By: Chris Munzing
But the AOH does more than just throw one heck of a party in the West End in October. The organization is dedicated to improving the quality of life in Long Beach through charity and community service.
"Everything we do gets turned right back into the community," said Vice President Mike McCarthy. McCarthy said that the organizations that benefit from AOH assistance are as diverse as the city itself.
The American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Mercy Medical Center, and the Special Olympics are organizations that have received donations from the AOH. "We donate to Long Beach Catholic Regional School," McCarthy said. "We actually funded their whole computer room."
Ray McCann, a charter member of the Long Beach division, said the Hibernians offer their assistance wherever they can. According to McCann, in the past the AOH has donated to the families of sick children and assisted veterans at the fishing pier on Magnolia Boulevard by providing sandwiches and drinks. "Wherever we can help, we help," McCann said.
McCann added that one of the most enjoyable things for the AOH is the sponsorship of Little League and junior sports teams in Long Beach. "We never turn those organizations down," he said. "Those little teams need sponsorships to keep playing."
McCarthy said that the Long Beach division of the AOH is the largest in Nassau County, and boasts an age-diverse membership of more than 300. "Everyone looks at the AOH as retirees, but our division, like the city, is so diverse," McCarthy said. "The division is attracting younger members. In the last few years we've registered close to 50 people in the 23-to-35 age range."
Along with Irish Day, the AOH sponsors 50/50 drawings twice a year, fishing trips and annual picnics, Christmas parties and golf outings. The golf outing raises money for college scholarships.
The Long Beach division of the AOH was formed in 1988, but the Ancient Order of Hibernians is the oldest Catholic lay organization in America. Officially founded in New York on May 4, 1836, it was created centuries earlier in Ireland by those trying to protect their way of life from invaders, according to AOH National Historian Mike McCormack.
In America, the AOH assisted incoming Irish immigrants in finding jobs and services, and served to protect the Irish culture and defend attacks on the Roman Catholic church.
As time went on and anti-Irish sentiments dwindled, the AOH turned its attention from defending the church to community service and charity. Today it is the largest Irish society in the world, with divisions in Ireland and 49 of the 50 states.
Membership in the AOH, which McCann said is a million strong nationwide, is limited to Irish Roman-Catholic men at least 16 years old, but there is also an AOH Junior/Boys Division, as well as a Ladies AOH. Membership requirements are the same for women, though they can also become members by being wives or mothers of AOH members.
