PHS Steering Committee

  • Ed Curtin

    Ed Curtin, born and raised in Portland, traces his paternal family roots to Ballymacoda (grandfather Edmond) and Killeagh (grandmother Bridget Ahern) in East Cork. They came to Portland in 1908, settling in Lower Albina where Ed’s father, also Edmond, was born. Ed attended Holy Redeemer, Central Catholic, and Fordham (Bronx, NY), drove a taxi in Manhattan before embarking on careers as newspaper reporter/editor, elementary school teacher, and union organizer. His daughters are Marjorie Murphy, school leader in Evanston, Ill., and Abby Dacey, architect in Portland. Besides delving into Irish history and culture, Ed plays softball, bikes, gardens, and enjoys a pint now and again.

  • Bill Gallagher

    Bill Gallagher was born in San Francisco but has lived in Portland since 1983, so in a few years he can call himself an Oregonian. All four of his grandparents emigrated from the west of Ireland around the turn of the last century. He’s a graduate of Saint Ignatius College Prep and San Francisco State University. Over the years he’s worked at several radio stations. In the mid-nineties he hosted the top-rated radio talk show in Portland on KXL. Bill was president of the E.H. Deery Division of the Ancient Order of Hiberrnians from 2010 to 2023 when he took over those duties as the Portland Hibernian Society was formed. He has three sons, a grandson and three granddaughters.

  • Katie Hennessy

    Katie Hennessy is the granddaughter of Irish Immigrants who made their way to Portland, Oregon in the last years of the 19th Century. Some of Katie's family (Burke, Flynn and Ryan) reside in Counties Leitrim and Tipperary. Katie is a licensed clinical social worker. Katie and her husband Tim are members of St. Ignatius Parish in SE Portland. Importantly, they are parents, parents-in-law and grandparents of inspiring young people.

  • Tim Hennessy

    Tim Hennessy was born and grew up in and around Portland, Oregon. He is the grandson of Patrick Francis Hennessy who emigrated from Waterford, Ireland in 1877. Through this ancestor, Tim was able to obtain his Irish citizenship. His Irish ancestors hail from not only Waterford, but also Tipperary and Kilkenny. Tim spent half of his career in the Hi-tech industry and the second half working in the non-profit sector, including De La Salle North Catholic, University of Portland, C.A.S.A., and JVC Northwest. He and his wife enjoy their three children and many grandchildren.

  • David O'Longaigh

    From Dublin, David O’Longaigh moved to Portland in 1990. He’s a Charter member of Portland’s reestablished Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH) in 1998 and a proud member of the new Portland Hibernian Society since 2022. He’s a past member of the All Ireland Cultural Society of Oregon and was active in organizing the 1997 Commemoration of Ireland’s Great Hunger at Hibernian Hall at 128 NE Russel Street, now Wonder Ballroom. David has a passion for Portland’s and Oregon’s rich Irish historical legacy, culminating in working with his fellow Portland AOH members to bring from Donegal, the hand carved stone Irish Potato Famine Memorial at Mt. Calvary Cemetery. He loves to talk for hours about Dublin and St. Patrick’s Athletic Football Club over a Pilsner.

  • Mike Phillips

    Mike Phillips was born in Port Townsend and has lived in Portland for more than 20 years. His Irish lineage traces to Curran in County Mayo and Glenfarne (Cornbeg) in County Leitrim. He enjoys performing Irish folk music under the nom de plum folkefire, and acquired Irish citizenship in 2016. He became a dues-paying member of the Portland Hibernian Society under its previous iteration in 2012 and helps produce Irish cultural events. Mike and his wife Abbie were married in 2023 at Lough Inagh in Connemara and live in Woodstock with their cat Lou and dog Dubh.