attack.
"After eight years, as a local union trade agent, Callahan found himself back in the World Trade Center. This time, he was one of several operating engineers who quickly responded to the September 11 tragedy and were at Ground Zero. Remained to work through the entire recovery effort,” his official biography notes.
In April 2013, Callahan was elected to his first full term as general president of the IUOE, which is based in Washington, D.C. Callahan is a frequent commuter between the nation's capital and his home base on Long Island.
“I always try and stand on the shoulders of those who came before me. The job is great but can be challenging at times. I have a wonderful administration. We strive for our members and ensure that they get proper compensation and can retire with dignity when the time comes,” he said.
Callahan thinks the task is made easy by Joe Biden, the current White House occupant.
“The administration is friendly to the union. We have a President who is not afraid to say the word Sangh. One of the things we have faced with past administrations - and will do again with future ones - is that they feel that those who work for a living should not have a voice. And that has been a matter of great concern for us."
IUOE represents highly skilled workers throughout the United States and Canada, including heavy equipment operators, mechanics and engineers who run operations and maintenance tasks in large buildings. Chances are high pressure boilers or AC units in large city buildings are run by IUOE members.
Changing building safety codes mandated by the CDC forced many of those workers to pivot during the pandemic. “Our members made sure our cities were viable and ready to reopen. My operating engineers kept our buildings safe. He took on challenges with ease,” Callahan noted.
Callahan and his wife Fran have three sons, all of whom will march with him on March 17, as will members of his extended family and plenty of friends. It will be a proud day with the parade's planned tribute to the first responders who have worked through thick and thin over the past two years.
"They are the real heroes. And in some cases, their work was politicized. These men and women made sure our country survives. I can't say enough about them," Callahan says. "And I'm St. Patrick Looking forward to being with him for the day."